Restless Limbs Linked to Genes
This was posted by someone on one of the forums I visit and I felt it was worth repeating on my blog.
Restless limbs linked to genes
LEG TWITCHING: Two studies back the reality of the poorly understood syndrome.
By Mike Stobbe
The Associated PressATLANTA – Scientists have linked certain genes to restless legs syndrome, suggesting the twitching condition described as “jimmy lets” in a “Seinfeld” episode is biologically based and not an imaginary disorder.New studies published this week are being called the first to identify specific genes responsible for restless legs syndrome symptoms.
Research in the New England Journal of Medicine linked a common gene variation to nighttime leg-twitching. It involved people in Iceland and the United States.
A second study in Nature Genetics identified the same gene variation and two others in Germans and Canadians with restless legs syndrome.
“This discovery demonstrates the power of genetics not only for uncovering the biological causes of disease, but also for defining diseases such as RLS and establishing them as medical conditions,” said Dr. Kari Stefansson, who co-authored one of the studies.
RLS is characterized by a strong urge to move the legs. Sufferers say it often hits at night, keeping them from sleeping.
“It feels like something crawling inside your legs, biting on you,” said Betty Shaw, a 68 year old florist in Covington, Ga, who was diagnosed with it.
The condition gained cultural status in an episode of the sitcom “Seinfeld,” in which the character Kramer is disturbed that his girlfriend has “the jimmy legs” and kicks in bed.
The first study looked at blood samples from more than 1,000 Icelanders and Americans, comparing the DNA of leg twitchers to the DNA of people without the symptom. scientists found a certain variation in the human genome that, they say, probably accounts for 50 percent to restless legs cases.
The second compared the DNA of 400 people with a family history of the condition to the DNA of 1,600 others. It found variations in three areas of the genome that each were responsible for a 50 percent increase in the risk for the syndrome.
Here is the link to The New England Journal of Medicine article.
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/NEJMoa072743?resourcetype=HWCIT
Kris
