This project represents an ongoing collaborative effort, involving WHO and other national and international laboratories to coordinate the collection, evaluation and interpretation of Normal Genetic Markers in order to study the cross-cultural patterns of genetic and extraneous factors, as they relate to normative aging and to diseases with late onset, including bone loss, osteoarthritis, Alzheimer's disease, breast cancer, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and Parkinsonism dementia. Specifically, the objectives of this study are: A) To study the cross cultural patterns of genetic and non-genetic factors in an effort to better understand the process of normative aging. B) To study the distribution of dermatoglyphics, lateral dominance, iris structure and other genetic variables in BLSA participants and other control samples, as well as in patients with late onset diseases.
