NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Low-frequency coding variants contribute to the heritability of multiple sclerosis, according to a new analysis.

The International Multiple Sclerosis Genetics Consortium previously identified 233 genetic risk variants for the condition through genome-wide association studies. However, these variants account for about 20 percent of disease heritability, leaving the rest unexplained. It has been suggested, however, that common variants act together to increase risk or that families harbor their own private mutations.