Underrepresented Populations Working Group (2025)

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (1)

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The Underrepresented Populations working group, facilitates increased representation and analysis of genetic factors associated with Parkinson’s disease in non-European populations.

About the Underrepresented Populations Working Group

The GP2 Underrepresented Populations Working Group is committed to addressing a critical issue in genetics research: the lack of diversity. Approximately 80% of GWAS are conducted on people with European ancestry, leaving other populations underrepresented. As an example, Asians, who make up 60% of the global population, account for just 10% of GWAS samples, while Latinos and Africans are represented in far smaller numbers. This imbalance limits our understanding of disease mechanisms and perpetuates inequities in developing diagnostics and treatments based on genetic data.

We aim to increase representation in genetic research and identify the genetic factors associated with PD in underrepresented populations. As a forum within GP2, we address barriers to inclusion and propose culturally and ethically sound solutions to promote recruiting individuals with PD and matched healthy controls. Through virtual meetings, we foster collaboration among researchers from underrepresented regions, creating opportunities for mutual learning and growth. We also strive to ensure community engagement at every step, raising awareness about the problem of underrepresentation and developing strategies to empower researchers working in these regions. By fostering South-South collaborations, we aim to amplify the voices and contributions of researchers from these areas.

Collaboration is at the heart of what we do. We help the other working groups achieve their goals, taking into account underrepresented populations and researchers. To build local capacity, we prioritize training junior researchers and equipping them to lead genetic studies in their regions. This effort includes organizing workshops and mentorship opportunities in collaboration with the GP2 Training Working Group. We also focus on enhancing infrastructure by developing biobanks and other physical resources to support research in participating countries. Together with the Monogenic and Data Analysis Working Groups, we aid in identifying multiplex families and develop tools to address the complexities of genetic admixture.

Our ultimate goal is to bridge the diversity gap in genetics research and ensure that all populations can benefit from PD diagnosis and treatment advances. By promoting inclusivity and equity, we can unlock the full potential of global collaboration and create more representative and impactful results.

Meet the leads & co-leads

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (2)

Lead

Ignacio (Nacho) F. Mata, PhD

Cleveland Clinic, Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, OH, USA

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (3)

Co-Lead

Shen-Yang Lim

University of Malaya | Malaysia

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (4)

Co-Lead

Artur Schuh, MD,PhD

Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul / Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre | Porto Alegre, Brazil

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (5)

Co-Lead

Bashayer Al Mubarak, PhD

King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center | Saudi Arabia

Meet the participants

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (7)

Member

Rauan Kaiyrzhanov

University College London | Kazakhstan

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (8)

Member

Prashanth Lingappa Kukkle

Manipal Hospital | India

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (9)

Member

Njideka Okubadejo

University of Lagos | Nigeria

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (10)

Member

Mario Cornejo-Olivas, MD

Universidad Científica del Sur, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Neurológicas | Lima, Peru

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (11)

Member

Azlina Ahmad-Annuar

University of Malaya | Malaysia

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (12)

Member

Alastair Noyce, MD, PhD

Queen Mary University of London | London, UK

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (13)

Member

Kin Ying Mok, PhD

Univeristy College London | UK

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (14)

Member

Naomi Louie, MPH

Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research | Bellevue, USA

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (15)

Member

Sara Bandres-Ciga, PharmD,PhD

National Institutes of Health | USA

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (16)

Member

Mohamed Salama

The American University in Cairo | Egypt

Member

Inas Elsayed

Faculty of pharmacy University of Gezira | Sudan

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (17)

Member

Miguel E. Rentería, PhD

QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute | Brisbane, Australia

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (18)

Member

Karen Nuytemans, PhD

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine | USA

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (19)

Member

Wael Mohamed, MD, PhD

International Islamic University | Malaysia

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (20)

Member

Thiago Peixoto Leal, PhD

Cleveland Clinic | Cleveland, OH, USA

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (21)

Member

Yasser Mecheri, MD,MSc

Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire Dr Benbadis Constantine | Constantine, Algeria

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (22)

Member

Santiago Diaz Torres, PhD

Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR Berghofer) | Brisbane, Australia

Milestones

Completed

  • Published an article about underrepresented populations in PD genetics research

Active

  • Conduct first multi-ancestry genome-wide meta-analysis in PD
  • Increasing URP data collection efforts
  • Preliminary GWAS analysis in East Asia and Africa
  • Supporting training opportunities to researchers from URPs and engaging with trainee network
  • Identify barriers to genetic testing in countries with predominantly underrepresented populations
  • Encourage URP researchers to submit project analysis proposals to GP2
  • Support underrepresented research groups in recruitment and analysis
  • Identify and engage with new URP sites that are not currently represented in GP2

Not Started

  • Conduct a survey about unprofessional peer review and barriers to publish

Outputs & publications from the Underrepresented Populations Working Group

Explore more outputs

Multi-ancestry population attributable risk assessment of common genetic variation in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases

Multiple scientific studies, mostly performed within European populations, have unraveled many of the genetic factors…

Read More

Underrepresented Populations in Parkinson's Genetics Research: Current Landscape and Future Directions

Research on Parkinson's disease genetics has lacked diversity, with a focus on European populations. A systematic…

Read More

Multi-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis of Parkinson’s disease

A multi-ancestry meta-analysis of Parkinson’s disease identified 78 significant genetic loci, including 12 new ones.…

Read More

Underrepresented Populations Working Group (2025)
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