The Environmental Genome Project of DIR is actively engaged in searching for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) by resequencing known genes in a population of ninety-two normal individuals. Gene selection has been made from a list of nominations by DIR researchers as an adjunct to their research and also as probable candidates of being sensitive to environmental agents. We are continuing the Interagency Agreement for discovering common polymorphisms with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, (Department of Energy)under the direction of Dr. Harvey Mohrenweiser. The test human cell lines were obtained from the Coriell Institute. In the first year and a half, the program has completed eight genes in the original 72 individuals; CYP2J2, COX2, PCNA, FEN1, ERF1, ERF2, IGFBP3,MLH1. With the exception of FEN1 which showed no single nucleotide polymorphisms, all the other genes displayed numbers of SNPs. There are currently 23 genes in the queue at various stages of completion. The Division is developing a public website to make available all the polymorphism data developed under this Interagency Agreement. The egSNP website will contain all the data surrounding the discovery of the SNPs, including primer information, allele frequency etc.,and will contain hyperlinks to all other major SNP databases. As soon as the the data is released, it will also be uploaded to SNP databases at CGAP (NCI) and dbSNP (NCBI).We anticipate the egSNP website will become live in FY 00. It is becoming increasingly clear that relative susceptibility of individuals and groups to medicines and toxicants are to some degree dictated by the subtle differences in gene sequences, which in turn may produce proteins with altered ability to metabolize or attach to it's intended substrate. This phenomenon can result in an individual being more or less sensitive to environmental toxicants or pharmaceuticals. Understanding these variations can greatly help both formulation of new medicines and aid in developing prevention strategies for exquisitely sensitive individuals.
