Nursing Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Nursing, including details on health care, hospital staff, professional care.

Integrating molecular genetics analyses into clinical research.

Schutte DL, McCarthy AM, Floria-Santos M, Hanrahan K, Murray JC, Kleiber C

University of Iowa College of Nursing, Iowa City, 52242, USA. debra-schutte@uiowa.edu

The integration of molecular genetics approaches into the study of complex health phenomena is an increasingly important and available strategy for researchers across the health science disciplines. Pain sensation and response to painful stimuli are examples of complex health phenomena that are particularly amenable to molecular genetics approaches. Both human and animal model research suggests that differences in these responses may be related, in part, to variation in the genes that modulate sensation and behavior. The authors are currently managing a large cross-disciplinary research effort to identify child characteristics, including genotypes, that predict the degree of distress displayed by children following a painful medical procedure (i.e., IV insertion). The purpose of this article is to describe the strategies used to integrate molecular genetics methods into this project. The authors discuss the steps needed to complete this process, including (a) establishing a collaboration with genetics researchers and laboratory facilities, (b) developing and implementing a plan to manage biologic samples, and (c) incorporating genetics into the informed consent process.

Published 12 June 2006 in Biol Res Nurs, 8(1): 67-77.
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