| scientists complete sequencing of the chromosome linked to early dementia |
| ( afp , paris , january 2 ) an international team of scientists said that they have completed the sequencing of human chromosome 14 that is linked to many diseases , including the early-onset alzheimer's that may strike people in their 30s . |
| this is the fourth chromosome whose sequence has been completed to date . it comprises more than 87 million pairs of dna . |
| this study published in the weekly british scientific journal nature illustrates that the sequence of chromosome 14 comprises 1,050 genes and gene fragments . |
| the goal of geneticists is to provide diagnostic tools to identify defective genes that cause diseases so as to arrive eventually at treatments that can prevent those genes from malfunctioning . |
