About MATR 
A Registry of Twins Born or Living in VA, NC, and SC
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Lighthouse
at Cape Hatteras, NC
photo courtesy of Rick Jackson
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VCU
Academic Campus, Richmond, VA
photo courtesy of Media Production Services
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The
Pineapple Fountain at Waterfront Park
Judy Watts, The
Post & Courier, Charleston, SC
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About the MATR
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The Mid-Atlantic Twin Registry (MATR) includes
the families of infant, preschool, school age and adult twins who
are willing to consider participating in health-related
research. Many of our twins were born or are living in North
Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina, because the twins and their
families were identified for the registry by using publicly
available birth records, public driver’s license information, and
through public and private school records. This information was made
available only for the purpose of medical research. Twins from any
state or country are welcome to participate.
The MATR is located at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in
Richmond, VA, where scientists have been studying twins and their
families for over 25 years. Directed by Dr. Judy L. Silberg and
Distinguished Professor, Dr. Lindon Eaves, the MATR is one of the
leading programs of medical research in the world. Private agencies
including the W.M. Keck, Robert Wood Johnson, John D. and Catherine
T. McArthur, and John Templeton Foundations, have made funding of
more than $4 million available to the MATR in the past. The
federally funded National Institutes of Health and the National
Institutes of Mental Health provide substantial financial support
for MATR efforts.
VCU, the home of the MATR, is a public research university located
in Richmond, Virginia, the state capital. VCU consists of two
campuses: The VCU Medical Center Campus, located near the financial,
governmental and retail district in downtown Richmond and the Monroe
Park Campus situated two miles west in the historic Fan
District. VCU is one of only four Virginia universities ranked as a
Carnegie Research University.
VCU has a strong track record of developing and running large
national databases and resources. These include the American Brain
Injury Consortium, a VCU resource that maintains a database of brain
injury patients and their response to various new drugs, and the
United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), a national clearinghouse
for organ transplants that began as a unit of our Medical Center
Campus and is now a Richmond-based, private, nonprofit
organization. VCU has made a strong commitment to the MATR as part
of its vision of becoming a leader among the nation’s research
universities.
The MATR is part of the Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and
Behavioral Genetics (VIPBG). The VIPBG consists of two programs, the
Genetic Epidemiology Program of the Department of Human Genetics,
under the direction of Dr. Lindon Eaves and the Psychiatric Genetics
Research Program of the Psychiatry, under the direction of Dr.
Kenneth Kendler. The MATR and VIPBG are housed in the Virginia
Biotechnology Research Park, adjacent to VCU’s Medical Center Campus
in downtown Richmond.
Our
home at the Virginia Biotechnology Research Park
Why
We Study Twins
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Twins
are important because they help scientists to understand the relationship
between the environment and heredity (genes) and to study the causes
of disease which would otherwise be difficult or impossible to study.
Even though twins are the same age and usually grow up in the same
household, their experiences can differ greatly. This makes twins
a unique resource that helps scientists understand the effects of
the environment and heredity. Since identical twins share all the
same hereditary material (DNA), whereas fraternal twins share only
about half of the same DNA, comparing the differences and similarities
in identical and fraternal twins is a powerful way to understand
the role that inherited and environmental factors play in people's
health, illness, and behavior. Greater similarity for a trait among
identical twins than the same trait among fraternal twins implies
that the influence of genetic factors may predominate over that
of environmental factors.
Twin
research around the world provides scientific insight into many
important areas. Scientists connected to the MATR have explored
such topics as epilepsy, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer,
obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, attention-deficit hyperactivity
disorder, clinical depression, anxiety, pregnancy complications,
periodontal disease, alcohol, nicotine and other drug abuse, stress
and coping, religiosity and spirituality, social support, and parenting
styles. By identifying a genetic or environmental component to these
and other health issues, early prevention and treatment efforts
can be enhanced, considerably
improving public health.
Why
is There a Special Focus on Preschool Twins?
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Since
many of the factors that influence health and behavior start early
in life, studying twins beginning in the preschool years gives researchers
the opportunity to look at a lifetime of change and development.
Researchers are looking for answers to questions such as:
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What causes birth complications?
• What makes some children do well in school and others not?
• Why are girls more likely than boys to become depressed and
boys more likely to have behavioral problems?
• Why do some people have problems with drugs or alcohol
while others do not?
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What factors influence healthy transitions from childhood to adolescence
and then to adulthood?
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How do factors in childhood (such as the death of a parent or having
a certain physical condition) influence health and coping skills
as adults?
The
Importance of DNA
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DNA is
the substance contained in your genes, which you get from your parents.
The genes of each person are unique, although identical twins share
the same genetic material and fraternal (non-identical) twins share
about half of the same genetic material. Differences in genes are
probably responsible for many of the differences that may be seen
in different people. Looking at DNA samples allows researchers to
search for individual genes that affect the risk for developing
health and behavior problems.
In some
of our studies we ask participants to provide a sample of their
DNA. This DNA is collected from a sample taken from a small amount
of blood or other body tissue, such as cells from inside your mouth.
Study of these DNA may lead to improved prevention and treatment
of some disorders. As with all data from our studies, results of
DNA analyses are held in strict confidence, in accordance with our
Privacy Policy that governs all data collected
from MATR participants.
How
Can I Participate in the MATR?
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We invite
you and your family to join our research effort where twins are
making an exceptional contribution to scientific knowledge. If you
are interested, we will periodically ask you to participate in new
or ongoing medical research projects. Taking part in any specific
study is completely voluntary, and you can withdraw at any time.
Identical
and fraternal twins of all ethnic backgrounds, and even twins whose
co-twin is deceased, can participate. Since many health conditions
run in families, the parents, children, brothers, sisters, and spouses
of twins may also participate in some research.
Participation
typically involves filling out a simple questionnaire or completing
an interview conducted over the telephone or in your home. All information
you provide to the MATR is absolutely confidential, as described
in our Privacy Policy. Information about you
is never released to researchers and scientists outside of the MATR
without your written consent.
If you
are a twin or the parent of twins and are interested in participating
in the MATR, you may contact us via e-mail, phone, or traditional
mail. Our email address is matr@vcu.edu
or you can send us an email from this site by visiting our Questions
and Comments page. You may leave a message on our voice mail
at 1-800-URA-TWIN (1-800-872-8946), or contact us by mail at:
Mid-Atlantic
Twin Registry
Virginia Commonwealth University
P.O. Box 980617
Richmond, VA 23298
There is some basic information we need to send out registration
packets. If you are interested in being sent an information/
registration packet please call and leave us the following information:
For Juveniles:
1. Full name of the Legal Guardian / Parent registering
the twins
2. Full legal names of the twins
3. State of birth
4. Date of birth
5. A home mailing address and phone number
For Adults:
1. Full legal name of interested twin (plus maiden name if
applicable)
2. State of birth
3. Date of birth
4. A home mailing address and phone number
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