What sets off the autoimmune gene that per my doctor can cause different diseases and many forms?

What sets off the autoimmune gene that per my doctor can cause different diseases and many forms?I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, my brother has Psorisis and I have a sister with Diabetes. My dad had gout, is this where the gene originated from and what sets this gene off? I was in an accident and was diagnosed not long after with RA.

Chemist
It is still under investigation. Although, scientists have found an unexpected genetic link among three common autoimmune diseases: "psoriasis", "rheumatoid arthritis" and systemic lupus erythematosus.

The findings, being reported recently in the journal Nature Genetics, have no immediate practical effect. But by identifying a cellular path through which the three diseases are touched off, they may help biologists design new treatments.

Psoriasis affects 2 percent of Americans; rheumatoid arthritis, up to 1 percent; and systemic lupus -- which attacks the joints and can cause severe inflammation -- one-twentieth of 1 percent.

The link among the three diseases involves a PROTEIN that helps the thymus GLAND train cells of the immune system. Autoimmune diseases are caused when such cells mistakenly attack the body's own tissues.

The protein, Runx-1, controls the activity of various genes by binding to a nearby site on the DNA of the chromosomes. Last year, scientists at the University of Uppsala in Sweden reported that many patients with systemic lupus had an altered Runx-1 binding site on Chromosome 2, meaning that the Runx-1 protein could not properly control the gene next to the binding site.

Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments! Gout - information, symptoms and treatments. Googout.info health information factsheet - advice on gout and its symptoms, causes and treatment, plus prevention through diet.

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