GENETIC-MAPPING OF SUSCEPTIBILITY LOCI IN THE GENES INVOLVED IN RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS

Eighty-nine multicase rheumatoid arthritis families, each containing a t least one affected sib pair, have been studied for evidence of genet ic linkage to a panel of 315 microsatellite DNA markers. The families were located through the UK national data repository of the Arthritis and Rheumatism Council. Microsatellites were genotyped by semiautomate d technology using Applied Biosystems sequencers (ABI 373). Using the SIBPAIR statistical package, linkage to HLA was confirmed (p < 0.0003) . Several possible linkages outside HLA were noted, including at least one (p < 0.004) that merits further investigation.