Derivation of Linkage Ordered Gene Sets (LoGS) and Testing for Bias in its Implementation

In a recent paper, we have shown that immune function can play an important role in autism. Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental disease and its incidence has been rising. It is a highly heterogeneous and complex disorder. Despite considerable work, including linkage and genome-wide associationstudies, its genetic causes are unknown. 

In Mendelian disorders, various pedigree analyses point to the same locus. However, such analyses in autism have mapped to different genetic loci, possibly a reflection of its complex nature. Single gene approaches may fail to find underlying mechanisms in such a complex disease whereas an integrative approach might succeed. We present here a detailed description of the derivation of LoGS which reflects such an integrative approach. LoGS can overcome the limitations of non-pathway-based approaches.  Read more....................