DETECTION AND GENETIC HANDLING OF MUTANTS

Our present knowledge about the normal and pathological lipid metabolism and about its clinical manifestations, leads us to the recognition of two different situations: A) An interaction between idiotype and environment, both represented by numerous not easily definable factors, is present. The normal and the diseased conditions are, therefore, not recognized as defined condi­ tions, but as quasi-continuous traits. In this particular case, the research methodology will be prevalentiY epidemiological and statistical. Statistical method are available, which are adequately specific and sensitive to recognize the fa~i3i~l correlations of lipid parameters and their individual associations ' , The environmental conditions, as pertaining to the studied cases, should be fully characterize'd, in order to quanti tate, as much as possible, ghe influence of the idiotype in the definition of the various phenotypes . B) The idiotype is the sufficient etiological factor and the fondamental pathogenetic moment. This is the condi tiog where patholo­ gical states, consequent to point mutations, take place .