Molecular Genetics of Dupuytren’s Disease

Don't worry there is no science here, a couple of weeks ago we got in contact with: 

Mr D Furniss DM MA MBBCh FRCS(Plast)

Well we have been in contact with him because his area of expertise is:

"The research of the Furniss group focuses on the molecular genetics of Dupuytren’s Disease — a very common, disabling condition where the fingers of the hand contract into the palm. Mr Furniss has established the British Society for Surgery of the Hand Genetics of Dupuytren’s Disease consortium (BSSH-GODD consortium). This nationwide collaboration of hand surgeons has allowed the collection of DNA and phenotype information from several thousand UK patients with Dupuytren’s Disease. Furthermore, the group is part of a European collaboration including Prof. Paul Werker in Groningen, The Netherlands, and Dr Hans Hennies in Cologne, Germany, to enable further large scale genetic studies into Dupuytren’s Disease. 

Mr Furniss has secured a prestigious Wellcome Trust Intermediate Fellowship — the first awarded to a Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon — to further analyse the genetics of Dupuytren’s Disease, and also to study the effects of genetic variants on cellular function. He also sits on the British Society for Surgery of the Hand Research and Audit Committee."

He also provided the following information:

 

The British Society for Surgery of the Hand Genetics of Dupuytren's Disease (BSSH-GODD) study began in 2009, with the aim of determining the genetic factors that account for the hereditary predisposition to Dupuytren's Disease (DD). It is hoped that by determining what causes DD, we might be able to design more rational treatments aimed at treating early disease or preventing recurrence after surgery. BSSH-GODD is a national collaboration of Hand Surgeons from over 30 units throughout the UK, funded by the Wellcome Trust, and to date we have recruited almost 4,000 patients to our study. We joined forces with groups in Groningen, Holland (Prof. Paul Werker), and Cologne, Germany (Dr. Hans Hennies), and together we conducted a major study which identified nine genetic regions predisposing to DD. This was published in the world's top medical journal - The New England Journal of Medicine. We are expanding that study currently in order to narrow down the genetic regions that predispose to DD, so that we can home in on how they cause the disease, and discover new regions to investigate. We would like to take this opportunity to say thank-you to all members of the British Dupuytren's Society who have participated in this cutting-edge research.

Links: British society for Surgery of the Hand: http://www.bssh.ac.uk/

Wellcome Trust: http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/

NEJM paper: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1101029

We are hoping that this is someone we can work with to help raise the profile of Dupuytren's and hopefully he is someone who can, through scientific research, find the details required to provide better treatment. 

Hopefully this will be up on the website soon!