Abstract: A method of determining in a subject a predisposition to, or increased risk for, developing a tendon, ligament, or other soft tissue injury or pathology, the method comprising the step of screening the subject for the presence of at least one polymorphism in at least one gene selected from the group comprising: a) the collagen V gene COL5A1; wherein the COL5A1 gene is rs71746744, rs16399 and/or rs1134170 within the 3?-untranslated region (UTR) of the alpha 1 chain of the COL5A1 gene; b) the MIR608 gene which encodes a miRNA which binds to a recognition sequence within the 3?-UTR of the collagen V gene COL5A1; and c) the CASP8 gene; wherein the presence of the polymorphism is indicative of a predisposition to, or increased risk for, developing a musculoskeletal soft tissue injury in the subject.

Abstract: A method of determining in a subject a predisposition to, or increased risk for, developing a tendon, ligament, or other soft tissue injury or pathology, the method comprising the step of screening the subject for the presence of at least one poly-morphism in at least one gene family selected from the group consisting of any one or more of: the matrix metallo-protease (MMP) family, the collagen family, including the COL5A1 and COL12A1 genes, the glycoprotein family, including the TNC and COMP genes, and derivatives thereof, which polymorphism is a polymorphism which results in a modified, augmented, or gated interaction with other members of the gene families mentioned herein, when compared to a wild-type interaction.