Musculoskeletal soft tissue injuries are complex phenotypes. Case control association studies using the candidate gene approach have predominantly been used to identify risk loci for these injuries. However, the ability to identify all risk conferring variants using this approach alone is unlikely. Therefore, this study aimed to define the genetic profile of these injuries using whole exome sequencing and a customized analysis pipeline. The exomes of ten exemplar asymptomatic controls and ten exemplar cases with Achilles tendinopathy were individually sequenced using a platform that included the coverage of the untranslated regions and miRBase miRNA genes. These results provide a proof of concept for the use of a customized pipeline for the exploration of a larger genomic dataset. This approach, using previous research to guide a targeted analysis of the data has generated new genetic signatures in the biology of musculoskeletal soft tissue injuries.

Musculoskeletal soft tissue injuries are complex phenotypes. Case control association studies using the candidate gene approach have predominantly been used to identify risk loci for these injuries. However, the ability to identify all risk conferring variants using this approach alone is unlikely. Therefore, this study aimed to define the genetic profile of these injuries using whole exome sequencing and a customized analysis pipeline. The exomes of ten exemplar asymptomatic controls and ten exemplar cases with Achilles tendinopathy were individually sequenced using a platform that included the coverage of the untranslated regions and miRBase miRNA genes. These results provide a proof of concept for the use of a customized pipeline for the exploration of a larger genomic dataset. This approach, using previous research to guide a targeted analysis of the data has generated new genetic signatures in the biology of musculoskeletal soft tissue injuries.

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