Objective: To describe the contributions ofthree Mexican institutions (Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición "Salvador Zubirán", Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and the Centro de Encuestas Nacionales de Salud of the Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública) in the study, of chronic degenerative disorders.
Results: The most relevant group contributions include: the identification of a risk allele for metabolic syndrome and diabetes, specific for the Mexican population (the R230C variant of the ABC-A1 transporter); the design and validation of a population-based definition of metabolic syndrome which is useful to predict the risk of incident diabetes; the description of the molecular epidemiology of familial hypercholesterolemia in Mexico and the identification of several loci associated with familial combined hyperlipidemia. In addition, members of these institutions have participated in the description of the epidemiology of diabetes, metabolic syndrome and lipid abnormalities.
Conclusions: The complementary approach of these research groups has facilitated successful collaborations. Our results will be useful for the future development of diagnostic tests and preventive programs.