Rodney Perry PhD

Dr. Perry is trained in medical genetics with an emphasis in molecular biology. His interest lies in identifying genes of complex diseases, (e.g., Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease) where both genes and environment play a role in the pathology of the disease, and understanding the molecular mechanisms involved.

As associate director of the molecular genetics lab, he is responsible for utilizing current molecular techniques to identify and study these genes in the laboratory and for developing and incorporating new techniques that can facilitate these type of analyses. Molecular protocols included are, DNA isolation, microsatellite and SNP/CNV genotyping, sequencing, and mutation detection techniques. These procedures allow linkage analyses to be performed to localize chromosome areas that may harbor genes involved in a disease and association studies to be performed in order to determine if a candidate gene might be involved with the disease. 

His focus for several years has been identifying chromosomal regions and genes that may be involved in Alzheimer's disease especially the late-form of the disease.  He currently has an R01 grant to have dense genotyping and sequencing of the chromosome 9q candidate region performed.  He just completed work in the PAARTNERS study (Project among African-Americans to Explore Risks for Schizophrenia), a multi-site collaborative effort to identify susceptibility genes in these families.  He is also interested in the new field of Epigenetics and the role it plays in complex diseases.  He is part of another multi-site study to identify methylation patterns in the PAARTNERS families.  Future plans include looking at the role of Epigenetics in Alzheimer's Disease, Diabetes and Heart Disease.