With an estimated 200 million people—three to five percent of the world population—affected by serious genetic diseases, the medical and commercial potential in genetics is astounding. 

Personalized medicine, the study of how genes affect the way individuals respond to drugs, is one area poised to explode.

Home to a long history of genetics research, starting with Eldon J. Gardner, one of the first geneticists to practice personalized medicine, Utah State University is positioned to become a key player in the next generation of genetics.

Gardner was midway into his career in 1953 when geneticists Watson and Crick solved DNA’s three-dimensional structure as a double-stranded helix. Seeking to understand the mechanisms of inheritance, geneticists in previous decades had discovered genes as the basic biological units of heredity. A pioneer of his time, Gardner was one of the first geneticists to apply his research to the field of medicine.

“During an era when his contemporaries were focused on the theoretical, Gardner was much more hands on,” said internationally recognized geneticist David Ward. 

Spending the last 25 years of his professional career at USU, Gardner’s work as a geneticist, researcher, professor, writer and administrator left an imprint in the history of USU and genetics, especially the fields of cancer genetics and personalized medicine.

Born and raised in Logan, Utah, Gardner spent the majority of his life there, earning both his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Utah State University (then known as the Utah State Agricultural College).  Gardner then moved to California, where he became the first graduate student in the U.S. to study under distinguished German geneticist Richard Goldschmidt, and he received his doctorate in zoology from the University of California—Berkeley in 1939.

After spending seven years working as a teacher and geneticist in California, Gardner returned to Utah to teach at the University of Utah, where he began cooperative research into various genetic traits in Utah families, thinking that Mormon genealogical records and living Mormon families would be a valuable resource for research on human genetics. In the years that followed, he developed expertise in the study of cancer in Mormon families.

In 1949, Gardner returned to Logan to teach at USU, where he dedicated his life to developing programs in genetics and biology. In his many roles at USU, Gardner taught biology, mentored numerous graduate students, served as the first dean of the College of Science, and established USU as a graduate training center in genetics.

In addition to his work as an educator, Gardner was deeply involved in research and writing. Regarded as an authority on the study of the genetics of cancer in humans, Gardner was a prolific scholar with over 300 publications. An important observation in one of his publications became known as the “Gardner Syndrome.”  A later researcher commented, “This is the only clinical syndrome I know of which is named for a geneticist.”

Gardner’s innovative research and application to the field of medicine initiated a movement to understand the genetic basis of disease and methods for moving the healthcare field toward individualized patient care. With dramatic advances in technology and human genetics in the last quarter-century, the field of personalized medicine has progressed considerably, but it is still in its infancy.

Personalized medicine promises the possibility of a new approach to drug development and more effective diagnoses, therapeutics, and patient care.  Today, the field is ripe for expansion, and USU is ramping up efforts to play a role through aggressive recruiting and investment in related initiatives.

Passed in the 2006 state legislative session, the Utah Science, Technology and Research initiative is one of those investments that will enhance USU’s profile in genetics research.  USTAR is designed to help Utah keep pace in scientific research and technological advancement, said Brent Miller, USU’s vice president for research.

Recruited as part of USTAR, geneticist David C. Ward represents a new generation of genetics research at USU.  Ward joined USU’s Center for Advanced Nutrition in August 2007 and specializes in the development of new technologies and their application to human health.  Ward is working with USU researchers to identify genetic markers and develop commercially viable strategies for the diagnosis, progression, and prognosis of various diseases.

“Ward’s expertise in biomarkers and genetics is well respected by our faculty, and he is already serving as a facilitator in moving several of our key biological studies forward,” said Ned Weinshenker, USU vice president for strategic ventures and economic development.  “He is also very cognizant of the commercial potential of the work and will be instrumental in helping to spin out new technologies and companies.”

A member of the National Academy of Sciences, Ward is internationally recognized for his research in the fields of molecular cytogenetics, cancer genetics, virology, and optimal imaging technology and is the deputy director of the Nevada Cancer Institute. Ward is also a co-founder of five biotechnology companies, three of which are publicly traded on national stock exchanges.  Now Ward will also spend part of his time working at USU.

“Building on research strengths within USU’s Center for Advanced Nutrition and Center for Person’s with Disabilities, we will be working on genetic markers for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, developmental disorders such as autism and neonatal deafness, and cardiovascular diseases such as venous thromboembolism,” said Ward.

One such plan is to expand USU’s Cache County Study on Memory, Health, and Aging.  Started in 1994 by Bonita Wyse, dean emeritus of USU’s College of Family Life, with funding from the U.S. National Institute on Aging, the longitudinal study was initially designed to investigate Alzheimer’s disease by collecting DNA samples and conducting interviews and in-depth assessments of selected participants who are 65 and older.

More recently, Ron Munger, principal investigator in the study, received funding from the National Institutes of Health to link the Cache County Study to the genealogical records of the Utah Population Database in order to establish a repository of biological specimens for studies of genetic and environmental causes of Alzheimer’s disease.

“To build on this tremendous strength at USU, we will expand the Cache County Study to include cardiovascular disease, diabetes and aging,” said Ward.

Research within CPD and CAN lays the groundwork for collaboration and expansion of other key studies at USU involving infant deafness, autism, pre-term labor, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and fat metabolism, and taste receptors.

In order to build on Eldon Gardner’s genetic legacy and take advantage of USU’s history and current strengths in medical genetics, Ward will facilitate collaboration among USU, the University of Utah, and other Utah businesses in an attempt to harness the full potential of gene discovery and personalized medicine. Under Ward’s direction, USU could become a key player in the field of personalized medicine and in meeting USTAR’s objectives of technological innovation, commercialization and economic development in Utah.