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Ramos YFM, Rice SJ, Ali SA, Pastrello C, Jurisica I, Rai MF, Collins KH, Lang A, Maerz T, Geurts J, Ruiz-Romero C, June RK, Thomas Appleton C, Rockel JS, Kapoor M. Evolution and advancements in genomics and epigenomics in OA research: How far we have come. Osteoarthritis Cartilage 2024; 32:858-868. [PMID: 38428513 DOI: 10.1016/j.joca.2024.02.656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2023] [Revised: 01/29/2024] [Accepted: 02/25/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most prevalent musculoskeletal disease affecting articulating joint tissues, resulting in local and systemic changes that contribute to increased pain and reduced function. Diverse technological advancements have culminated in the advent of high throughput "omic" technologies, enabling identification of comprehensive changes in molecular mediators associated with the disease. Amongst these technologies, genomics and epigenomics - including methylomics and miRNomics, have emerged as important tools to aid our biological understanding of disease. DESIGN In this narrative review, we selected articles discussing advancements and applications of these technologies to OA biology and pathology. We discuss how genomics, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) methylomics, and miRNomics have uncovered disease-related molecular markers in the local and systemic tissues or fluids of OA patients. RESULTS Genomics investigations into the genetic links of OA, including using genome-wide association studies, have evolved to identify 100+ genetic susceptibility markers of OA. Epigenomic investigations of gene methylation status have identified the importance of methylation to OA-related catabolic gene expression. Furthermore, miRNomic studies have identified key microRNA signatures in various tissues and fluids related to OA disease. CONCLUSIONS Sharing of standardized, well-annotated omic datasets in curated repositories will be key to enhancing statistical power to detect smaller and targetable changes in the biological signatures underlying OA pathogenesis. Additionally, continued technological developments and analysis methods, including using computational molecular and regulatory networks, are likely to facilitate improved detection of disease-relevant targets, in-turn, supporting precision medicine approaches and new treatment strategies for OA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yolande F M Ramos
- Dept. Biomedical Data Sciences, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Sarah J Rice
- Biosciences Institute, International Centre for Life, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
| | - Shabana Amanda Ali
- Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Chiara Pastrello
- Osteoarthritis Research Program, Division of Orthopedic Surgery, Schroeder Arthritis Institute, UHN, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Igor Jurisica
- Osteoarthritis Research Program, Division of Orthopedic Surgery, Schroeder Arthritis Institute, UHN, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Departments of Medical Biophysics and Computer Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Muhammad Farooq Rai
- Department of Biological Sciences, Center for Biotechnology, College of Medicine & Health Sciences, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Kelsey H Collins
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Annemarie Lang
- Departments of Orthopaedic Surgery and Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Tristan Maerz
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Jeroen Geurts
- Rheumatology, Department of Musculoskeletal Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Cristina Ruiz-Romero
- Grupo de Investigación de Reumatología (GIR), Unidad de Proteómica, INIBIC -Hospital Universitario A Coruña, SERGAS, A Coruña, Spain
| | - Ronald K June
- Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA
| | - C Thomas Appleton
- Department of Medicine, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jason S Rockel
- Osteoarthritis Research Program, Division of Orthopedic Surgery, Schroeder Arthritis Institute, UHN, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Mohit Kapoor
- Osteoarthritis Research Program, Division of Orthopedic Surgery, Schroeder Arthritis Institute, UHN, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
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Liu J, Bitsue HK, Yang Z. Skin colour: A window into human phenotypic evolution and environmental adaptation. Mol Ecol 2024; 33:e17369. [PMID: 38713101 DOI: 10.1111/mec.17369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2024] [Revised: 04/13/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
As modern humans ventured out of Africa and dispersed around the world, they faced novel environmental challenges that led to geographic adaptations including skin colour. Over the long history of human evolution, skin colour has changed dramatically, showing tremendous diversity across different geographical regions, for example, the majority of individuals from the expansive lands of Africa have darker skin, whereas the majority of people from Eurasia exhibit lighter skin. What adaptations did lighter skin confer upon modern humans as they migrated from Africa to Eurasia? What genetic mechanisms underlie the diversity of skin colour observed in different populations? In recent years, scientists have gradually gained a deeper understanding of the interactions between pigmentation gene and skin colour through population-based genomic studies of different groups around the world, particularly in East Asia and Africa. In this review, we summarize our current understanding of 26 skin colour-related pigmentation genes and 48 SNPs that influence skin colour. Important pigmentation genes across three major populations are described in detail: MFSD12, SLC24A5, PDPK1 and DDB1/CYB561A3/TMEM138 influence skin colour in African populations; OCA2, KITLG, SLC24A2, GNPAT and PAH are key to the evolution of skin pigmentation in East Asian populations; and SLC24A5, SLC45A2, TYR, TYRP1, ASIP, MC1R and IRF4 significantly contribute to the lightening of skin colour in European populations. We summarized recent findings in genomic studies of skin colour in populations that implicate diverse geographic environments, local adaptation among populations, gene flow and multi-gene interactions as factors influencing skin colour diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiuming Liu
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Sciences, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Habtom K Bitsue
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Sciences, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Zhaohui Yang
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Sciences, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
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Padilla-Iglesias C, Blanco-Portillo J, Pricop B, Ioannidis AG, Bickel B, Manica A, Vinicius L, Migliano AB. Deep history of cultural and linguistic evolution among Central African hunter-gatherers. Nat Hum Behav 2024:10.1038/s41562-024-01891-y. [PMID: 38802540 DOI: 10.1038/s41562-024-01891-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 04/18/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
Human evolutionary history in Central Africa reflects a deep history of population connectivity. However, Central African hunter-gatherers (CAHGs) currently speak languages acquired from their neighbouring farmers. Hence it remains unclear which aspects of CAHG cultural diversity results from long-term evolution preceding agriculture and which reflect borrowing from farmers. On the basis of musical instruments, foraging tools, specialized vocabulary and genome-wide data from ten CAHG populations, we reveal evidence of large-scale cultural interconnectivity among CAHGs before and after the Bantu expansion. We also show that the distribution of hunter-gatherer musical instruments correlates with the oldest genomic segments in our sample predating farming. Music-related words are widely shared between western and eastern groups and likely precede the borrowing of Bantu languages. In contrast, subsistence tools are less frequently exchanged and may result from adaptation to local ecologies. We conclude that CAHG material culture and specialized lexicon reflect a long evolutionary history in Central Africa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cecilia Padilla-Iglesias
- Human Evolutionary Ecology Group, Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | | | - Bogdan Pricop
- Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Balthasar Bickel
- Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Andrea Manica
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Lucio Vinicius
- Human Evolutionary Ecology Group, Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Andrea Bamberg Migliano
- Human Evolutionary Ecology Group, Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
- Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
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4
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da Silva AP, Poquioma Hernández HV, Comelli CL, Guillén Portugal MA, Moreira Delavy F, de Souza TL, de Oliveira EC, de Oliveira-Ribeiro CA, Silva de Assis HC, de Castilhos Ghisi N. Meta-analytical review of antioxidant mechanisms responses in animals exposed to herbicide 2,4-D herbicide. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 924:171680. [PMID: 38479529 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.171680] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2023] [Revised: 03/08/2024] [Accepted: 03/10/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024]
Abstract
The 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) is a low-cost herbicide to eradicate broadleaf weeds. Since the development of 2,4-D resistant transgenic crops, it has been described as one of the most widely distributed pollutants in the world, increasing concern about its environmental impacts. This study aimed to elucidate the antioxidant system response in animals exposed to 2,4-D by different routes of exposure. It focused on determining if tissue, phylogenetic group, and herbicide formulation would influence the antioxidant mechanisms. A careful literature search of Scopus, WoS, and Science Direct retrieved 6983, 24,098, and 20,616 articles, respectively. The dataset comprised 390 control-treatment comparisons and included three routes of exposure: transgenerational, oral, and topical. The data set for transgenerational and oral exposure revealed oxidative stress through a decrease in enzymatic activities and the level of molecules of the antioxidant system. In contrast, topical exposure increased the oxidative stress. Tissue-specific analyses revealed that the transgenerational effects reduced hepatic catalase (CAT) activity. Oral exposure caused a variety of effects, including increased CAT activity in the prostate and decreased activity in various tissues. Mammals predominate in the transgenerational and oral groups, showing a significantly reduced activity of the antioxidant system. In contrast, in the topical exposure, an increased activity of oxidative stress biomarkers was observed in fish, earthworms, and mollusks. The effects of the 2,4-D formulation on oxidative stress responses showed significant differences between pure and commercial formulations, with oral exposure resulting in decreased activity and topical exposure increasing responses. In summary, orally exposed animals exhibited a clear decrease in enzyme activities, transgenerational exposure elicited tissue-specific prompted biochemical reductions, and topical exposure induced increased responses, emphasizing the need for unbiased exploration of the effects of 2,4-D on biomarkers of oxidative stress while addressing publication bias in oral and topical datasets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Paula da Silva
- Laboratório de Toxicologia Celular, Departamento de Biologia Celular, Setor de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR), Curitiba, PR, Brazil; Programa de Pós-Graduação em Agroecossistemas (PPGSIS), Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Campus Dois Vizinhos (UTFPR-DV), Brazil.
| | - Hilda Vanessa Poquioma Hernández
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia (PPGBIOTEC), Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Campus Dois Vizinhos (UTFPR-DV), Brazil
| | - Camila Luiza Comelli
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia (PPGBIOTEC), Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Campus Dois Vizinhos (UTFPR-DV), Brazil
| | - Miguel Angel Guillén Portugal
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zootecnia (PPGZOO), Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Campus Dois Vizinhos (UTFPR-DV), Brazil
| | - Fernanda Moreira Delavy
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zootecnia (PPGZOO), Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Campus Dois Vizinhos (UTFPR-DV), Brazil
| | - Tugstênio Lima de Souza
- Laboratório de Toxicologia Celular, Departamento de Biologia Celular, Setor de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR), Curitiba, PR, Brazil
| | - Elton Celton de Oliveira
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Agroecossistemas (PPGSIS), Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Campus Dois Vizinhos (UTFPR-DV), Brazil
| | - Ciro Alberto de Oliveira-Ribeiro
- Laboratório de Toxicologia Celular, Departamento de Biologia Celular, Setor de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR), Curitiba, PR, Brazil.
| | | | - Nédia de Castilhos Ghisi
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia (PPGBIOTEC), Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Campus Dois Vizinhos (UTFPR-DV), Brazil.
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5
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McQuillan MA, Verhulst S, Hansen MEB, Beggs W, Meskel DW, Belay G, Nyambo T, Mpoloka SW, Mokone GG, Fokunang C, Njamnshi AK, Chanock SJ, Aviv A, Tishkoff SA. Association between telomere length and Plasmodium falciparum malaria endemicity in sub-Saharan Africans. Am J Hum Genet 2024; 111:927-938. [PMID: 38701745 PMCID: PMC11080607 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2024.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Revised: 03/19/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) varies significantly across human populations, with individuals of African ancestry having longer LTL than non-Africans. However, the genetic and environmental drivers of LTL variation in Africans remain largely unknown. We report here on the relationship between LTL, genetics, and a variety of environmental and climatic factors in ethnically diverse African adults (n = 1,818) originating from Botswana, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Cameroon. We observe significant variation in LTL among populations, finding that the San hunter-gatherers from Botswana have the longest leukocyte telomeres and that the Fulani pastoralists from Cameroon have the shortest telomeres. Genetic factors explain ∼50% of LTL variation among individuals. Moreover, we observe a significant negative association between Plasmodium falciparum malaria endemicity and LTL while adjusting for age, sex, and genetics. Within Africa, adults from populations indigenous to areas with high malaria exposure have shorter LTL than those in populations indigenous to areas with low malaria exposure. Finally, we explore to what degree the genetic architecture underlying LTL in Africa covaries with malaria exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A McQuillan
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Simon Verhulst
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Matthew E B Hansen
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - William Beggs
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Dawit Wolde Meskel
- Department of Microbial Cellular and Molecular Biology, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Gurja Belay
- Department of Microbial Cellular and Molecular Biology, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Thomas Nyambo
- Department of Biochemistry, Kampala International University in Tanzania (KIUT), Dares Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Sununguko Wata Mpoloka
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Botswana, Gaborone, Botswana
| | - Gaonyadiwe George Mokone
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Botswana, Gaborone, Botswana
| | - Charles Fokunang
- Department of Pharmacotoxicology and Pharmacokinetics, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Alfred K Njamnshi
- Brain Research Africa Initiative (BRAIN), Neuroscience Lab, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Yaoundé I, Department of Neurology, Central Hospital Yaoundé, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Stephen J Chanock
- Division of Cancer Epidemiology & Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, US Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, MD, USA; Cancer Genomics Research Laboratory, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD, USA
| | - Abraham Aviv
- The Center of Human Development and Aging, New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ 07103, USA
| | - Sarah A Tishkoff
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Center for Global Genomics and Health Equity, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
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6
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Pu Y, Pu S, Chen Y, Kong Q, Liu X, Zhao Q, Xu K, Liu J, Li M, Xu X, Qiao X, Su B, Chen J, Yang Z. Weakened tanning ability is an important mechanism for evolutionary skin lightening in East Asians. J Genet Genomics 2024:S1673-8527(24)00038-9. [PMID: 38461943 DOI: 10.1016/j.jgg.2024.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2024] [Revised: 03/03/2024] [Accepted: 03/03/2024] [Indexed: 03/12/2024]
Abstract
The evolution of light-skin pigmentation among Eurasians is considered as an adaptation to the high-latitude environments. East Asians are ideal populations for studying skin color evolution because of the complex environment of East Asia. Here, we report a strong selection signal for the pigmentation gene phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) in light-skinned Han Chinese individuals. The intron mutation rs10778203 in PAH is enriched in East Asians and is significantly associated with skin color of the back of the hand in Han Chinese males (P < 0.05). In vitro luciferase and transcription factor binding assays show that the ancestral allele of rs10778203 could bind to SMAD2 and has a significant enhancer activity for PAH. However, the derived T allele (the major allele in East Asians) of rs10778203 decreases the binding activity of transcription factors and enhancer activity. Meanwhile, the derived T allele of rs10778203 shows a weaker ultraviolet radiation response in A375 cells and zebrafish embryos. Furthermore, rs10778203 decreases melanin production in transgenic zebrafish embryos after ultraviolet B (UVB) treatment. Collectively, PAH is a potential pigmentation gene that regulates skin tanning ability. Natural selection has enriched the adaptive allele, resulting in weakened tanning ability in East Asians, suggesting a unique genetic mechanism for evolutionary skin lightening in East Asians.
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Affiliation(s)
- Youwei Pu
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China
| | - Siyu Pu
- Department of Pediatric Surgery and Laboratory of Pediatric Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Yanyan Chen
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China
| | - Qinghong Kong
- Guizhou Provincial College-based Key Lab for Tumor Prevention and Treatment with Distinctive Medicines, Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, Guizhou 563000, China
| | - Xuyang Liu
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China
| | - Qi Zhao
- Yunnan Key Laboratory of Primate Biomedical Research, Institute of Primate Translational Medicine, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunnan 650500, China
| | - Ke Xu
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China
| | - Jiuming Liu
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China
| | - Mengyuan Li
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China
| | - Xiaoyu Xu
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China
| | - Xiaoyang Qiao
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China
| | - Bing Su
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Resources and Evolution, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan 650223, China; Center for Excellence in Animal Evolution and Genetics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan 650223, China
| | - Jing Chen
- Department of Pediatric Surgery and Laboratory of Pediatric Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China.
| | - Zhaohui Yang
- Tianjian Laboratory of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Academy of Medical Science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan 450052, China.
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7
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Lappalainen T, Li YI, Ramachandran S, Gusev A. Genetic and molecular architecture of complex traits. Cell 2024; 187:1059-1075. [PMID: 38428388 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.01.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024]
Abstract
Human genetics has emerged as one of the most dynamic areas of biology, with a broadening societal impact. In this review, we discuss recent achievements, ongoing efforts, and future challenges in the field. Advances in technology, statistical methods, and the growing scale of research efforts have all provided many insights into the processes that have given rise to the current patterns of genetic variation. Vast maps of genetic associations with human traits and diseases have allowed characterization of their genetic architecture. Finally, studies of molecular and cellular effects of genetic variants have provided insights into biological processes underlying disease. Many outstanding questions remain, but the field is well poised for groundbreaking discoveries as it increases the use of genetic data to understand both the history of our species and its applications to improve human health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tuuli Lappalainen
- New York Genome Center, New York, NY, USA; Science for Life Laboratory, Department of Gene Technology, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden.
| | - Yang I Li
- Section of Genetic Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Human Genetics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Sohini Ramachandran
- Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology, Center for Computational Molecular Biology, and the Data Science Institute, Brown University, Providence, RI 029129, USA
| | - Alexander Gusev
- Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
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Kvapilova K, Misenko P, Radvanszky J, Brzon O, Budis J, Gazdarica J, Pos O, Korabecna M, Kasny M, Szemes T, Kvapil P, Paces J, Kozmik Z. Validated WGS and WES protocols proved saliva-derived gDNA as an equivalent to blood-derived gDNA for clinical and population genomic analyses. BMC Genomics 2024; 25:187. [PMID: 38365587 PMCID: PMC10873937 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-024-10080-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2023] [Accepted: 02/02/2024] [Indexed: 02/18/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Whole exome sequencing (WES) and whole genome sequencing (WGS) have become standard methods in human clinical diagnostics as well as in population genomics (POPGEN). Blood-derived genomic DNA (gDNA) is routinely used in the clinical environment. Conversely, many POPGEN studies and commercial tests benefit from easy saliva sampling. Here, we evaluated the quality of variant call sets and the level of genotype concordance of single nucleotide variants (SNVs) and small insertions and deletions (indels) for WES and WGS using paired blood- and saliva-derived gDNA isolates employing genomic reference-based validated protocols. METHODS The genomic reference standard Coriell NA12878 was repeatedly analyzed using optimized WES and WGS protocols, and data calls were compared with the truth dataset published by the Genome in a Bottle Consortium. gDNA was extracted from the paired blood and saliva samples of 10 participants and processed using the same protocols. A comparison of paired blood-saliva call sets was performed in the context of WGS and WES genomic reference-based technical validation results. RESULTS The quality pattern of called variants obtained from genomic-reference-based technical replicates correlates with data calls of paired blood-saliva-derived samples in all levels of tested examinations despite a higher rate of non-human contamination found in the saliva samples. The F1 score of 10 blood-to-saliva-derived comparisons ranged between 0.8030-0.9998 for SNVs and between 0.8883-0.9991 for small-indels in the case of the WGS protocol, and between 0.8643-0.999 for SNVs and between 0.7781-1.000 for small-indels in the case of the WES protocol. CONCLUSION Saliva may be considered an equivalent material to blood for genetic analysis for both WGS and WES under strict protocol conditions. The accuracy of sequencing metrics and variant-detection accuracy is not affected by choosing saliva as the gDNA source instead of blood but much more significantly by the genomic context, variant types, and the sequencing technology used.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katerina Kvapilova
- Faculty of Science, Charles University, Albertov 6, Prague, 128 00, Czech Republic.
- Institute of Applied Biotechnologies a.s, Služeb 4, Prague, 108 00, Czech Republic.
| | - Pavol Misenko
- Geneton s.r.o, Ilkovičova 8, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
| | - Jan Radvanszky
- Geneton s.r.o, Ilkovičova 8, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
- Institute of Clinical and Translational Research, Biomedical Research Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská Cesta 9, Bratislava, 845 05, Slovakia
- Department of Molecular Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University, Ilkovičova 3278/6, Karlova Ves, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
- Comenius University Science Park, Comenius University, Ilkovičova 8, Karlova Ves, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
| | - Ondrej Brzon
- Institute of Applied Biotechnologies a.s, Služeb 4, Prague, 108 00, Czech Republic
| | - Jaroslav Budis
- Geneton s.r.o, Ilkovičova 8, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
- Comenius University Science Park, Comenius University, Ilkovičova 8, Karlova Ves, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
- Slovak Centre for Scientific and Technical Information, Staré Mesto, Lamačská Cesta 8A, Bratislava, 811 04, Slovakia
| | - Juraj Gazdarica
- Geneton s.r.o, Ilkovičova 8, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
- Comenius University Science Park, Comenius University, Ilkovičova 8, Karlova Ves, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
- Slovak Centre for Scientific and Technical Information, Staré Mesto, Lamačská Cesta 8A, Bratislava, 811 04, Slovakia
| | - Ondrej Pos
- Geneton s.r.o, Ilkovičova 8, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
- Comenius University Science Park, Comenius University, Ilkovičova 8, Karlova Ves, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
| | - Marie Korabecna
- Institute of Biology and Medical Genetics, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University and General University Hospital in Prague, Albertov 4, Prague, 128 00, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Kasny
- Institute of Applied Biotechnologies a.s, Služeb 4, Prague, 108 00, Czech Republic
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, Brno, 611 37, Czech Republic
| | - Tomas Szemes
- Geneton s.r.o, Ilkovičova 8, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
- Department of Molecular Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University, Ilkovičova 3278/6, Karlova Ves, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
- Comenius University Science Park, Comenius University, Ilkovičova 8, Karlova Ves, Bratislava, 841 04, Slovakia
| | - Petr Kvapil
- Institute of Applied Biotechnologies a.s, Služeb 4, Prague, 108 00, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Paces
- Laboratory of Genomics and Bioinformatics, Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Vídeňská 1083, Prague, 142 20, Czech Republic
| | - Zbynek Kozmik
- Laboratory of Transcriptional Regulation, Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Vídeňská 1083, Prague, 142 20, Czech Republic
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9
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Padilla-Iglesias C, Derkx I. Hunter-gatherer genetics research: Importance and avenues. EVOLUTIONARY HUMAN SCIENCES 2024; 6:e15. [PMID: 38516374 PMCID: PMC10955370 DOI: 10.1017/ehs.2024.7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2023] [Revised: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 02/02/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Major developments in the field of genetics in the past few decades have revolutionised notions of what it means to be human. Although currently only a few populations around the world practise a hunting and gathering lifestyle, this mode of subsistence has characterised members of our species since its very origins and allowed us to migrate across the planet. Therefore, the geographical distribution of hunter-gatherer populations, dependence on local ecosystems and connections to past populations and neighbouring groups have provided unique insights into our evolutionary origins. However, given the vulnerable status of hunter-gatherers worldwide, the development of the field of anthropological genetics requires that we reevaluate how we conduct research with these communities. Here, we review how the inclusion of hunter-gatherer populations in genetics studies has advanced our understanding of human origins, ancient population migrations and interactions as well as phenotypic adaptations and adaptability to different environments, and the important scientific and medical applications of these advancements. At the same time, we highlight the necessity to address yet unresolved questions and identify areas in which the field may benefit from improvements.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Inez Derkx
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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10
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Feng Y, Xie N, Inoue F, Fan S, Saskin J, Zhang C, Zhang F, Hansen MEB, Nyambo T, Mpoloka SW, Mokone GG, Fokunang C, Belay G, Njamnshi AK, Marks MS, Oancea E, Ahituv N, Tishkoff SA. Integrative functional genomic analyses identify genetic variants influencing skin pigmentation in Africans. Nat Genet 2024; 56:258-272. [PMID: 38200130 PMCID: PMC11005318 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-023-01626-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
Skin color is highly variable in Africans, yet little is known about the underlying molecular mechanism. Here we applied massively parallel reporter assays to screen 1,157 candidate variants influencing skin pigmentation in Africans and identified 165 single-nucleotide polymorphisms showing differential regulatory activities between alleles. We combine Hi-C, genome editing and melanin assays to identify regulatory elements for MFSD12, HMG20B, OCA2, MITF, LEF1, TRPS1, BLOC1S6 and CYB561A3 that impact melanin levels in vitro and modulate human skin color. We found that independent mutations in an OCA2 enhancer contribute to the evolution of human skin color diversity and detect signals of local adaptation at enhancers of MITF, LEF1 and TRPS1, which may contribute to the light skin color of Khoesan-speaking populations from Southern Africa. Additionally, we identified CYB561A3 as a novel pigmentation regulator that impacts genes involved in oxidative phosphorylation and melanogenesis. These results provide insights into the mechanisms underlying human skin color diversity and adaptive evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanqing Feng
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Ning Xie
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Fumitaka Inoue
- Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Institute for Human Genetics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Biology (WPI-ASHBi), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Shaohua Fan
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Human Phenome Institute, School of Life Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Joshua Saskin
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Chao Zhang
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Fang Zhang
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Matthew E B Hansen
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Thomas Nyambo
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Hubert Kairuki Memorial University, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Sununguko Wata Mpoloka
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, University of Botswana, Gaborone, Botswana
| | | | - Charles Fokunang
- Department of Pharmacotoxicology and Pharmacokinetics, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Gurja Belay
- Department of Biology, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Alfred K Njamnshi
- Brain Research Africa Initiative (BRAIN); Neuroscience Lab, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Yaoundé I, Department of Neurology, Central Hospital Yaoundé, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Michael S Marks
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Research Institute, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Elena Oancea
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Nadav Ahituv
- Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Institute for Human Genetics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Sarah A Tishkoff
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
- Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
- Center for Global Genomics and Health Equity, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
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11
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Unravelling the molecular mechanisms of skin color diversity in Africans. Nat Genet 2024; 56:200-201. [PMID: 38238631 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-023-01643-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/15/2024]
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12
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Balcha SA, Phillips DI, Trimble ER. Type 1 diabetes mellitus in the context of high levels of rural deprivation: differences in demographic and anthropometric characteristics between urban and rural cases in NW Ethiopia. FRONTIERS IN CLINICAL DIABETES AND HEALTHCARE 2024; 4:1298270. [PMID: 38348016 PMCID: PMC10859451 DOI: 10.3389/fcdhc.2023.1298270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2024]
Abstract
Background While there is increasing evidence for an altered clinical phenotype of Type 1 diabetes in several low-and middle-income countries, little is known about urban-rural differences and how the greater poverty of rural environments may alter the pattern of disease. Objective Investigation of urban-rural differences in demographic and anthropometric characteristics of type 1 diabetes in a resource-poor setting. Research design and methods Analysis of a unique case register, comprising all patients (rural and urban) presenting with Type 1 diabetes over a 20 yr. period in a poor, geographically defined area in northwest Ethiopia. The records included age, sex, place of residence, together with height and weight at the clinical onset. Results A total of 1682 new cases of Type 1 diabetes were registered with a mean age of onset of 31.2 (SD 13.4) yr. The patients were thin with 1/3 presenting with a body mass index (BMI) <17kg/m2. There was a striking male predominance of cases when clinical onset was between 20 and 35 yr., this was more marked in the very poor rural dwellers compared to the urban population. While most patients with Type 1 diabetes presented with low BMIs and reduced height, stunting preferentially affected rural men. Conclusions These data have led to the hypothesis that complex interactions among poor socioeconomic conditions in early life affect both pancreatic function and the development of autoimmunity and provide a possible explanation of the unusual phenotype of Type 1 diabetes in this very poor community.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shitaye A. Balcha
- Department of Internal Medicine, Gondar University Hospital, Gondar, Ethiopia
| | - David I. Phillips
- Medical Research Council (MRC) Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit, University of Southampton, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton, United Kingdom
| | - Elisabeth R. Trimble
- Centre for Public Health, Institute of Clinical Science, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
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13
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Mirchandani CD, Shultz AJ, Thomas GWC, Smith SJ, Baylis M, Arnold B, Corbett-Detig R, Enbody E, Sackton TB. A Fast, Reproducible, High-throughput Variant Calling Workflow for Population Genomics. Mol Biol Evol 2024; 41:msad270. [PMID: 38069903 PMCID: PMC10764099 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msad270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2023] [Revised: 10/27/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
The increasing availability of genomic resequencing data sets and high-quality reference genomes across the tree of life present exciting opportunities for comparative population genomic studies. However, substantial challenges prevent the simple reuse of data across different studies and species, arising from variability in variant calling pipelines, data quality, and the need for computationally intensive reanalysis. Here, we present snpArcher, a flexible and highly efficient workflow designed for the analysis of genomic resequencing data in nonmodel organisms. snpArcher provides a standardized variant calling pipeline and includes modules for variant quality control, data visualization, variant filtering, and other downstream analyses. Implemented in Snakemake, snpArcher is user-friendly, reproducible, and designed to be compatible with high-performance computing clusters and cloud environments. To demonstrate the flexibility of this pipeline, we applied snpArcher to 26 public resequencing data sets from nonmammalian vertebrates. These variant data sets are hosted publicly to enable future comparative population genomic analyses. With its extensibility and the availability of public data sets, snpArcher will contribute to a broader understanding of genetic variation across species by facilitating the rapid use and reuse of large genomic data sets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cade D Mirchandani
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
- Genomics Institute, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Allison J Shultz
- Ornithology Department, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA 90007, USA
| | | | - Sara J Smith
- Informatics Group, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Biology, Mount Royal University, Calgary, AB T3E 6K6, Canada
| | - Mara Baylis
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
- Genomics Institute, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Brian Arnold
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Center for Statistics and Machine Learning, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Russ Corbett-Detig
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
- Genomics Institute, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Erik Enbody
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
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14
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Fortes-Lima CA, Burgarella C, Hammarén R, Eriksson A, Vicente M, Jolly C, Semo A, Gunnink H, Pacchiarotti S, Mundeke L, Matonda I, Muluwa JK, Coutros P, Nyambe TS, Cikomola JC, Coetzee V, de Castro M, Ebbesen P, Delanghe J, Stoneking M, Barham L, Lombard M, Meyer A, Steyn M, Malmström H, Rocha J, Soodyall H, Pakendorf B, Bostoen K, Schlebusch CM. The genetic legacy of the expansion of Bantu-speaking peoples in Africa. Nature 2024; 625:540-547. [PMID: 38030719 PMCID: PMC10794141 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06770-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023]
Abstract
The expansion of people speaking Bantu languages is the most dramatic demographic event in Late Holocene Africa and fundamentally reshaped the linguistic, cultural and biological landscape of the continent1-7. With a comprehensive genomic dataset, including newly generated data of modern-day and ancient DNA from previously unsampled regions in Africa, we contribute insights into this expansion that started 6,000-4,000 years ago in western Africa. We genotyped 1,763 participants, including 1,526 Bantu speakers from 147 populations across 14 African countries, and generated whole-genome sequences from 12 Late Iron Age individuals8. We show that genetic diversity amongst Bantu-speaking populations declines with distance from western Africa, with current-day Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo as possible crossroads of interaction. Using spatially explicit methods9 and correlating genetic, linguistic and geographical data, we provide cross-disciplinary support for a serial-founder migration model. We further show that Bantu speakers received significant gene flow from local groups in regions they expanded into. Our genetic dataset provides an exhaustive modern-day African comparative dataset for ancient DNA studies10 and will be important to a wide range of disciplines from science and humanities, as well as to the medical sector studying human genetic variation and health in African and African-descendant populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cesar A Fortes-Lima
- Human Evolution Program, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Concetta Burgarella
- Human Evolution Program, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- AGAP Institut, University of Montpellier, CIRAD, INRAE, Institut Agro, Montpellier, France
| | - Rickard Hammarén
- Human Evolution Program, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Anders Eriksson
- cGEM, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Mário Vicente
- Centre for Palaeogenetics, University of Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Cecile Jolly
- Human Evolution Program, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Armando Semo
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, Vairão, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Hilde Gunnink
- UGent Centre for Bantu Studies (BantUGent), Department of Languages and Cultures, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Leiden University Centre for Linguistics, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Sara Pacchiarotti
- UGent Centre for Bantu Studies (BantUGent), Department of Languages and Cultures, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Leon Mundeke
- University of Kinshasa, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo
| | - Igor Matonda
- University of Kinshasa, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo
| | - Joseph Koni Muluwa
- Institut Supérieur Pédagogique de Kikwit, Kikwit, Democratic Republic of Congo
| | - Peter Coutros
- UGent Centre for Bantu Studies (BantUGent), Department of Languages and Cultures, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | | | | | - Vinet Coetzee
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Minique de Castro
- Biotechnology Platform, Agricultural Research Council, Onderstepoort, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Peter Ebbesen
- Department of Health Science and Technology, University of Aalborg, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - Joris Delanghe
- Department of Diagnostic Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Mark Stoneking
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, UMR 5558, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Lawrence Barham
- Department of Archaeology, Classics & Egyptology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Marlize Lombard
- Palaeo-Research Institute, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Anja Meyer
- Human Variation and Identification Research Unit, School of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Maryna Steyn
- Human Variation and Identification Research Unit, School of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Helena Malmström
- Human Evolution Program, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- Palaeo-Research Institute, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Jorge Rocha
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, Vairão, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Himla Soodyall
- Division of Human Genetics, School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Academy of Science of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa
| | | | - Koen Bostoen
- UGent Centre for Bantu Studies (BantUGent), Department of Languages and Cultures, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Carina M Schlebusch
- Human Evolution Program, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
- Palaeo-Research Institute, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa.
- SciLifeLab, Uppsala, Sweden.
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15
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Gilbertson EN, Brand CM, McArthur E, Rinker DC, Kuang S, Pollard KS, Capra JA. Machine learning reveals the diversity of human 3D chromatin contact patterns. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.12.22.573104. [PMID: 38187606 PMCID: PMC10769343 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.22.573104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2024]
Abstract
Understanding variation in chromatin contact patterns across human populations is critical for interpreting non-coding variants and their ultimate effects on gene expression and phenotypes. However, experimental determination of chromatin contacts at a population-scale is prohibitively expensive. To overcome this challenge, we develop and validate a machine learning method to quantify the diversity 3D chromatin contacts at 2 kilobase resolution from genome sequence alone. We then apply this approach to thousands of diverse modern humans and the inferred human-archaic hominin ancestral genome. While patterns of 3D contact divergence genome-wide are qualitatively similar to patterns of sequence divergence, we find that 3D divergence in local 1-megabase genomic windows does not follow sequence divergence. In particular, we identify 392 windows with significantly greater 3D divergence than expected from sequence. Moreover, 26% of genomic windows have rare 3D contact variation observed in a small number of individuals. Using in silico mutagenesis we find that most sequence changes to do not result in changes to 3D chromatin contacts. However in windows with substantial 3D divergence, just one or a few variants can lead to divergent 3D chromatin contacts without the individuals carrying those variants having high sequence divergence. In summary, inferring 3D chromatin contact maps across human populations reveals diverse contact patterns. We anticipate that these genetically diverse maps of 3D chromatin contact will provide a reference for future work on the function and evolution of 3D chromatin contact variation across human populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin N Gilbertson
- Biomedical Informatics Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
- Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, CA
| | - Colin M Brand
- Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA
| | - Evonne McArthur
- Vanderbilt Genetics Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
| | - David C Rinker
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
| | - Shuzhen Kuang
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, San Francisco, CA
| | - Katherine S Pollard
- Biomedical Informatics Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
- Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, San Francisco, CA
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub SF, San Francisco, CA
| | - John A Capra
- Biomedical Informatics Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
- Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA
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16
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D'Atanasio E, Risi F, Ravasini F, Montinaro F, Hajiesmaeil M, Bonucci B, Pistacchia L, Amoako-Sakyi D, Bonito M, Onidi S, Colombo G, Semino O, Destro Bisol G, Anagnostou P, Metspalu M, Tambets K, Trombetta B, Cruciani F. The genomic echoes of the last Green Sahara on the Fulani and Sahelian people. Curr Biol 2023; 33:5495-5504.e4. [PMID: 37995693 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.10.075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Revised: 09/28/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 11/25/2023]
Abstract
The population history of the Sahara/Sahelian belt is understudied, despite previous work highlighting complex dynamics.1,2,3,4,5,6,7 The Sahelian Fulani, i.e., the largest nomadic pastoral population in the world,8 represent an interesting case because they show a non-negligible proportion of an Eurasian genetic component, usually explained by recent admixture with northern Africans.1,2,5,6,7,9,10,11,12 Nevertheless, their origins are largely unknown, although several hypotheses have been proposed, including a possible link to ancient peoples settled in the Sahara during its last humid phase (Green Sahara, 12,000-5,000 years before present [BP]).13,14,15 To shed light about the Fulani ancient genetic roots, we produced 23 high-coverage (30×) whole genomes from Fulani individuals from 8 Sahelian countries, plus 17 samples from other African groups and 3 from Europeans as controls, for a total of 43 new whole genomes. These data have been compared with 814 published modern whole genomes2,16,17,18 and with relevant published ancient sequences (> 1,800 samples).19 These analyses showed some evidence that the non-sub-Saharan genetic ancestry component of the Fulani might have also been shaped by older events,1,5,6 possibly tracing the Fulani origins to unsampled ancient Green Saharan population(s). The joint analysis of modern and ancient samples allowed us to shed light on the genetic ancestry composition of such ancient Saharans, suggesting a similarity with Late Neolithic Moroccans and possibly pointing to a link with the spread of cattle herding. We also identified two different Fulani clusters whose admixture pattern may be informative about the historical Fulani movements and their later involvement in the western African empires.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eugenia D'Atanasio
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Pathology, National Research Council, 00185 Rome, Italy.
| | - Flavia Risi
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Francesco Ravasini
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Francesco Montinaro
- Department of Biology, University of Bari, 70121 Bari, Italy; Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, 51010 Tartu, Estonia
| | - Mogge Hajiesmaeil
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | | | - Letizia Pistacchia
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Pathology, National Research Council, 00185 Rome, Italy; Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Daniel Amoako-Sakyi
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana
| | - Maria Bonito
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Sara Onidi
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Giulia Colombo
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, Italy
| | - Ornella Semino
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, Italy
| | - Giovanni Destro Bisol
- Department of Enviromental Biology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy; Istituto Italiano di Antropologia, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Paolo Anagnostou
- Department of Enviromental Biology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Mait Metspalu
- Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, 51010 Tartu, Estonia
| | | | - Beniamino Trombetta
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Fulvio Cruciani
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Pathology, National Research Council, 00185 Rome, Italy; Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.
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17
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Ragsdale AP. Human evolution: Neanderthal footprints in African genomes. Curr Biol 2023; 33:R1197-R1200. [PMID: 37989099 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2023]
Abstract
Human and Neanderthal populations met and mixed on multiple occasions over evolutionary time, resulting in the exchange of genetic material. New genomic analyses of diverse African populations reveal a history of bidirectional gene flow and selection acting on introgressed alleles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron P Ragsdale
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
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18
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Harris DN, Platt A, Hansen MEB, Fan S, McQuillan MA, Nyambo T, Mpoloka SW, Mokone GG, Belay G, Fokunang C, Njamnshi AK, Tishkoff SA. Diverse African genomes reveal selection on ancient modern human introgressions in Neanderthals. Curr Biol 2023; 33:4905-4916.e5. [PMID: 37837965 PMCID: PMC10841429 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.09.066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2023] [Revised: 07/18/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/16/2023]
Abstract
Comparisons of Neanderthal genomes to anatomically modern human (AMH) genomes show a history of Neanderthal-to-AMH introgression stemming from interbreeding after the migration of AMHs from Africa to Eurasia. All non-sub-Saharan African AMHs have genomic regions genetically similar to Neanderthals that descend from this introgression. Regions of the genome with Neanderthal similarities have also been identified in sub-Saharan African populations, but their origins have been unclear. To better understand how these regions are distributed across sub-Saharan Africa, the source of their origin, and what their distribution within the genome tells us about early AMH and Neanderthal evolution, we analyzed a dataset of high-coverage, whole-genome sequences from 180 individuals from 12 diverse sub-Saharan African populations. In sub-Saharan African populations with non-sub-Saharan African ancestry, as much as 1% of their genomes can be attributed to Neanderthal sequence introduced by recent migration, and subsequent admixture, of AMH populations originating from the Levant and North Africa. However, most Neanderthal homologous regions in sub-Saharan African populations originate from migration of AMH populations from Africa to Eurasia ∼250 kya, and subsequent admixture with Neanderthals, resulting in ∼6% AMH ancestry in Neanderthals. These results indicate that there have been multiple migration events of AMHs out of Africa and that Neanderthal and AMH gene flow has been bi-directional. Observing that genomic regions where AMHs show a depletion of Neanderthal introgression are also regions where Neanderthal genomes show a depletion of AMH introgression points to deleterious interactions between introgressed variants and background genomes in both groups-a hallmark of incipient speciation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel N Harris
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Alexander Platt
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Matthew E B Hansen
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Shaohua Fan
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Human Phenome Institute, Zhangjiang Fudan International Innovation Center, School of Life Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Michael A McQuillan
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Thomas Nyambo
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Hubert Kairuki Memorial University, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Sununguko Wata Mpoloka
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Botswana, Private Bag UB 0022, Gaborone, Botswana
| | - Gaonyadiwe George Mokone
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Botswana, Private Bag UB 0022, Gaborone, Botswana
| | - Gurja Belay
- Department of Microbial Cellular and Molecular Biology, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Charles Fokunang
- Department of Pharmacotoxicology and Pharmacokinetics, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Yaoundé I, P.O. Box 337, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Alfred K Njamnshi
- Brain Research Africa Initiative (BRAIN), P.O. Box 25625, Yaoundé, Cameroon; Neuroscience Lab, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Sarah A Tishkoff
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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Zonker J, Padilla-Iglesias C, Djurdjevac Conrad N. Insights into drivers of mobility and cultural dynamics of African hunter-gatherers over the past 120 000 years. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230495. [PMID: 37920565 PMCID: PMC10618055 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023]
Abstract
Humans have a unique capacity to innovate, transmit and rely on complex, cumulative culture for survival. While an important body of work has attempted to explore the role of changes in the size and interconnectedness of populations in determining the persistence, diversity and complexity of material culture, results have achieved limited success in explaining the emergence and spatial distribution of cumulative culture over our evolutionary trajectory. Here, we develop a spatio-temporally explicit agent-based model to explore the role of environmentally driven changes in the population dynamics of hunter-gatherer communities in allowing the development, transmission and accumulation of complex culture. By modelling separately demography- and mobility-driven changes in interaction networks, we can assess the extent to which cultural change is driven by different types of population dynamics. We create and validate our model using empirical data from Central Africa spanning 120 000 years. We find that populations would have been able to maintain diverse and elaborate cultural repertoires despite abrupt environmental changes and demographic collapses by preventing isolation through mobility. However, we also reveal that the function of cultural features was also an essential determinant of the effects of environmental or demographic changes on their dynamics. Our work can therefore offer important insights into the role of a foraging lifestyle on the evolution of cumulative culture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Zonker
- Zuse Institute Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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20
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Brand CM, Kuang S, Gilbertson EN, McArthur E, Pollard KS, Webster TH, Capra JA. Sequence-based machine learning reveals 3D genome differences between bonobos and chimpanzees. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.10.26.564272. [PMID: 37961120 PMCID: PMC10634871 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.26.564272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Phenotypic divergence between closely related species, including bonobos and chimpanzees (genus Pan), is largely driven by variation in gene regulation. The 3D structure of the genome mediates gene expression; however, genome folding differences in Pan are not well understood. Here, we apply machine learning to predict genome-wide 3D genome contact maps from DNA sequence for 56 bonobos and chimpanzees, encompassing all five extant lineages. We use a pairwise approach to estimate 3D divergence between individuals from the resulting contact maps in 4,420 1 Mb genomic windows. While most pairs were similar, ∼17% were predicted to be substantially divergent in genome folding. The most dissimilar maps were largely driven by single individuals with rare variants that produce unique 3D genome folding in a region. We also identified 89 genomic windows where bonobo and chimpanzee contact maps substantially diverged, including several windows harboring genes associated with traits implicated in Pan phenotypic divergence. We used in silico mutagenesis to identify 51 3D-modifying variants in these bonobo-chimpanzee divergent windows, finding that 34 or 66.67% induce genome folding changes via CTCF binding motif disruption. Our results reveal 3D genome variation at the population-level and identify genomic regions where changes in 3D folding may contribute to phenotypic differences in our closest living relatives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin M. Brand
- Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA
| | - Shuzhen Kuang
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, San Francisco, CA
| | - Erin N. Gilbertson
- Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Biomedical Informatics Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
| | - Evonne McArthur
- Vanderbilt Genetics Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
| | - Katherine S. Pollard
- Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology, San Francisco, CA
- Biomedical Informatics Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
- Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA
| | | | - John A. Capra
- Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA
- Biomedical Informatics Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
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21
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Li B, Sangkuhl K, Whaley R, Woon M, Keat K, Whirl-Carrillo M, Ritchie MD, Klein TE. Frequencies of pharmacogenomic alleles across biogeographic groups in a large-scale biobank. Am J Hum Genet 2023; 110:1628-1647. [PMID: 37757824 PMCID: PMC10577080 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2023.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2023] [Revised: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/01/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Pharmacogenomics (PGx) is an integral part of precision medicine and contributes to the maximization of drug efficacy and reduction of adverse drug event risk. Accurate information on PGx allele frequencies improves the implementation of PGx. Nonetheless, curating such information from published allele data is time and resource intensive. The limited number of allelic variants in most studies leads to an underestimation of certain alleles. We applied the Pharmacogenomics Clinical Annotation Tool (PharmCAT) on an integrated 200K UK Biobank genetic dataset (N = 200,044). Based on PharmCAT results, we estimated PGx frequencies (alleles, diplotypes, phenotypes, and activity scores) for 17 pharmacogenes in five biogeographic groups: European, Central/South Asian, East Asian, Afro-Caribbean, and Sub-Saharan African. PGx frequencies were distinct for each biogeographic group. Even biogeographic groups with similar proportions of phenotypes were driven by different sets of dominant PGx alleles. PharmCAT also identified "no-function" alleles that were rare or seldom tested in certain groups by previous studies, e.g., SLCO1B1∗31 in the Afro-Caribbean (3.0%) and Sub-Saharan African (3.9%) groups. Estimated PGx frequencies are disseminated via the PharmGKB (The Pharmacogenomics Knowledgebase: www.pharmgkb.org). We demonstrate that genetic biobanks such as the UK Biobank are a robust resource for estimating PGx frequencies. Improving our understanding of PGx allele and phenotype frequencies provides guidance for future PGx studies and clinical genetic test panel design, and better serves individuals from wider biogeographic backgrounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Binglan Li
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Katrin Sangkuhl
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Ryan Whaley
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Mark Woon
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Karl Keat
- Genomics and Computational Biology PhD Program, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | | | - Marylyn D Ritchie
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Institute for Biomedical Informatics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Teri E Klein
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA; Department of Genetics (by courtesy), Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA; Department of Medicine (BMIR), Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
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22
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Scerri EML. One species, many roots? Nat Ecol Evol 2023; 7:975-976. [PMID: 37198291 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-023-02080-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Eleanor M L Scerri
- Pan-African Evolution Research Group, Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, Jena, Germany.
- Department of Prehistory, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
- Department of Classics and Archaeology, University of Malta, Msida, Malta.
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23
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Wonkam A, Adeyemo A. Leveraging our common African origins to understand human evolution and health. CELL GENOMICS 2023; 3:100278. [PMID: 36950382 PMCID: PMC10025516 DOI: 10.1016/j.xgen.2023.100278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
In the March 2023 issue of Cell, Fan et al.1 report whole-genome sequencing across 12 indigenous African populations and analyze local adaptation and evolutionary history. Here, Wonkam and Adeyemo highlight their findings and how this contributes to African and global genomic research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ambroise Wonkam
- McKusick-Nathans Institute & Department of Genetic Medicine. Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
- Corresponding author
| | - Adebowale Adeyemo
- Center for Research on Genomics and Global Health, National Human Genome Research Institute, The National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
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