Multiple Tests for Genetic Effects in Association Studies

Many common human diseases have a genetic component as measured by familial studies. Metabolic disorders such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure, psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease all are thought to have a hereditary component. In some diseases the genetic control is through a single gene, while in others, multiple genes interact in complex ways with environmental factors to produce the disease (1–5).