Grant: Operating Grant

Leprosy is an ancient scourge of mankind. Despite advances in the treatment of this disease still several million people suffer from short term or long term consequences of leprosy. Our group has been a major contributor to establish that leprosy susceptibility is strongly influenced by host genetic factors. In this application we propose to identify the genes and their variants that make a person susceptible to leprosy using the latest advances of genetic analysis and genome research. A major focus will be to understand the mechanisms of action of identified susceptibility genes which will open new avenues of controlling and restricting the health damage to individuals already suffering from leprosy.