Researchers from the University of Liege, Belgium, have now uncovered an important clue to the susceptibility of individuals to this disease.

In a genome-wide association study with more than 300,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) , DNA sequence variations occurring when a single nucleotide in the genome differs between members of a species , C'cile Libioulle et al. identified a new susceptibility locus for Crohn's disease. Their results are published online in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.

Recent advances in SNP genotyping technology have allowed systematic association scanning of the entire genome for the detection of novel susceptibility loci , fixed positions on a chromosome, such as the position of a gene. Libioulle and colleagues applied this approach to Crohn's disease and identified the key locus on chromosome 5.

Individual susceptibility to many common diseases, including Crohn's disease, is determined by a combination of environmental and genetic factors and identifying these genetic risk factors is one of the most important objectives of modern medical genetics, potentially paving the way towards personalized medicine and drug target identification.

plos

Both children died despite the Wisconsin protocol being applied along with another child from Texas, a 16-year-old boy.

The CDC says those failures indicate that the Wisconsin protocol must be started as early as possible in the disease course and along with other experts they are calling for an "enhanced clinical awareness" of rabies and suggest it should be included in the differential diagnosis of "any unexplained acute, rapidly progressive viral encephalitis."

The CDC report states that while the incubation period for rabies is usually one to three months, longer periods have been documented.

Charles Rupprecht, Ph.D., chief of the CDC's rabies program says speed is of the essence in suspected rabies cases but other possible factors include the strain of the virus and variations in the way the drugs are used.

The report is published in the current issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly.