A NEW method of forensic DNA analysis has created an unexpected headache for researchers studying the genetic roots of disease. To protect the privacy of research volunteers, the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) has abruptly pulled data off the web.
David Craig of the Translational Genomics Research Institute in Phoenix, Arizona, and his team have devised statistical algorithms which could help police to identify individual DNA profiles from a mixture comprising samples from more than 1000 people. While conventional forensic genetic markers can be difficult to identify in samples containing several people鈥檚 DNA, Craig鈥檚 algorithms analyse up to 50,000 genetic variants called single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (PLoS Genetics, ).
Researchers, though, use SNPs to locate genes associated with disease susceptibility, often posting their results on the web. Someone armed with an individual鈥檚 SNP profile, or that of a close relative, could use Craig鈥檚 method to analyse pooled results to determine whether the person had taken part in a genetic study, and whether they were in the group diagnosed with the disease.
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鈥淎rmed with someone鈥檚 DNA profile you could determine whether they had a disease鈥�
The privacy threat is small as it is unlikely that someone would possess a volunteer鈥檚 DNA profile. 鈥淣IH did the right thing in applying the precautionary principle,鈥� says Kathy Hudson, director of the Genetics and Public Policy Center in Washington DC.
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