DALIA- a comprehensive resource of Disease Alleles in Arab population

PLoS One. 2021 Jan 13;16(1):e0244567. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0244567. eCollection 2021.

Abstract

The Arab population encompasses over 420 million people characterized by genetic admixture and a consequent rich genetic diversity. A number of genetic diseases have been reported for the first time from the population. Additionally a high prevalence of some genetic diseases including autosomal recessive disorders such as hemoglobinopathies and familial mediterranean fever have been found in the population and across the region. There is a paucity of databases cataloguing genetic variants of clinical relevance from the population. The availability of such a catalog could have implications in precise diagnosis, genetic epidemiology and prevention of disease. To fill in the gap, we have compiled DALIA, a comprehensive compendium of genetic variants reported in literature and implicated in genetic diseases reported from the Arab population. The database aims to act as an effective resource for population-scale and sub-population specific variant analyses, enabling a ready reference aiding clinical interpretation of genetic variants, genetic epidemiology, as well as facilitating rapid screening and a quick reference for evaluating evidence on genetic diseases.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Alleles*
  • Arabs / genetics*
  • Databases, Genetic*
  • Familial Mediterranean Fever / genetics
  • Gene Frequency
  • Genetic Predisposition to Disease
  • Genetic Variation
  • Hemoglobinopathies / genetics
  • Humans

Grants and funding

The work was funded by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, India [RareGen Grant]. The funding body had no role in the preparation of the manuscript or decision to publish. AV acknowledges a Senior Research Fellowship from the Indian Council for Medical Research.