GNI Ltd, a leading biopharmaceutical company in Asia, and its Chinese affiliate Shanghai Genomics, announced that their researchers had identified an important regulator and its associated signalling cascade in X-linked lymphoproliferative disease (XLP), a human immunological disorder.

The findings of the research were published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS), one of the world's most-cited multidisciplinary scientific serials.

XLP, also known as Duncan's syndrome, is an inherited genetic defect that causes immune system dysfunction in response to some viral infections. The disorder prevents patients from generating functional SAP proteins, which can subsequently cause a diverse range of immune system abnormalities and in many cases lead to the development of lymphoid tumours and fatality.

Although the gene causing XLP was discovered in 1999, researchers had yet to fully understand how and why nonfunctional SAP causes these disorders. Due to the severe clinical manifestations found in XLP patients, intense efforts had recently focused on elucidating the signalling mechanism used by SAP to regulate in cells involved in immune surveillance against cancers. Utilizing advanced genomics and proteomics, GNI researchers discovered a formerly unknown pathway that potentially contributes to the pathophysiology of XLP and other immune disorders.

GNI's chairman, chief executive officer and founder, Dr. Christopher Savoie, said, "This is a significant breakthrough in better understanding the pathophysiology of human immune disorders. The discovery will allow researchers to design novel therapeutic solutions to various immune dysfunctions."

"We are delighted that PNAS has decided to publish this research report, which represents a further endorsement of GNI's pioneering research capabilities. Through its global network that combines gene network computation capabilities and access to the world's most advanced algorithms and supercomputer computation capabilities in Japan, as well as biological research facilities in the U.K. and China, GNI has the infrastructure to support pioneering research and ongoing therapeutic development," Savoie continued.