IgA nephropathy is the commonest form of glomerulonephritis worldwide, but we still know relatively little about its pathogenesis. Potentially, genetic studies might provide new insights and suggest novel therapeutic approaches to this important cause of chronic kidney disease. Two approaches that are likely to yield new information are analysis of multiply affected pedigrees and large-scale, w...

The genetic basis for autoimmunity in New Zealand mice has been investigated for two decades. These studies have suggested that several genes underlie the autoimmune process (1-10). The advent of new murine models of autoimmunity that display some of the traits of NZB mice while lacking others has led to a resurgence of interest in the genetic basis for autoimmunity (11-14). The major question ...

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common autoimmune disease that results in significant morbidity. As with other complex disorders, genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have greatly contributed to the current understanding of RA etiology. In this review, we describe the genetic configuration of RA as revealed primarily through GWASs and their meta-analyses. In addition, we discuss the pathologi...