The genetics of age-related macular degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is increasingly recognized as a comp lex genetic disorder in which one or more genes contribute to an individual 's susceptibility for developing the condition. Twin and family studies as well as population-based genetic epidemiologic methods have convincingly de monstrated the importance of genetics in AMD, though the extent of heritabi lity, the number of genes involved, and the phenotypic and genetic heteroge neity of the condition remain unresolved. The extent to which other heredit ary macular dystrophies such as Stargardts disease, familial radial drusen (malattia leventinese), Best's disease, and peripherin/RDS-related dystroph y are related to AMD remains unclear. Alzheimer's disease, another late ons et, heterogeneous degenerative disorder of the central nervous system, offe rs a valuable model for identifying the issues that confront AMD genetics.