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Boye C, Nirmalan S, Ranjbaran A, Luca F. Genotype × environment interactions in gene regulation and complex traits. Nat Genet 2024:10.1038/s41588-024-01776-w. [PMID: 38858456 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-024-01776-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/25/2024] [Indexed: 06/12/2024]
Abstract
Genotype × environment interactions (GxE) have long been recognized as a key mechanism underlying human phenotypic variation. Technological developments over the past 15 years have dramatically expanded our appreciation of the role of GxE in both gene regulation and complex traits. The richness and complexity of these datasets also required parallel efforts to develop robust and sensitive statistical and computational approaches. Although our understanding of the genetic architecture of molecular and complex traits has been maturing, a large proportion of complex trait heritability remains unexplained. Furthermore, there are increasing efforts to characterize the effect of environmental exposure on human health. We therefore review GxE in human gene regulation and complex traits, advocating for a comprehensive approach that jointly considers genetic and environmental factors in human health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carly Boye
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, US
| | - Shreya Nirmalan
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, US
| | - Ali Ranjbaran
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, US
| | - Francesca Luca
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, US.
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, US.
- Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy.
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2
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Laskar RS, Qu C, Huyghe JR, Harrison T, Hayes RB, Cao Y, Campbell PT, Steinfelder R, Talukdar FR, Brenner H, Ogino S, Brendt S, Bishop DT, Buchanan DD, Chan AT, Cotterchio M, Gruber SB, Gsur A, van Guelpen B, Jenkins MA, Keku TO, Lynch BM, Le Marchand L, Martin RM, McCarthy K, Moreno V, Pearlman R, Song M, Tsilidis KK, Vodička P, Woods MO, Wu K, Hsu L, Gunter MJ, Peters U, Murphy N. Genome-wide association studies and Mendelian randomization analyses provide insights into the causes of early-onset colorectal cancer. Ann Oncol 2024; 35:523-536. [PMID: 38408508 DOI: 10.1016/j.annonc.2024.02.008] [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: 07/31/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 02/20/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The incidence of early-onset colorectal cancer (EOCRC; diagnosed <50 years of age) is rising globally; however, the causes underlying this trend are largely unknown. CRC has strong genetic and environmental determinants, yet common genetic variants and causal modifiable risk factors underlying EOCRC are unknown. We conducted the first EOCRC-specific genome-wide association study (GWAS) and Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses to explore germline genetic and causal modifiable risk factors associated with EOCRC. PATIENTS AND METHODS We conducted a GWAS meta-analysis of 6176 EOCRC cases and 65 829 controls from the Genetics and Epidemiology of Colorectal Cancer Consortium (GECCO), the Colorectal Transdisciplinary Study (CORECT), the Colon Cancer Family Registry (CCFR), and the UK Biobank. We then used the EOCRC GWAS to investigate 28 modifiable risk factors using two-sample MR. RESULTS We found two novel risk loci for EOCRC at 1p34.1 and 4p15.33, which were not previously associated with CRC risk. We identified a deleterious coding variant (rs36053993, G396D) at polyposis-associated DNA repair gene MUTYH (odds ratio 1.80, 95% confidence interval 1.47-2.22) but show that most of the common genetic susceptibility was from noncoding signals enriched in epigenetic markers present in gastrointestinal tract cells. We identified new EOCRC-susceptibility genes, and in addition to pathways such as transforming growth factor (TGF) β, suppressor of Mothers Against Decapentaplegic (SMAD), bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) and phosphatidylinositol kinase (PI3K) signaling, our study highlights a role for insulin signaling and immune/infection-related pathways in EOCRC. In our MR analyses, we found novel evidence of probable causal associations for higher levels of body size and metabolic factors-such as body fat percentage, waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, basal metabolic rate, and fasting insulin-higher alcohol drinking, and lower education attainment with increased EOCRC risk. CONCLUSIONS Our novel findings indicate inherited susceptibility to EOCRC and suggest modifiable lifestyle and metabolic targets that could also be used to risk-stratify individuals for personalized screening strategies or other interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- R S Laskar
- Nutrition and Metabolism Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France; Early Cancer Institute, Department of Oncology, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
| | - C Qu
- Public Health Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle
| | - J R Huyghe
- Public Health Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle
| | - T Harrison
- Public Health Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle
| | - R B Hayes
- Division of Epidemiology, Department of Population Health, New York University School of Medicine, New York
| | - Y Cao
- Division of Public Health Sciences, Department of Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis; Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis; Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center, St Louis
| | - P T Campbell
- Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, USA
| | - R Steinfelder
- Public Health Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle
| | - F R Talukdar
- Epigenomics and Mechanisms Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France; Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - H Brenner
- Division of Clinical Epidemiology and Aging Research, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - S Ogino
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston; Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston; Program in Molecular Pathological Epidemiology, Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston; Department of Oncologic Pathology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston
| | - S Brendt
- Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, USA
| | - D T Bishop
- Leeds Institute of Cancer and Pathology, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
| | - D D Buchanan
- Colorectal Oncogenomics Group, Department of Clinical Pathology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville; University of Melbourne Centre for Cancer Research, Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Melbourne; Genomic Medicine and Family Cancer Clinic, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Australia
| | - A T Chan
- Division of Gastroenterology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston; Channing Division of Network Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston; Clinical and Translational Epidemiology Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA
| | - M Cotterchio
- Ontario Health (Cancer Care Ontario), Toronto; Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - S B Gruber
- Department of Medical Oncology & Therapeutics Research, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, USA
| | - A Gsur
- Center for Cancer Research, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - B van Guelpen
- Department of Radiation Sciences, Oncology Unit, Umeå University, Umeå; Wallenberg Centre for Molecular Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - M A Jenkins
- Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - T O Keku
- Center for Gastrointestinal Biology and Disease, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA
| | - B M Lynch
- Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia; Cancer Epidemiology Division, Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne; Physical Activity Laboratory, Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute, Melbourne, Australia
| | | | - R M Martin
- Medical Research Council (MRC) Integrative Epidemiology Unit, Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol; Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol; National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Bristol Biomedical Research Centre, University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Bristol, Bristol
| | - K McCarthy
- Department of Colorectal Surgery, North Bristol NHS Trust, Bristol, UK
| | - V Moreno
- Cancer Prevention and Control Program, Catalan Institute of Oncology-IDIBELL, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona; CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid; Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - R Pearlman
- Division of Human Genetics, Department of Internal Medicine, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus
| | - M Song
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston; Division of Gastroenterology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston; Clinical and Translational Epidemiology Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA; Department of Nutrition, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, USA
| | - K K Tsilidis
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, UK; Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, University of Ioannina School of Medicine, Ioannina, Greece
| | - P Vodička
- Department of Molecular Biology of Cancer, Institute of Experimental Medicine of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague; Institute of Biology and Medical Genetics, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Prague; Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Center in Pilsen, Charles University, Pilsen, Czech Republic
| | - M O Woods
- Memorial University of Newfoundland, Discipline of Genetics, St. John's, Canada
| | - K Wu
- Department of Nutrition, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, USA
| | - L Hsu
- Public Health Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle
| | - M J Gunter
- Nutrition and Metabolism Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - U Peters
- Public Health Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle; Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, USA
| | - N Murphy
- Nutrition and Metabolism Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France.
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Popp JM, Rhodes K, Jangi R, Li M, Barr K, Tayeb K, Battle A, Gilad Y. Cell-type and dynamic state govern genetic regulation of gene expression in heterogeneous differentiating cultures. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.02.592174. [PMID: 38746382 PMCID: PMC11092595 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.02.592174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
Identifying the molecular effects of human genetic variation across cellular contexts is crucial for understanding the mechanisms underlying disease-associated loci, yet many cell-types and developmental stages remain underexplored. Here we harnessed the potential of heterogeneous differentiating cultures ( HDCs ), an in vitro system in which pluripotent cells asynchronously differentiate into a broad spectrum of cell-types. We generated HDCs for 53 human donors and collected single-cell RNA-sequencing data from over 900,000 cells. We identified expression quantitative trait loci in 29 cell-types and characterized regulatory dynamics across diverse differentiation trajectories. This revealed novel regulatory variants for genes involved in key developmental and disease-related processes while replicating known effects from primary tissues, and dynamic regulatory effects associated with a range of complex traits.
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Dou J, Tan Y, Kock KH, Wang J, Cheng X, Tan LM, Han KY, Hon CC, Park WY, Shin JW, Jin H, Wang Y, Chen H, Ding L, Prabhakar S, Navin N, Chen R, Chen K. Single-nucleotide variant calling in single-cell sequencing data with Monopogen. Nat Biotechnol 2024; 42:803-812. [PMID: 37592035 PMCID: PMC11098741 DOI: 10.1038/s41587-023-01873-x] [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: 12/05/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023]
Abstract
Single-cell omics technologies enable molecular characterization of diverse cell types and states, but how the resulting transcriptional and epigenetic profiles depend on the cell's genetic background remains understudied. We describe Monopogen, a computational tool to detect single-nucleotide variants (SNVs) from single-cell sequencing data. Monopogen leverages linkage disequilibrium from external reference panels to identify germline SNVs and detects putative somatic SNVs using allele cosegregating patterns at the cell population level. It can identify 100 K to 3 M germline SNVs achieving a genotyping accuracy of 95%, together with hundreds of putative somatic SNVs. Monopogen-derived genotypes enable global and local ancestry inference and identification of admixed samples. It identifies variants associated with cardiomyocyte metabolic levels and epigenomic programs. It also improves putative somatic SNV detection that enables clonal lineage tracing in primary human clonal hematopoiesis. Monopogen brings together population genetics, cell lineage tracing and single-cell omics to uncover genetic determinants of cellular processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinzhuang Dou
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Yukun Tan
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Kian Hong Kock
- Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Jun Wang
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Xuesen Cheng
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Le Min Tan
- Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Kyung Yeon Han
- Samsung Genome Institute, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Chung-Chau Hon
- Laboratory for Genome Information Analysis, RIKEN center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima, Japan
| | - Woong-Yang Park
- Samsung Genome Institute, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Jay W Shin
- Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
- Laboratory for Advanced Genomics Circuit, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Haijing Jin
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Yujia Wang
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Han Chen
- Human Genetics Center, Department of Epidemiology, Human Genetics and Environmental Sciences, School of Public Health, The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, TX, USA
- Center for Precision Health, McWilliams School of Biomedical Informatics, The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Li Ding
- McDonnell Genome Institute, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Siteman Cancer Institute, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Shyam Prabhakar
- Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Nicholas Navin
- Department of Systems Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Rui Chen
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Ken Chen
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
- Department of Systems Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
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5
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Liaw YC, Matsuda K, Liaw YP. Identification of an novel genetic variant associated with osteoporosis: insights from the Taiwan Biobank Study. JBMR Plus 2024; 8:ziae028. [PMID: 38655459 PMCID: PMC11037432 DOI: 10.1093/jbmrpl/ziae028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2024] [Revised: 02/18/2024] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this study was to identify new independent significant SNPs associated with osteoporosis using data from the Taiwan Biobank (TWBB). Material and Methods The dataset was divided into discovery (60%) and replication (40%) subsets. Following data quality control, genome-wide association study (GWAS) analysis was performed, adjusting for sex, age, and the top 5 principal components, employing the Scalable and Accurate Implementation of the Generalized mixed model approach. This was followed by a meta-analysis of TWBB1 and TWBB2. The Functional Mapping and Annotation (FUMA) platform was used to identify osteoporosis-associated loci. Manhattan and quantile-quantile plots were generated using the FUMA platform to visualize the results. Independent significant SNPs were selected based on genome-wide significance (P < 5 × 10-8) and independence from each other (r2 < 0.6) within a 1 Mb window. Positional, eQTL(expression quantitative trait locus), and Chromatin interaction mapping were used to map SNPs to genes. Results A total of 29 084 individuals (3154 osteoporosis cases and 25 930 controls) were used for GWAS analysis (TWBB1 data), and 18 918 individuals (1917 cases and 17 001 controls) were utilized for replication studies (TWBB2 data). We identified a new independent significant SNP for osteoporosis in TWBB1, with the lead SNP rs76140829 (minor allele frequency = 0.055, P-value = 1.15 × 10-08). Replication of the association was performed in TWBB2, yielding a P-value of 6.56 × 10-3. The meta-analysis of TWBB1 and TWBB2 data demonstrated a highly significant association for SNP rs76140829 (P-value = 7.52 × 10-10). In the positional mapping of rs76140829, 6 genes (HABP2, RP11-481H12.1, RNU7-165P, RP11-139 K1.2, RP11-57H14.3, and RP11-214 N15.5) were identified through chromatin interaction mapping in mesenchymal stem cells. Conclusions Our GWAS analysis using the Taiwan Biobank dataset unveils rs76140829 in the VTI1A gene as a key risk variant associated with osteoporosis. This finding expands our understanding of the genetic basis of osteoporosis and highlights the potential regulatory role of this SNP in mesenchymal stem cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi-Ching Liaw
- Department of Computational Biology and Medical Sciences, Laboratory of Clinical Genome Sequencing, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Department of Public Health and Institute of Public Health, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 40201, Taiwan
| | - Koichi Matsuda
- Department of Computational Biology and Medical Sciences, Laboratory of Clinical Genome Sequencing, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
- Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Laboratory of Genome Technology, Human Genome Center, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan
| | - Yung-Po Liaw
- Department of Public Health and Institute of Public Health, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 40201, Taiwan
- Institute of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 40201, Taiwan
- Department of Medical Imaging, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung 40201, Taiwan
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Westerman KE, Sofer T. Many roads to a gene-environment interaction. Am J Hum Genet 2024; 111:626-635. [PMID: 38579668 PMCID: PMC11023920 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2024.03.002] [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: 11/28/2023] [Revised: 02/29/2024] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Despite the importance of gene-environment interactions (GxEs) in improving and operationalizing genetic discovery, interpretation of any GxEs that are discovered can be surprisingly difficult. There are many potential biological and statistical explanations for a statistically significant finding and, likewise, it is not always clear what can be claimed based on a null result. A better understanding of the possible underlying mechanisms leading to a detected GxE can help investigators decide which are and which are not relevant to their hypothesis. Here, we provide a detailed explanation of five "phenomena," or data-generating mechanisms, that can lead to nonzero interaction estimates, as well as a discussion of specific instances in which they might be relevant. We hope that, given this framework, investigators can design more targeted experiments and provide cleaner interpretations of the associated results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kenneth E Westerman
- Department of Medicine, Clinical and Translational Epidemiology Unit, Mongan Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Metabolism Program, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Tamar Sofer
- Cardiovascular Institute, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Biostatistics, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
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Parlatini V, Bellato A, Gabellone A, Margari L, Marzulli L, Matera E, Petruzzelli MG, Solmi M, Correll CU, Cortese S. A state-of-the-art overview of candidate diagnostic biomarkers for Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Expert Rev Mol Diagn 2024; 24:259-271. [PMID: 38506617 DOI: 10.1080/14737159.2024.2333277] [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: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 03/21/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental conditions and is highly heterogeneous in terms of symptom profile, associated cognitive deficits, comorbidities, and outcomes. Heterogeneity may also affect the ability to recognize and diagnose this condition. The diagnosis of ADHD is primarily clinical but there are increasing research efforts aiming at identifying biomarkers that can aid the diagnosis. AREAS COVERED We first discuss the definition of biomarkers and the necessary research steps from discovery to implementation. We then provide a broad overview of research studies on candidate diagnostic biomarkers in ADHD encompassing genetic/epigenetic, biochemical, neuroimaging, neurophysiological and neuropsychological techniques. Finally, we critically appraise current limitations in the field and suggest possible ways forward. EXPERT OPINION Despite the large number of studies and variety of techniques used, no promising biomarkers have been identified so far. Clinical and biological heterogeneity as well as methodological limitations, including small sample size, lack of standardization, confounding factors, and poor replicability, have hampered progress in the field. Going forward, increased international collaborative efforts are warranted to support larger and more robustly designed studies, develop multimodal datasets to combine biomarkers and improve diagnostic accuracy, and ensure reproducibility and meaningful clinical translation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Parlatini
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Alessio Bellato
- School of Psychology, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
- School of Psychology, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Semenyih, Malaysia
- Mind and Neurodevelopment (MiND) Research Cluster, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Semenyih, Malaysia
- Centre for Innovation in Mental Health, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Alessandra Gabellone
- DiBraiN-Department of Translational Biomedicine Neurosciences, University "Aldo Moro", Bari, Italy
| | - Lucia Margari
- DiMePRe-J-Department of Precision and Regenerative Medicine-Jonic Area, University "Aldo Moro", Bari, Italy
| | - Lucia Marzulli
- DiBraiN-Department of Translational Biomedicine Neurosciences, University "Aldo Moro", Bari, Italy
| | - Emilia Matera
- DiBraiN-Department of Translational Biomedicine Neurosciences, University "Aldo Moro", Bari, Italy
| | | | - Marco Solmi
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Charité Universitätsmedizin, Berlin, Germany
- The Ottawa Hospital, Mental Health Department, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI) Clinical Epidemiology Program University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- School of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Christoph U Correll
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Charité Universitätsmedizin, Berlin, Germany
- Psychiatry Research, The Zucker Hillside Hospital, Northwell Health, Glen Oaks, NY, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Molecular Medicine, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Hempstead, NY, USA
| | - Samuele Cortese
- Centre for Innovation in Mental Health, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
- DiMePRe-J-Department of Precision and Regenerative Medicine-Jonic Area, University "Aldo Moro", Bari, Italy
- Clinical and Experimental Sciences (CNS and Psychiatry), Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
- Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, Solent NHS Trust, Southampton, UK
- Hassenfeld Children's Hospital at NYU Langone, New York University Child Study Center, New York, NY, USA
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8
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Sakaue S, Weinand K, Isaac S, Dey KK, Jagadeesh K, Kanai M, Watts GFM, Zhu Z, Brenner MB, McDavid A, Donlin LT, Wei K, Price AL, Raychaudhuri S. Tissue-specific enhancer-gene maps from multimodal single-cell data identify causal disease alleles. Nat Genet 2024; 56:615-626. [PMID: 38594305 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-024-01682-1] [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: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/11/2024]
Abstract
Translating genome-wide association study (GWAS) loci into causal variants and genes requires accurate cell-type-specific enhancer-gene maps from disease-relevant tissues. Building enhancer-gene maps is essential but challenging with current experimental methods in primary human tissues. Here we developed a nonparametric statistical method, SCENT (single-cell enhancer target gene mapping), that models association between enhancer chromatin accessibility and gene expression in single-cell or nucleus multimodal RNA sequencing and ATAC sequencing data. We applied SCENT to 9 multimodal datasets including >120,000 single cells or nuclei and created 23 cell-type-specific enhancer-gene maps. These maps were highly enriched for causal variants in expression quantitative loci and GWAS for 1,143 diseases and traits. We identified likely causal genes for both common and rare diseases and linked somatic mutation hotspots to target genes. We demonstrate that application of SCENT to multimodal data from disease-relevant human tissue enables the scalable construction of accurate cell-type-specific enhancer-gene maps, essential for defining noncoding variant function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saori Sakaue
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Divisions of Genetics and Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Kathryn Weinand
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Divisions of Genetics and Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Shakson Isaac
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Divisions of Genetics and Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kushal K Dey
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Karthik Jagadeesh
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Masahiro Kanai
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Analytic and Translational Genetics Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Center for Computational and Integrative Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Gerald F M Watts
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Zhu Zhu
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michael B Brenner
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Andrew McDavid
- Department of Biostatistics and Computational Biology, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, USA
| | - Laura T Donlin
- Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, NY, USA
- Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Kevin Wei
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alkes L Price
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biostatistics, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Soumya Raychaudhuri
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Divisions of Genetics and Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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9
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Hu J, Weber JN, Fuess LE, Steinel NC, Bolnick DI, Wang M. A spectral framework to map QTLs affecting joint differential networks of gene co-expression. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.29.587398. [PMID: 38585912 PMCID: PMC10996691 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.29.587398] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/09/2024]
Abstract
Studying the mechanisms underlying the genotype-phenotype association is crucial in genetics. Gene expression studies have deepened our understanding of the genotype → expression → phenotype mechanisms. However, traditional expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) methods often overlook the critical role of gene co-expression networks in translating genotype into phenotype. This gap highlights the need for more powerful statistical methods to analyze genotype → network → phenotype mechanism. Here, we develop a network-based method, called snQTL, to map quantitative trait loci affecting gene co-expression networks. Our approach tests the association between genotypes and joint differential networks of gene co-expression via a tensor-based spectral statistics, thereby overcoming the ubiquitous multiple testing challenges in existing methods. We demonstrate the effectiveness of snQTL in the analysis of three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) data. Compared to conventional methods, our method snQTL uncovers chromosomal regions affecting gene co-expression networks, including one strong candidate gene that would have been missed by traditional eQTL analyses. Our framework suggests the limitation of current approaches and offers a powerful network-based tool for functional loci discoveries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaxin Hu
- Department of Statistics, University of Wisconsin-Madison
| | - Jesse N. Weber
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
| | | | | | - Daniel I. Bolnick
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut
| | - Miaoyan Wang
- Department of Statistics, University of Wisconsin-Madison
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10
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Vrijmoeth HD, Ursinus J, Botey-Bataller J, Kuijpers Y, Chu X, van de Schoor FR, Scicluna BP, Xu CJ, Netea MG, Kullberg BJ, van den Wijngaard CC, Li Y, Hovius JW, Joosten LAB. Genome-wide analyses in Lyme borreliosis: identification of a genetic variant associated with disease susceptibility and its immunological implications. BMC Infect Dis 2024; 24:337. [PMID: 38515037 PMCID: PMC10956190 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-024-09217-z] [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: 08/22/2023] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Genetic variation underly inter-individual variation in host immune responses to infectious diseases, and may affect susceptibility or the course of signs and symptoms. METHODS We performed genome-wide association studies in a prospective cohort of 1138 patients with physician-confirmed Lyme borreliosis (LB), the most common tick-borne disease in the Northern hemisphere caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato. Genome-wide variants in LB patients-divided into a discovery and validation cohort-were compared to two healthy cohorts. Additionally, ex vivo monocyte-derived cytokine responses of peripheral blood mononuclear cells to several stimuli including Borrelia burgdorferi were performed in both LB patient and healthy control samples, as were stimulation experiments using mechanistic/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitors. In addition, for LB patients, anti-Borrelia antibody responses were measured. Finally, in a subset of LB patients, gene expression was analysed using RNA-sequencing data from the ex vivo stimulation experiments. RESULTS We identified a previously unknown genetic variant, rs1061632, that was associated with enhanced LB susceptibility. This polymorphism was an eQTL for KCTD20 and ETV7 genes, and its major risk allele was associated with upregulation of the mTOR pathway and cytokine responses, and lower anti-Borrelia antibody production. In addition, we replicated the recently reported SCGB1D2 locus that was suggested to have a protective effect on B. burgdorferi infection, and associated this locus with higher Borrelia burgdorferi antibody indexes and lower IL-10 responses. CONCLUSIONS Susceptibility for LB was associated with higher anti-inflammatory responses and reduced anti-Borrelia antibody production, which in turn may negatively impact bacterial clearance. These findings provide important insights into the immunogenetic susceptibility for LB and may guide future studies on development of preventive or therapeutic measures. TRIAL REGISTRATION The LymeProspect study was registered with the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (NTR4998, registration date 2015-02-13).
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Affiliation(s)
- Hedwig D Vrijmoeth
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboudumc Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, 6500 HB, the Netherlands
| | - Jeanine Ursinus
- Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Amsterdam UMC, Location AMC, University of Amsterdam, P.O. Box 22660, Amsterdam, 1100 DD, the Netherlands
- Amsterdam Institute for Infection and Immunity, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Javier Botey-Bataller
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboudumc Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, 6500 HB, the Netherlands
- Department of Computational Biology for Individualised Infection Medicine, Centre for Individualised Infection Medicine, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
- TWINCORE, Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
| | - Yunus Kuijpers
- Department of Computational Biology for Individualised Infection Medicine, Centre for Individualised Infection Medicine, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
- TWINCORE, Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
| | - Xiaojing Chu
- Department of Computational Biology for Individualised Infection Medicine, Centre for Individualised Infection Medicine, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
- TWINCORE, Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
| | - Freek R van de Schoor
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboudumc Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, 6500 HB, the Netherlands
| | - Brendon P Scicluna
- Department of Applied Biomedical Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Mater Dei Hospital, University of Malta, MSD 2080, Msida, Malta
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Biobanking, Biomedical Sciences, University of Malta, MSD 2080, Msida, Malta
| | - Cheng-Jian Xu
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboudumc Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, 6500 HB, the Netherlands
- Department of Computational Biology for Individualised Infection Medicine, Centre for Individualised Infection Medicine, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
- TWINCORE, Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
| | - Mihai G Netea
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboudumc Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, 6500 HB, the Netherlands
- Department of Immunology and Metabolism, Life and Medical Sciences Institute, University of Bonn, 53113, Bonn, Germany
| | - Bart Jan Kullberg
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboudumc Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, 6500 HB, the Netherlands
| | - Cees C van den Wijngaard
- National Institute for Public Health and Environment (RIVM), Center for Infectious Disease Control, Bilthoven, 3720 BA, the Netherlands
| | - Yang Li
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboudumc Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, 6500 HB, the Netherlands
- Department of Computational Biology for Individualised Infection Medicine, Centre for Individualised Infection Medicine, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
- TWINCORE, Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research, a joint venture between the Hannover Medical School and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 30625, Hannover, Germany
| | - Joppe W Hovius
- Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Amsterdam UMC, Location AMC, University of Amsterdam, P.O. Box 22660, Amsterdam, 1100 DD, the Netherlands
- Amsterdam Institute for Infection and Immunity, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Leo A B Joosten
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboudumc Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, 6500 HB, the Netherlands.
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11
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Jiang F, Hu SY, Tian W, Wang NN, Yang N, Dong SS, Song HM, Zhang DJ, Gao HW, Wang C, Wu H, He CY, Zhu DL, Chen XF, Guo Y, Yang Z, Yang TL. A landscape of gene expression regulation for synovium in arthritis. Nat Commun 2024; 15:1409. [PMID: 38360850 PMCID: PMC10869817 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45652-x] [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: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024] Open
Abstract
The synovium is an important component of any synovial joint and is the major target tissue of inflammatory arthritis. However, the multi-omics landscape of synovium required for functional inference is absent from large-scale resources. Here we integrate genomics with transcriptomics and chromatin accessibility features of human synovium in up to 245 arthritic patients, to characterize the landscape of genetic regulation on gene expression and the regulatory mechanisms mediating arthritic diseases predisposition. We identify 4765 independent primary and 616 secondary cis-expression quantitative trait loci (cis-eQTLs) in the synovium and find that the eQTLs with multiple independent signals have stronger effects and heritability than single independent eQTLs. Integration of genome-wide association studies (GWASs) and eQTLs identifies 84 arthritis related genes, revealing 38 novel genes which have not been reported by previous studies using eQTL data from the GTEx project or immune cells. We further develop a method called eQTac to identify variants that could affect gene expression by affecting chromatin accessibility and identify 1517 regions with potential regulatory function of chromatin accessibility. Altogether, our study provides a comprehensive synovium multi-omics resource for arthritic diseases and gains new insights into the regulation of gene expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feng Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Shou-Ye Hu
- Department of Joint Surgery, Honghui Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710054, P.R. China
| | - Wen Tian
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Nai-Ning Wang
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Ning Yang
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Shan-Shan Dong
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Hui-Miao Song
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Da-Jin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Hui-Wu Gao
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Chen Wang
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Hao Wu
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Chang-Yi He
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Dong-Li Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Xiao-Feng Chen
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Yan Guo
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China
| | - Zhi Yang
- Department of Joint Surgery, Honghui Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710054, P.R. China.
| | - Tie-Lin Yang
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Biomedical Informatics & Genomics Center, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, P.R. China.
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12
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Panten J, Heinen T, Ernst C, Eling N, Wagner RE, Satorius M, Marioni JC, Stegle O, Odom DT. The dynamic genetic determinants of increased transcriptional divergence in spermatids. Nat Commun 2024; 15:1272. [PMID: 38341412 PMCID: PMC10858866 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45133-1] [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: 02/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Cis-genetic effects are key determinants of transcriptional divergence in discrete tissues and cell types. However, how cis- and trans-effects act across continuous trajectories of cellular differentiation in vivo is poorly understood. Here, we quantify allele-specific expression during spermatogenic differentiation at single-cell resolution in an F1 hybrid mouse system, allowing for the comprehensive characterisation of cis- and trans-genetic effects, including their dynamics across cellular differentiation. Collectively, almost half of the genes subject to genetic regulation show evidence for dynamic cis-effects that vary during differentiation. Our system also allows us to robustly identify dynamic trans-effects, which are less pervasive than cis-effects. In aggregate, genetic effects were strongest in round spermatids, which parallels their increased transcriptional divergence we identified between species. Our approach provides a comprehensive quantification of the variability of genetic effects in vivo, and demonstrates a widely applicable strategy to dissect the impact of regulatory variants on gene regulation in dynamic systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jasper Panten
- Division of Regulatory Genomics and Cancer Evolution, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Division of Computational Genomics and Systems Genetics, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Faculty of Biosciences, Heidelberg University, 69117, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Tobias Heinen
- Division of Computational Genomics and Systems Genetics, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Genome Biology Unit, 69117, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Christina Ernst
- School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Nils Eling
- University of Zurich, Department of Quantitative Biomedicine, Zurich, 8057, Switzerland
- ETH Zurich, Institute for Molecular Health Sciences, Zurich, 8093, Switzerland
| | - Rebecca E Wagner
- Faculty of Biosciences, Heidelberg University, 69117, Heidelberg, Germany
- Division of Mechanisms Regulating Gene Expression, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Maja Satorius
- Division of Regulatory Genomics and Cancer Evolution, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - John C Marioni
- Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Cambridge, UK
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Cambridge, UK
| | - Oliver Stegle
- Division of Computational Genomics and Systems Genetics, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany.
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Genome Biology Unit, 69117, Heidelberg, Germany.
| | - Duncan T Odom
- Division of Regulatory Genomics and Cancer Evolution, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), 69120, Heidelberg, Germany.
- Faculty of Biosciences, Heidelberg University, 69117, Heidelberg, Germany.
- Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
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13
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Alda-Catalinas C, Ibarra-Soria X, Flouri C, Gordillo JE, Cousminer D, Hutchinson A, Sun B, Pembroke W, Ullrich S, Krejci A, Cortes A, Acevedo A, Malla S, Fishwick C, Drewes G, Rapiteanu R. Mapping the functional impact of non-coding regulatory elements in primary T cells through single-cell CRISPR screens. Genome Biol 2024; 25:42. [PMID: 38308274 PMCID: PMC10835965 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-024-03176-z] [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: 06/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Drug targets with genetic evidence are expected to increase clinical success by at least twofold. Yet, translating disease-associated genetic variants into functional knowledge remains a fundamental challenge of drug discovery. A key issue is that the vast majority of complex disease associations cannot be cleanly mapped to a gene. Immune disease-associated variants are enriched within regulatory elements found in T-cell-specific open chromatin regions. RESULTS To identify genes and molecular programs modulated by these regulatory elements, we develop a CRISPRi-based single-cell functional screening approach in primary human T cells. Our pipeline enables the interrogation of transcriptomic changes induced by the perturbation of regulatory elements at scale. We first optimize an efficient CRISPRi protocol in primary CD4+ T cells via CROPseq vectors. Subsequently, we perform a screen targeting 45 non-coding regulatory elements and 35 transcription start sites and profile approximately 250,000 T -cell single-cell transcriptomes. We develop a bespoke analytical pipeline for element-to-gene (E2G) mapping and demonstrate that our method can identify both previously annotated and novel E2G links. Lastly, we integrate genetic association data for immune-related traits and demonstrate how our platform can aid in the identification of effector genes for GWAS loci. CONCLUSIONS We describe "primary T cell crisprQTL" - a scalable, single-cell functional genomics approach for mapping regulatory elements to genes in primary human T cells. We show how this framework can facilitate the interrogation of immune disease GWAS hits and propose that the combination of experimental and QTL-based techniques is likely to address the variant-to-function problem.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Bin Sun
- Genomic Sciences, GSK, Stevenage, UK
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Gerard Drewes
- Genomic Sciences, GSK, Stevenage, UK
- Genomic Sciences, GSK, Collegeville, PA, USA
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14
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Vochteloo M, Deelen P, Vink B, Tsai EA, Runz H, Andreu-Sánchez S, Fu J, Zhernakova A, Westra HJ, Franke L. PICALO: principal interaction component analysis for the identification of discrete technical, cell-type, and environmental factors that mediate eQTLs. Genome Biol 2024; 25:29. [PMID: 38254182 PMCID: PMC10802033 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-023-03151-0] [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: 12/22/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) offer insights into the regulatory mechanisms of trait-associated variants, but their effects often rely on contexts that are unknown or unmeasured. We introduce PICALO, a method for hidden variable inference of eQTL contexts. PICALO identifies and disentangles technical from biological context in heterogeneous blood and brain bulk eQTL datasets. These contexts are biologically informative and reproducible, outperforming cell counts or expression-based principal components. Furthermore, we show that RNA quality and cell type proportions interact with thousands of eQTLs. Knowledge of hidden eQTL contexts may aid in the inference of functional mechanisms underlying disease variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martijn Vochteloo
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Oncode Institute, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Patrick Deelen
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Oncode Institute, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Britt Vink
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Institute for Life Science & Technology, Hanze University of Applied Sciences, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Ellen A Tsai
- Translational Sciences, Research and Development, Biogen, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Heiko Runz
- Translational Sciences, Research and Development, Biogen, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Sergio Andreu-Sánchez
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Pediatrics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Jingyuan Fu
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Pediatrics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Alexandra Zhernakova
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Harm-Jan Westra
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
- Oncode Institute, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - Lude Franke
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
- Oncode Institute, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
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15
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Huang Y, Chen Q, Wang Z, Wang Y, Lian A, Zhou Q, Zhao G, Xia K, Tang B, Li B, Li J. Risk factors associated with age at onset of Parkinson's disease in the UK Biobank. NPJ Parkinsons Dis 2024; 10:3. [PMID: 38167894 PMCID: PMC10762149 DOI: 10.1038/s41531-023-00623-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Substantial evidence shown that the age at onset (AAO) of Parkinson's disease (PD) is a major determinant of clinical heterogeneity. However, the mechanisms underlying heterogeneity in the AAO remain unclear. To investigate the risk factors with the AAO of PD, a total of 3156 patients with PD from the UK Biobank were included in this study. We evaluated the effects of polygenic risk scores (PRS), nongenetic risk factors, and their interaction on the AAO using Mann-Whitney U tests and regression analyses. We further identified the genes interacting with nongenetic risk factors for the AAO using genome-wide environment interaction studies. We newly found physical activity (P < 0.0001) was positively associated with AAO and excessive daytime sleepiness (P < 0.0001) was negatively associated with AAO, and reproduced the positive associations of smoking and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug intake and the negative association of family history with AAO. In the dose-dependent analyses, smoking duration (P = 1.95 × 10-6), coffee consumption (P = 0.0150), and tea consumption (P = 0.0008) were positively associated with AAO. Individuals with higher PRS had younger AAO (P = 3.91 × 10-5). In addition, we observed a significant interaction between the PRS and smoking for AAO (P = 0.0316). Specifically, several genes, including ANGPT1 (P = 7.17 × 10-7) and PLEKHA6 (P = 4.87 × 10-6), may influence the positive relationship between smoking and AAO. Our data suggests that genetic and nongenetic risk factors are associated with the AAO of PD and that there is an interaction between the two.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanfeng Huang
- National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Disorders, Department of Geriatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Bioinformatics Center, Xiangya Hospital & Furong Laboratory, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Qian Chen
- National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Disorders, Department of Geriatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Bioinformatics Center, Xiangya Hospital & Furong Laboratory, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Department of Oncology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Zheng Wang
- National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Disorders, Department of Geriatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Bioinformatics Center, Xiangya Hospital & Furong Laboratory, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Yijing Wang
- National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Disorders, Department of Geriatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Bioinformatics Center, Xiangya Hospital & Furong Laboratory, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Aojie Lian
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory of Birth Defect Research and Prevention, Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Qiao Zhou
- National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Disorders, Department of Geriatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Bioinformatics Center, Xiangya Hospital & Furong Laboratory, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Guihu Zhao
- National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Disorders, Department of Geriatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Bioinformatics Center, Xiangya Hospital & Furong Laboratory, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Kun Xia
- Centre for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Beisha Tang
- National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Disorders, Department of Geriatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
- Centre for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China
| | - Bin Li
- National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Disorders, Department of Geriatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China.
- Bioinformatics Center, Xiangya Hospital & Furong Laboratory, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China.
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China.
| | - Jinchen Li
- National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Disorders, Department of Geriatrics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China.
- Bioinformatics Center, Xiangya Hospital & Furong Laboratory, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China.
- Department of Neurology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China.
- Centre for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, Central South University, Changsha 410008, Hunan, China.
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16
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Zhang J, Zhao H. eQTL studies: from bulk tissues to single cells. J Genet Genomics 2023; 50:925-933. [PMID: 37207929 PMCID: PMC10656365 DOI: 10.1016/j.jgg.2023.05.003] [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: 02/21/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
An expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) is a chromosomal region where genetic variants are associated with the expression levels of specific genes that can be both nearby or distant. The identifications of eQTLs for different tissues, cell types, and contexts have led to a better understanding of the dynamic regulations of gene expressions and implications of functional genes and variants for complex traits and diseases. Although most eQTL studies have been performed on data collected from bulk tissues, recent studies have demonstrated the importance of cell-type-specific and context-dependent gene regulations in biological processes and disease mechanisms. In this review, we discuss statistical methods that have been developed to enable the detection of cell-type-specific and context-dependent eQTLs from bulk tissues, purified cell types, and single cells. We also discuss the limitations of the current methods and future research opportunities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingfei Zhang
- Information Systems and Operations Management, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Hongyu Zhao
- Department of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT 208034, USA.
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17
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Kang JB, Shen AZ, Gurajala S, Nathan A, Rumker L, Aguiar VRC, Valencia C, Lagattuta KA, Zhang F, Jonsson AH, Yazar S, Alquicira-Hernandez J, Khalili H, Ananthakrishnan AN, Jagadeesh K, Dey K, Daly MJ, Xavier RJ, Donlin LT, Anolik JH, Powell JE, Rao DA, Brenner MB, Gutierrez-Arcelus M, Luo Y, Sakaue S, Raychaudhuri S. Mapping the dynamic genetic regulatory architecture of HLA genes at single-cell resolution. Nat Genet 2023; 55:2255-2268. [PMID: 38036787 PMCID: PMC10787945 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-023-01586-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2023] [Accepted: 10/19/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023]
Abstract
The human leukocyte antigen (HLA) locus plays a critical role in complex traits spanning autoimmune and infectious diseases, transplantation and cancer. While coding variation in HLA genes has been extensively documented, regulatory genetic variation modulating HLA expression levels has not been comprehensively investigated. Here we mapped expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) for classical HLA genes across 1,073 individuals and 1,131,414 single cells from three tissues. To mitigate technical confounding, we developed scHLApers, a pipeline to accurately quantify single-cell HLA expression using personalized reference genomes. We identified cell-type-specific cis-eQTLs for every classical HLA gene. Modeling eQTLs at single-cell resolution revealed that many eQTL effects are dynamic across cell states even within a cell type. HLA-DQ genes exhibit particularly cell-state-dependent effects within myeloid, B and T cells. For example, a T cell HLA-DQA1 eQTL ( rs3104371 ) is strongest in cytotoxic cells. Dynamic HLA regulation may underlie important interindividual variability in immune responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joyce B Kang
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Amber Z Shen
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Saisriram Gurajala
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Aparna Nathan
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laurie Rumker
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Vitor R C Aguiar
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Cristian Valencia
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kaitlyn A Lagattuta
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Fan Zhang
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology and the Center for Health Artificial Intelligence, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Anna Helena Jonsson
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Seyhan Yazar
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | | | - Hamed Khalili
- Division of Gastroenterology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ashwin N Ananthakrishnan
- Division of Gastroenterology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Kushal Dey
- Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
- Computational and Systems Biology Program, Sloan Kettering Institute, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
- Physiology, Biophysics and Systems Biology Program, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mark J Daly
- Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- The Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Analytic and Translational Genetics Unit, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ramnik J Xavier
- Klarman Cell Observatory, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Center for Computational and Integrative Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Molecular Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laura T Donlin
- Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, NY, USA
- Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jennifer H Anolik
- Department of Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, USA
| | - Joseph E Powell
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Deepak A Rao
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michael B Brenner
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Maria Gutierrez-Arcelus
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Yang Luo
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Saori Sakaue
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Soumya Raychaudhuri
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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18
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Margaritte-Jeannin P, Vernet R, Budu-Aggrey A, Ege M, Madore AM, Linhard C, Mohamdi H, von Mutius E, Granell R, Demenais F, Laprise C, Bouzigon E, Dizier MH. TNS1 and NRXN1 Genes Interacting With Early-Life Smoking Exposure in Asthma-Plus-Eczema Susceptibility. ALLERGY, ASTHMA & IMMUNOLOGY RESEARCH 2023; 15:779-794. [PMID: 37957795 PMCID: PMC10643854 DOI: 10.4168/aair.2023.15.6.779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2022] [Revised: 05/15/2023] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Numerous genes have been associated with allergic diseases (asthma, allergic rhinitis, and eczema), but they explain only part of their heritability. This is partly because most previous studies ignored complex mechanisms such as gene-environment (G-E) interactions and complex phenotypes such as co-morbidity. However, it was recently evidenced that the co-morbidity of asthma-plus-eczema appears as a sub-entity depending on specific genetic factors. Besides, evidence also suggest that gene-by-early life environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure interactions play a role in asthma, but were never investigated for asthma-plus-eczema. To identify genetic variants interacting with ETS exposure that influence asthma-plus-eczema susceptibility. METHODS To conduct a genome-wide interaction study (GWIS) of asthma-plus-eczema according to ETS exposure, we applied a 2-stage strategy with a first selection of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from genome-wide association meta-analysis to be tested at a second stage by interaction meta-analysis. All meta-analyses were conducted across 4 studies including a total of 5,516 European-ancestry individuals, of whom 1,164 had both asthma and eczema. RESULTS Two SNPs showed significant interactions with ETS exposure. They were located in 2 genes, NRXN1 (2p16) and TNS1 (2q35), never reported associated and/or interacting with ETS exposure for asthma, eczema or more generally for allergic diseases. TNS1 is a promising candidate gene because of its link to lung and skin diseases with possible interactive effect with tobacco smoke exposure. CONCLUSIONS This first GWIS of asthma-plus-eczema with ETS exposure underlines the importance of studying sub-phenotypes such as co-morbidities as well as G-E interactions to detect new susceptibility genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia Margaritte-Jeannin
- Université Paris Cité, UMRS 1124, INSERM, Genomic Epidemiology and Multifactorial Diseases Group, Paris, France
| | - Raphaël Vernet
- Université Paris Cité, UMRS 1124, INSERM, Genomic Epidemiology and Multifactorial Diseases Group, Paris, France
| | - Ashley Budu-Aggrey
- Medical Research Council (MRC) Integrative Epidemiology Unit, Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Markus Ege
- Dr von Hauner Children's Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University; Institute of Asthma and Allergy prevention, Helmholtz Centre Munich; Comprehensive Pneumology Center Munich (CPC-M), German Center for Lung Research, Munich, Germany
| | - Anne-Marie Madore
- Département des sciences fondamentales, Centre intersectoriel en santé durable (CISD), Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, Saguenay, QC, Canada
| | - Christophe Linhard
- Université Paris Cité, UMRS 1124, INSERM, Genomic Epidemiology and Multifactorial Diseases Group, Paris, France
| | - Hamida Mohamdi
- Université Paris Cité, UMRS 1124, INSERM, Genomic Epidemiology and Multifactorial Diseases Group, Paris, France
| | - Erika von Mutius
- Dr von Hauner Children's Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University; Institute of Asthma and Allergy prevention, Helmholtz Centre Munich; Comprehensive Pneumology Center Munich (CPC-M), German Center for Lung Research, Munich, Germany
| | - Raquell Granell
- Medical Research Council (MRC) Integrative Epidemiology Unit, Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Florence Demenais
- Université Paris Cité, UMRS 1124, INSERM, Genomic Epidemiology and Multifactorial Diseases Group, Paris, France
| | - Cathrine Laprise
- Département des sciences fondamentales, Centre intersectoriel en santé durable (CISD), Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, Saguenay, QC, Canada
| | - Emmanuelle Bouzigon
- Université Paris Cité, UMRS 1124, INSERM, Genomic Epidemiology and Multifactorial Diseases Group, Paris, France
| | - Marie-Hélène Dizier
- Université Paris Cité, UMRS 1124, INSERM, Genomic Epidemiology and Multifactorial Diseases Group, Paris, France.
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19
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Mostafavi H, Spence JP, Naqvi S, Pritchard JK. Systematic differences in discovery of genetic effects on gene expression and complex traits. Nat Genet 2023; 55:1866-1875. [PMID: 37857933 DOI: 10.1038/s41588-023-01529-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2022] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Most signals in genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of complex traits implicate noncoding genetic variants with putative gene regulatory effects. However, currently identified regulatory variants, notably expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs), explain only a small fraction of GWAS signals. Here, we show that GWAS and cis-eQTL hits are systematically different: eQTLs cluster strongly near transcription start sites, whereas GWAS hits do not. Genes near GWAS hits are enriched in key functional annotations, are under strong selective constraint and have complex regulatory landscapes across different tissue/cell types, whereas genes near eQTLs are depleted of most functional annotations, show relaxed constraint, and have simpler regulatory landscapes. We describe a model to understand these observations, including how natural selection on complex traits hinders discovery of functionally relevant eQTLs. Our results imply that GWAS and eQTL studies are systematically biased toward different types of variant, and support the use of complementary functional approaches alongside the next generation of eQTL studies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Sahin Naqvi
- Department of Genetics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Chemical and Systems Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Jonathan K Pritchard
- Department of Genetics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
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20
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Kim DJ, Lim JE, Jung HU, Chung JY, Baek EJ, Jung H, Kwon SY, Kim HK, Kang JO, Park K, Won S, Kim TB, Oh B. Identification of asthma-related genes using asthmatic blood eQTLs of Korean patients. BMC Med Genomics 2023; 16:259. [PMID: 37875944 PMCID: PMC10599017 DOI: 10.1186/s12920-023-01677-7] [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: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND More than 200 asthma-associated genetic variants have been identified in genome-wide association studies (GWASs). Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) data resources can help identify causal genes of the GWAS signals, but it can be difficult to find an eQTL that reflects the disease state because most eQTL data are obtained from normal healthy subjects. METHODS We performed a blood eQTL analysis using transcriptomic and genotypic data from 433 Korean asthma patients. To identify asthma-related genes, we carried out colocalization, Summary-based Mendelian Randomization (SMR) analysis, and Transcriptome-Wide Association Study (TWAS) using the results of asthma GWASs and eQTL data. In addition, we compared the results of disease eQTL data and asthma-related genes with two normal blood eQTL data from Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) project and a Japanese study. RESULTS We identified 340,274 cis-eQTL and 2,875 eGenes from asthmatic eQTL analysis. We compared the disease eQTL results with GTEx and a Japanese study and found that 64.1% of the 2,875 eGenes overlapped with the GTEx eGenes and 39.0% with the Japanese eGenes. Following the integrated analysis of the asthmatic eQTL data with asthma GWASs, using colocalization and SMR methods, we identified 15 asthma-related genes specific to the Korean asthmatic eQTL data. CONCLUSIONS We provided Korean asthmatic cis-eQTL data and identified asthma-related genes by integrating them with GWAS data. In addition, we suggested these asthma-related genes as therapeutic targets for asthma. We envisage that our findings will contribute to understanding the etiological mechanisms of asthma and provide novel therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong Jun Kim
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Ji Eun Lim
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Hae-Un Jung
- Department of Biomedical Science, Graduate School, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Ju Yeon Chung
- Department of Biomedical Science, Graduate School, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea
| | | | - Hyein Jung
- Department of Biomedical Science, Graduate School, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Shin Young Kwon
- Department of Biomedical Science, Graduate School, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Han Kyul Kim
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Ji-One Kang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyungtaek Park
- Interdisciplinary Program of Bioinformatics, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Sungho Won
- Interdisciplinary Program of Bioinformatics, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- Department of Public Health Sciences, School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Tae-Bum Kim
- Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
| | - Bermseok Oh
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
- Department of Biomedical Science, Graduate School, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea.
- Mendel Inc, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
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21
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Xiao Q, Mears J, Nathan A, Ishigaki K, Baglaenko Y, Lim N, Cooney LA, Harris KM, Anderson MS, Fox DA, Smilek DE, Krueger JG, Raychaudhuri S. Immunosuppression causes dynamic changes in expression QTLs in psoriatic skin. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6268. [PMID: 37805522 PMCID: PMC10560299 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41984-2] [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: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 10/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Psoriasis is a chronic, systemic inflammatory condition primarily affecting skin. While the role of the immune compartment (e.g., T cells) is well established, the changes in the skin compartment are more poorly understood. Using longitudinal skin biopsies (n = 375) from the "Psoriasis Treatment with Abatacept and Ustekinumab: A Study of Efficacy"(PAUSE) clinical trial (n = 101), we report 953 expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs). Of those, 116 eQTLs have effect sizes that were modulated by local skin inflammation (eQTL interactions). By examining these eQTL genes (eGenes), we find that most are expressed in the skin tissue compartment, and a subset overlap with the NRF2 pathway. Indeed, the strongest eQTL interaction signal - rs1491377616-LCE3C - links a psoriasis risk locus with a gene specifically expressed in the epidermis. This eQTL study highlights the potential to use biospecimens from clinical trials to discover in vivo eQTL interactions with therapeutically relevant environmental variables.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Xiao
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Joseph Mears
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Aparna Nathan
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kazuyoshi Ishigaki
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Laboratory for Human Immunogenetics, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama City, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Yuriy Baglaenko
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Noha Lim
- Immune Tolerance Network, Diabetes Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Laura A Cooney
- Immune Tolerance Network, Diabetes Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine and Clinical Autoimmunity Center of Excellence, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Kristina M Harris
- Immune Tolerance Network, Diabetes Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Mark S Anderson
- Immune Tolerance Network, Diabetes Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - David A Fox
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine and Clinical Autoimmunity Center of Excellence, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Dawn E Smilek
- Immune Tolerance Network, Diabetes Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - James G Krueger
- Laboratory for Investigative Dermatology, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Soumya Raychaudhuri
- Center for Data Sciences, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Program in Medical and Population Genetics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Centre for Genetics and Genomics Versus Arthritis, Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
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22
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Yousri NA, Albagha OME, Hunt SC. Integrated epigenome, whole genome sequence and metabolome analyses identify novel multi-omics pathways in type 2 diabetes: a Middle Eastern study. BMC Med 2023; 21:347. [PMID: 37679740 PMCID: PMC10485955 DOI: 10.1186/s12916-023-03027-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND T2D is of high prevalence in the middle east and thus studying its mechanisms is of a significant importance. Using 1026 Qatar BioBank samples, epigenetics, whole genome sequencing and metabolomics were combined to further elucidate the biological mechanisms of T2D in a population with a high prevalence of T2D. METHODS An epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) with T2D was performed using the Infinium 850K EPIC array, followed by whole genome-wide sequencing SNP-CpG association analysis (> 5.5 million SNPs) and a methylome-metabolome (CpG-metabolite) analysis of the identified T2D sites. RESULTS A total of 66 T2D-CpG associations were identified, including 63 novel sites in pathways of fructose and mannose metabolism, insulin signaling, galactose, starch and sucrose metabolism, and carbohydrate absorption and digestion. Whole genome SNP associations with the 66 CpGs resulted in 688 significant CpG-SNP associations comprising 22 unique CpGs (33% of the 66 CPGs) and included 181 novel pairs or pairs in novel loci. Fourteen of the loci overlapped published GWAS loci for diabetes related traits and were used to identify causal associations of HK1 and PFKFB2 with HbA1c. Methylome-metabolome analysis identified 66 significant CpG-metabolite pairs among which 61 pairs were novel. Using the identified methylome-metabolome associations, methylation QTLs, and metabolic networks, a multi-omics network was constructed which suggested a number of metabolic mechanisms underlying T2D methylated genes. 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-GPE (16:0/18:1) - a triglyceride-associated metabolite, shared a common network with 13 methylated CpGs, including TXNIP, PFKFB2, OCIAD1, and BLCAP. Mannonate - a food component/plant shared a common network with 6 methylated genes, including TXNIP, BLCAP, THBS4 and PEF1, pointing to a common possible cause of methylation in those genes. A subnetwork with alanine, glutamine, urea cycle (citrulline, arginine), and 1-carboxyethylvaline linked to PFKFB2 and TXNIP revealed associations with kidney function, hypertension and triglyceride metabolism. The pathway containing STYXL1-POR was associated with a sphingosine-ceramides subnetwork associated with HDL-C and LDL-C and point to steroid perturbations in T2D. CONCLUSIONS This study revealed several novel methylated genes in T2D, with their genomic variants and associated metabolic pathways with several implications for future clinical use of multi-omics associations in disease and for studying therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noha A Yousri
- Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Doha, Qatar.
- College of Health and Life Sciences, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar.
- Computer and Systems Engineering, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt.
| | - Omar M E Albagha
- College of Health and Life Sciences, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar
| | - Steven C Hunt
- Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Doha, Qatar
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Liu Y, Sinke L, Jonkman TH, Slieker RC, van Zwet EW, Daxinger L, Heijmans BT. The inactive X chromosome accumulates widespread epigenetic variability with age. Clin Epigenetics 2023; 15:135. [PMID: 37626340 PMCID: PMC10464315 DOI: 10.1186/s13148-023-01549-y] [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: 03/09/2023] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Loss of epigenetic control is a hallmark of aging. Among the most prominent roles of epigenetic mechanisms is the inactivation of one of two copies of the X chromosome in females through DNA methylation. Hence, age-related disruption of X-chromosome inactivation (XCI) may contribute to the aging process in women. METHODS We analyzed 9,777 CpGs on the X chromosome in whole blood samples from 2343 females and 1688 males (Illumina 450k methylation array) and replicated findings in duplicate using one whole blood and one purified monocyte data set (in total, 991/924 females/males). We used double generalized linear models to detect age-related differentially methylated CpGs (aDMCs), whose mean methylation level differs with age, and age-related variably methylated CpGs (aVMCs), whose methylation level becomes more variable with age. RESULTS In females, aDMCs were relatively uncommon (n = 33) and preferentially occurred in regions known to escape XCI. In contrast, many CpGs (n = 987) were found to display an increased variance with age (aVMCs). Of note, the replication rate of aVMCs was also high in purified monocytes (94%), indicating an independence of cell composition. aVMCs accumulated in CpG islands and regions subject to XCI suggesting that they stemmed from the inactive X. In males, carrying an active copy of the X chromosome only, aDMCs (n = 316) were primarily driven by cell composition, while aVMCs replicated well (95%) but were infrequent (n = 37). CONCLUSIONS Our results imply that age-related DNA methylation differences at the inactive X chromosome are dominated by the accumulation of variability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yunfeng Liu
- Molecular Epidemiology, Department of Biomedical Data Sciences, Leiden University Medical Center, Postzone S-5-P, 2333 ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Lucy Sinke
- Molecular Epidemiology, Department of Biomedical Data Sciences, Leiden University Medical Center, Postzone S-5-P, 2333 ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Thomas H Jonkman
- Molecular Epidemiology, Department of Biomedical Data Sciences, Leiden University Medical Center, Postzone S-5-P, 2333 ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Roderick C Slieker
- Department of Cell and Chemical Biology, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333 ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Erik W van Zwet
- Medical Statistics, Department of Biomedical Data Sciences, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333 ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Lucia Daxinger
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, 2333 ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Bastiaan T Heijmans
- Molecular Epidemiology, Department of Biomedical Data Sciences, Leiden University Medical Center, Postzone S-5-P, 2333 ZC, Leiden, The Netherlands.
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24
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Holma P, Pesonen P, Karjalainen MK, Järvelin MR, Väyrynen S, Sliz E, Heikkilä A, Seppänen MRJ, Kettunen J, Auvinen J, Hautala T. Low and high serum IgG associates with respiratory infections in a young and working age population. EBioMedicine 2023; 94:104712. [PMID: 37453363 PMCID: PMC10366395 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2023.104712] [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: 03/16/2023] [Revised: 06/26/2023] [Accepted: 06/28/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND We investigated health consequences and genetic properties associated with serum IgG concentration in a young and working age general population. METHODS Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 (NFBC1966, n = 12,231) health data have been collected from birth to 52 years of age. Relationships between life-long health events, medications, chronic conditions, lifestyle, and serum IgG concentration measured at age 46 years (n = 5430) were analysed. Regulatory mechanisms of serum IgG concentration were considered. FINDINGS Smoking and genetic variation (FCGR2B and TNFRSF13B) were the most important determinants of serum IgG concentration. Laboratory findings suggestive of common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) were 10-fold higher compared to previous reports (73.7 per 100,000 vs 0.6-6.9 per 100,000). Low IgG was associated with antibiotic use (relative risk 1.285, 95% CI 1.001-1.648; p = 0.049) and sinus surgery (relative risk 2.257, 95% CI 1.163-4.379; p = 0.016). High serum IgG was associated with at least one pneumonia episode (relative risk 1.737, 95% CI 1.032-2.922; p = 0.038) and with total number of pneumonia episodes (relative risk 2.167, 95% CI 1.443-3.254; p < 0.001). INTERPRETATION CVID-like laboratory findings are surprisingly common in our unselected study population. Any deviation of serum IgG from normal values can be harmful; both low and high serum IgG may indicate immunological insufficiency. Critical evaluation of clinical presentation must accompany immunological laboratory parameters. FUNDING Oulu University Hospital VTR, CSL Behring, Foundation for Pediatric Research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pia Holma
- Research Unit of Internal Medicine and Biomedicine, University of Oulu and Oulu University Hospital, Division of Infectious Diseases, Oulu, Finland
| | - Paula Pesonen
- Northern Finland Birth Cohorts, Arctic Biobank, Infrastructure for Population Studies, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Minna K Karjalainen
- Northern Finland Birth Cohorts, Arctic Biobank, Infrastructure for Population Studies, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland; Research Unit of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Marjo-Riitta Järvelin
- Research Unit of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, MRC Center for Environment & Health, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Sara Väyrynen
- Research Unit of Internal Medicine and Biomedicine, University of Oulu and Oulu University Hospital, Division of Infectious Diseases, Oulu, Finland
| | - Eeva Sliz
- Research Unit of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Anni Heikkilä
- Research Unit of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Mikko R J Seppänen
- Rare Disease Center and Pediatric Research Center, Children and Adolescents, University of Helsinki and HUS Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Johannes Kettunen
- Research Unit of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Juha Auvinen
- Research Unit of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Timo Hautala
- Research Unit of Internal Medicine and Biomedicine, University of Oulu and Oulu University Hospital, Division of Infectious Diseases, Oulu, Finland.
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25
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Zhou XY, Liu RK, Zeng CP. Exploring the novel SNPs in neuroticism and birth weight based on GWAS datasets. BMC Med Genomics 2023; 16:167. [PMID: 37454083 PMCID: PMC10349512 DOI: 10.1186/s12920-023-01591-y] [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: 09/08/2022] [Accepted: 06/26/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Epidemiological studies have confirmed that low birth weight (BW) is related to neuroticism and they may have a common genetic mechanism based on phenotypic correlation research. We conducted our study on a European population with 159,208 neuroticism and 289,142 birth weight samples. In this study, we aimed to identify new neuroticism single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and pleiotropic SNPs associated with neuroticism and BW and to provide more theoretical basis for the pathogenesis of the disease. METHODS We estimated the pleiotropic enrichment between neuroticism and BW in two independent Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) when the statistical thresholds were Conditional False Discovery Rate (cFDR) < 0.01 and Conjunctional Conditional False Discovery Rate (ccFDR) < 0.05. We performed gene annotation and gene functional analysis on the selected significant SNPs to determine the biological role of gene function and pathogenesis. Two-sample Mendelian Randomization (TSMR) analysis was performed to explore the causal relationship between the neuroticism and BW. RESULTS The conditional quantile-quantile plots (Q-Q plot) indicated that neuroticism and BW have strong genetic pleiotropy enrichment trends. With the threshold of cFDR < 0.001, we identified 126 SNPs related to neuroticism and 172 SNPs related to BW. With the threshold of ccFDR < 0.05, we identified 62 SNPs related to both neuroticism and BW. Among these SNPs, rs8039305 and rs35755513 have eQTL (expressed quantitative trait loci) and meQTL (methylation quantitative trait loci) effects simultaneously. Through GO enrichment analysis we also found that the two pathways of positive regulation of "mesenchymal cell proliferation" and "DNA-binding transcription factor activity" were significantly enriched in neuroticism and BW. Mendelian randomization analysis results indicate that there is no obvious causal relationship between neuroticism and birth weight. CONCLUSION We found 126 SNPs related to neuroticism, 172 SNPs related to BW and 62 SNPs associated with both neuroticism and BW, which provided a theoretical basis for their genetic mechanism and novel potential targets for treatment/intervention development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Ying Zhou
- Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510330, China
- Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, SSL Central Hospital of Dongguan City, No.1, Xianglong Road, Dongguan, 523326, China
| | - Rui-Ke Liu
- Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, SSL Central Hospital of Dongguan City, No.1, Xianglong Road, Dongguan, 523326, China.
| | - Chun-Ping Zeng
- Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510330, China.
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26
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Xia C, Pickett SJ, Liewald DCM, Weiss A, Hudson G, Hill WD. The contributions of mitochondrial and nuclear mitochondrial genetic variation to neuroticism. Nat Commun 2023; 14:3146. [PMID: 37253732 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-38480-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 06/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Neuroticism is a heritable trait composed of separate facets, each conferring different levels of protection or risk, to health. By examining mitochondrial DNA in 269,506 individuals, we show mitochondrial haplogroups explain 0.07-0.01% of variance in neuroticism and identify five haplogroup and 15 mitochondria-marker associations across a general factor of neuroticism, and two special factors of anxiety/tension, and worry/vulnerability with effect sizes of the same magnitude as autosomal variants. Within-haplogroup genome-wide association studies identified H-haplogroup-specific autosomal effects explaining 1.4% variance of worry/vulnerability. These H-haplogroup-specific autosomal effects show a pleiotropic relationship with cognitive, physical and mental health that differs from that found when assessing autosomal effects across haplogroups. We identify interactions between chromosome 9 regions and mitochondrial haplogroups at P < 5 × 10-8, revealing associations between general neuroticism and anxiety/tension with brain-specific gene co-expression networks. These results indicate that the mitochondrial genome contributes toward neuroticism and the autosomal links between neuroticism and health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charley Xia
- Lothian Birth Cohort studies, University of Edinburgh, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK
- Department of Psychology, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK
| | - Sarah J Pickett
- Wellcome Centre for Mitochondrial Research and Translational and Clinical Research Institute, The Medical School, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4HH, UK
| | - David C M Liewald
- Lothian Birth Cohort studies, University of Edinburgh, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK
- Department of Psychology, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK
| | - Alexander Weiss
- Department of Psychology, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK
| | - Gavin Hudson
- Wellcome Centre for Mitochondrial Research and Biosciences Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4HH, UK
| | - W David Hill
- Lothian Birth Cohort studies, University of Edinburgh, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK.
- Department of Psychology, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, 7 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, UK.
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27
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Luo J, Wu X, Cheng Y, Chen G, Wang J, Song X. Expression quantitative trait locus studies in the era of single-cell omics. Front Genet 2023; 14:1182579. [PMID: 37284065 PMCID: PMC10239882 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2023.1182579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 04/26/2023] [Indexed: 06/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies have revealed that the regulation of gene expression bridges genetic variants and complex phenotypes. Profiling of the bulk transcriptome coupled with linkage analysis (expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) mapping) has advanced our understanding of the relationship between genetic variants and gene regulation in the context of complex phenotypes. However, bulk transcriptomics has inherited limitations as the regulation of gene expression tends to be cell-type-specific. The advent of single-cell RNA-seq technology now enables the identification of the cell-type-specific regulation of gene expression through a single-cell eQTL (sc-eQTL). In this review, we first provide an overview of sc-eQTL studies, including data processing and the mapping procedure of the sc-eQTL. We then discuss the benefits and limitations of sc-eQTL analyses. Finally, we present an overview of the current and future applications of sc-eQTL discoveries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie Luo
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to The Quality and Safety of Agro‐products, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - Xinyi Wu
- Institute of Vegetables, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yuan Cheng
- Institute of Vegetables, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - Guang Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to The Quality and Safety of Agro‐products, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jian Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to The Quality and Safety of Agro‐products, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - Xijiao Song
- State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to The Quality and Safety of Agro‐products, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
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28
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Huang X, Yao M, Tian P, Wong JYY, Li Z, Liu Z, Zhao JV. Genome-wide cross-trait analysis and Mendelian randomization reveal a shared genetic etiology and causality between COVID-19 and venous thromboembolism. Commun Biol 2023; 6:441. [PMID: 37085521 PMCID: PMC10120502 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-04805-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 04/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Venous thromboembolism occurs in up to one-third of patients with COVID-19. Venous thromboembolism and COVID-19 may share a common genetic architecture, which has not been clarified. To fill this gap, we leverage summary-level genetic data from the latest COVID-19 host genetics consortium and UK Biobank and examine the shared genetic etiology and causal relationship between COVID-19 and venous thromboembolism. The cross-trait and co-localization analyses identify 2, 3, and 4 shared loci between venous thromboembolism and severe COVID-19, COVID-19 hospitalization, SARS-CoV-2 infection respectively, which are mapped to ABO, ADAMTS13, FUT2 genes involved in coagulation functions. Enrichment analysis supports shared biological processes between COVID-19 and venous thromboembolism related to coagulation and immunity. Bi-directional Mendelian randomization suggests that venous thromboembolism was associated with higher risk of three COVID-19 traits, and SARS-CoV-2 infection was associated with a higher risk of venous thromboembolism. Our study provides timely evidence for the genetic etiology between COVID-19 and venous thromboembolism (VTE). Our findings contribute to the understanding of COVID-19 and VTE etiology and provide insights into the prevention and comorbidity management of COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Huang
- School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Minhao Yao
- Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Peixin Tian
- Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Jason Y Y Wong
- Epidemiology and Community Health Branch, National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Zilin Li
- Department of Biostatistics and Health Data Science, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Zhonghua Liu
- Department of Biostatistics, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Jie V Zhao
- School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR, China.
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Li S, Schmid KT, de Vries DH, Korshevniuk M, Losert C, Oelen R, van Blokland IV, Groot HE, Swertz MA, van der Harst P, Westra HJ, van der Wijst MGP, Heinig M, Franke L. Identification of genetic variants that impact gene co-expression relationships using large-scale single-cell data. Genome Biol 2023; 24:80. [PMID: 37072791 PMCID: PMC10111756 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-023-02897-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 04/20/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) studies show how genetic variants affect downstream gene expression. Single-cell data allows reconstruction of personalized co-expression networks and therefore the identification of SNPs altering co-expression patterns (co-expression QTLs, co-eQTLs) and the affected upstream regulatory processes using a limited number of individuals. RESULTS We conduct a co-eQTL meta-analysis across four scRNA-seq peripheral blood mononuclear cell datasets using a novel filtering strategy followed by a permutation-based multiple testing approach. Before the analysis, we evaluate the co-expression patterns required for co-eQTL identification using different external resources. We identify a robust set of cell-type-specific co-eQTLs for 72 independent SNPs affecting 946 gene pairs. These co-eQTLs are replicated in a large bulk cohort and provide novel insights into how disease-associated variants alter regulatory networks. One co-eQTL SNP, rs1131017, that is associated with several autoimmune diseases, affects the co-expression of RPS26 with other ribosomal genes. Interestingly, specifically in T cells, the SNP additionally affects co-expression of RPS26 and a group of genes associated with T cell activation and autoimmune disease. Among these genes, we identify enrichment for targets of five T-cell-activation-related transcription factors whose binding sites harbor rs1131017. This reveals a previously overlooked process and pinpoints potential regulators that could explain the association of rs1131017 with autoimmune diseases. CONCLUSION Our co-eQTL results highlight the importance of studying context-specific gene regulation to understand the biological implications of genetic variation. With the expected growth of sc-eQTL datasets, our strategy and technical guidelines will facilitate future co-eQTL identification, further elucidating unknown disease mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuang Li
- Genetics Department, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
- Genomics Coordination Center, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, UK
| | - Katharina T Schmid
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Center Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, School of Computation, Information and Technology, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Dylan H de Vries
- Genetics Department, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Maryna Korshevniuk
- Genetics Department, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Corinna Losert
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Center Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Computer Science, School of Computation, Information and Technology, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Roy Oelen
- Genetics Department, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Irene V van Blokland
- Genetics Department, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
- Department of Cardiology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Hilde E Groot
- Department of Cardiology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Morris A Swertz
- Genetics Department, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
- Genomics Coordination Center, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Pim van der Harst
- Department of Cardiology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Harm-Jan Westra
- Genetics Department, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | | | - Matthias Heinig
- Institute of Computational Biology, Helmholtz Center Munich, Munich, Germany.
- Department of Computer Science, School of Computation, Information and Technology, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany.
- Munich Heart Alliance, DZHK (German Center for Cardiovascular Research), Munich, Germany.
| | - Lude Franke
- Genetics Department, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.
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Prohaska CC, Zhang X, Schwantes‐An TL, Stearman RS, Hooker S, Kittles RA, Aldred MA, Lutz KA, Pauciulo MW, Nichols WC, Desai AA, Gordeuk VR, Machado RF. RASA3 is a candidate gene in sickle cell disease-associated pulmonary hypertension and pulmonary arterial hypertension. Pulm Circ 2023; 13:e12227. [PMID: 37101805 PMCID: PMC10124178 DOI: 10.1002/pul2.12227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2023] [Accepted: 04/06/2023] [Indexed: 04/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. RASA3 is a GTPase activating protein integral to angiogenesis and endothelial barrier function. In this study, we explore the association of RASA3 genetic variation with PH risk in patients with sickle cell disease (SCD)-associated PH and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Cis-expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) were queried for RASA3 using whole genome genotype arrays and gene expression profiles derived from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of three SCD cohorts. Genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) near or in the RASA3 gene that may associate with lung RASA3 expression were identified, reduced to 9 tagging SNPs for RASA3 and associated with markers of PH. Associations between the top RASA3 SNP and PAH severity were corroborated using data from the PAH Biobank and analyzed based on European or African ancestry (EA, AA). We found that PBMC RASA3 expression was lower in patients with SCD-associated PH as defined by echocardiography and right heart catheterization and was associated with higher mortality. One eQTL for RASA3 (rs9525228) was identified, with the risk allele correlating with PH risk, higher tricuspid regurgitant jet velocity and higher pulmonary vascular resistance in patients with SCD-associated PH. rs9525228 associated with markers of precapillary PH and decreased survival in individuals of EA but not AA. In conclusion, RASA3 is a novel candidate gene in SCD-associated PH and PAH, with RASA3 expression appearing to be protective. Further studies are ongoing to delineate the role of RASA3 in PH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clare C. Prohaska
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Occupational Medicine, Department of MedicineIndiana UniversityIndianapolisIndianaUSA
| | - Xu Zhang
- Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of MedicineUniversity of Illinois at ChicagoChicagoIllinoisUSA
| | | | | | - Stanley Hooker
- Division of Health Equities, Department of Population SciencesCity of HopeDuarteCaliforniaUSA
| | - Rick A. Kittles
- Department of Community Health and Preventive MedicineMorehouse School of MedicineAtlantaGeorgiaUSA
| | - Micheala A. Aldred
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Occupational Medicine, Department of MedicineIndiana UniversityIndianapolisIndianaUSA
| | - Katie A. Lutz
- Division of Human Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical CenterUniversity of Cincinnati College of MedicineCincinnatiOhioUSA
| | - Michael W. Pauciulo
- Division of Human Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical CenterUniversity of Cincinnati College of MedicineCincinnatiOhioUSA
| | - William C. Nichols
- Division of Human Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical CenterUniversity of Cincinnati College of MedicineCincinnatiOhioUSA
| | - Ankit A. Desai
- Krannert Institute of Cardiology, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of MedicineIndiana UniversityIndianapolisIndianaUSA
| | - Victor R. Gordeuk
- Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of MedicineUniversity of Illinois at ChicagoChicagoIllinoisUSA
| | - Roberto F. Machado
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Occupational Medicine, Department of MedicineIndiana UniversityIndianapolisIndianaUSA
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Seah C, Huckins LM, Brennand KJ. Stem Cell Models for Context-Specific Modeling in Psychiatric Disorders. Biol Psychiatry 2023; 93:642-650. [PMID: 36658083 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2022.09.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2022] [Revised: 09/27/2022] [Accepted: 09/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies reveal the complex polygenic architecture underlying psychiatric disorder risk, but there is an unmet need to validate causal variants, resolve their target genes(s), and explore their functional impacts on disorder-related mechanisms. Disorder-associated loci regulate transcription of target genes in a cell type- and context-specific manner, which can be measured through expression quantitative trait loci. In this review, we discuss methods and insights from context-specific modeling of genetically and environmentally regulated expression. Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cell type and organoid models have uncovered context-specific psychiatric disorder associations by investigating tissue-, cell type-, sex-, age-, and stressor-specific genetic regulation of expression. Techniques such as massively parallel reporter assays and pooled CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) screens make it possible to functionally fine-map genome-wide association study loci and validate their target genes at scale. Integration of disorder-associated contexts with these patient-specific human induced pluripotent stem cell models makes it possible to uncover gene by environment interactions that mediate disorder risk, which will ultimately improve our ability to diagnose and treat psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carina Seah
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York
| | - Laura M Huckins
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
| | - Kristen J Brennand
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York; Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
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McHenry ML, Simmons J, Hong H, Malone LL, Mayanja-Kizza H, Bush WS, Boom WH, Hawn TR, Williams SM, Stein CM. Tuberculosis severity associates with variants and eQTLs related to vascular biology and infection-induced inflammation. PLoS Genet 2023; 19:e1010387. [PMID: 36972313 PMCID: PMC10079228 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1010387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2022] [Revised: 04/06/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Background
Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major public health problem globally, even compared to COVID-19. Genome-wide studies have failed to discover genes that explain a large proportion of genetic risk for adult pulmonary TB, and even fewer have examined genetic factors underlying TB severity, an intermediate trait impacting disease experience, quality of life, and risk of mortality. No prior severity analyses used a genome-wide approach.
Methods and findings
As part of our ongoing household contact study in Kampala, Uganda, we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of TB severity measured by TBScore, in two independent cohorts of culture-confirmed adult TB cases (n = 149 and n = 179). We identified 3 SNPs (P<1.0 x 10–7) including one on chromosome 5, rs1848553, that was GWAS significant (meta-analysis p = 2.97x10-8). All three SNPs are in introns of RGS7BP and have effect sizes corresponding to clinically meaningful reductions in disease severity. RGS7BP is highly expressed in blood vessels and plays a role in infectious disease pathogenesis. Other genes with suggestive associations defined gene sets involved in platelet homeostasis and transport of organic anions. To explore functional implications of the TB severity-associated variants, we conducted eQTL analyses using expression data from Mtb-stimulated monocyte-derived macrophages. A single variant (rs2976562) associated with monocyte SLA expression (p = 0.03) and subsequent analyses indicated that SLA downregulation following MTB stimulation associated with increased TB severity. Src Like Adaptor (SLAP-1), encoded by SLA, is highly expressed in immune cells and negatively regulates T cell receptor signaling, providing a potential mechanistic link to TB severity.
Conclusions
These analyses reveal new insights into the genetics of TB severity with regulation of platelet homeostasis and vascular biology being central to consequences for active TB patients. This analysis also reveals genes that regulate inflammation can lead to differences in severity. Our findings provide an important step in improving TB patient outcomes.
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Abo Al Hayja M, Kullberg S, Eklund A, Padyukov L, Grunewald J, Rivera NV. Functional link between sarcoidosis-associated gene variants and quantitative levels of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid cell types. Front Med (Lausanne) 2023; 10:1061654. [PMID: 36824606 PMCID: PMC9941743 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2023.1061654] [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: 10/04/2022] [Accepted: 01/11/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Sarcoidosis is an inflammatory disease that affects multiple organs. Cell analysis from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) is a valuable tool in the diagnostic workup and differential diagnosis of sarcoidosis. Besides the expansion of lymphocyte expression-specific receptor segments (Vα2.3 and Vβ22) in some patients with certain HLA types, the relation between sarcoidosis susceptibility and BAL cell populations' quantitative levels is not well-understood. Methods Quantitative levels defined by cell concentrations of BAL cells and CD4+/CD8+ ratio were evaluated together with genetic variants associated with sarcoidosis in 692 patients with extensive clinical data. Genetic variants associated with clinical phenotypes, Löfgren's syndrome (LS) and non-Löfgren's syndrome (non-LS), were examined separately. An association test via linear regression using an additive model adjusted for sex, age, and correlated cell type was applied. To infer the biological function of genetic associations, enrichment analysis of expression quantitative trait (eQTLs) across publicly available eQTL databases was conducted. Results Multiple genetic variants associated with sarcoidosis were significantly associated with quantitative levels of BAL cells. Specifically, LS genetic variants, mainly from the HLA locus, were associated with quantitative levels of BAL macrophages, lymphocytes, CD3+ cells, CD4+ cells, CD8+ cells, CD4+/CD8+ ratio, neutrophils, basophils, and eosinophils. Non-LS genetic variants were associated with quantitative levels of BAL macrophages, CD8+ cells, basophils, and eosinophils. eQTL enrichment revealed an influence of sarcoidosis-associated SNPs and regulation of gene expression in the lung, blood, and immune cells. Conclusion Genetic variants associated with sarcoidosis are likely to modulate quantitative levels of BAL cell types and may regulate gene expression in immune cell populations. Thus, the role of sarcoidosis-associated gene-variants may be to influence cellular phenotypes underlying the disease immunopathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muntasir Abo Al Hayja
- Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Susanna Kullberg
- Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Anders Eklund
- Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Leonid Padyukov
- Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden,Center of Molecular Medicine (CMM), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Johan Grunewald
- Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden,Center of Molecular Medicine (CMM), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Natalia V. Rivera
- Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden,Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden,Center of Molecular Medicine (CMM), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden,*Correspondence: Natalia V. Rivera, ✉
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Lipid-induced transcriptomic changes in blood link to lipid metabolism and allergic response. Nat Commun 2023; 14:544. [PMID: 36725846 PMCID: PMC9892529 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-35663-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2021] [Accepted: 12/16/2022] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Immune cell function can be altered by lipids in circulation, a process potentially relevant to lipid-associated inflammatory diseases including atherosclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. To gain further insight in the molecular changes involved, we here perform a transcriptome-wide association analysis of blood triglycerides, HDL cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol in 3229 individuals, followed by a systematic bidirectional Mendelian randomization analysis to assess the direction of effects and control for pleiotropy. Triglycerides are found to induce transcriptional changes in 55 genes and HDL cholesterol in 5 genes. The function and cell-specific expression pattern of these genes implies that triglycerides downregulate both cellular lipid metabolism and, unexpectedly, allergic response. Indeed, a Mendelian randomization approach based on GWAS summary statistics indicates that several of these genes, including interleukin-4 (IL4) and IgE receptors (FCER1A, MS4A2), affect the incidence of allergic diseases. Our findings highlight the interplay between triglycerides and immune cells in allergic disease.
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Resztak JA, Choe J, Nirmalan S, Wei J, Bruinsma J, Houpt R, Alazizi A, Mair-Meijers HE, Wen X, Slatcher RB, Zilioli S, Pique-Regi R, Luca F. Analysis of transcriptional changes in the immune system associated with pubertal development in a longitudinal cohort of children with asthma. Nat Commun 2023; 14:230. [PMID: 36646693 PMCID: PMC9842661 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-35742-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2021] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Puberty is an important developmental period marked by hormonal, metabolic and immune changes. Puberty also marks a shift in sex differences in susceptibility to asthma. Yet, little is known about the gene expression changes in immune cells that occur during pubertal development. Here we assess pubertal development and leukocyte gene expression in a longitudinal cohort of 251 children with asthma. We identify substantial gene expression changes associated with age and pubertal development. Gene expression changes between pre- and post-menarcheal females suggest a shift from predominantly innate to adaptive immunity. We show that genetic effects on gene expression change dynamically during pubertal development. Gene expression changes during puberty are correlated with gene expression changes associated with asthma and may explain sex differences in prevalence. Our results show that molecular data used to study the genetics of early onset diseases should consider pubertal development as an important factor that modifies the transcriptome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justyna A Resztak
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Jane Choe
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Shreya Nirmalan
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Julong Wei
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Julian Bruinsma
- Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Russell Houpt
- Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Adnan Alazizi
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | | | - Xiaoquan Wen
- Department of Biostatistics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | | | - Samuele Zilioli
- Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
- Department of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Roger Pique-Regi
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA.
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA.
| | - Francesca Luca
- Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA.
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA.
- Department of Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
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36
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Brown M, Greenwood E, Zeng B, Powell JE, Gibson G. Effect of all-but-one conditional analysis for eQTL isolation in peripheral blood. Genetics 2023; 223:iyac162. [PMID: 36321965 PMCID: PMC9836021 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyac162] [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: 09/02/2022] [Accepted: 10/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Expression quantitative trait locus detection has become increasingly important for understanding how noncoding variants contribute to disease susceptibility and complex traits. The major challenges in expression quantitative trait locus fine-mapping and causal variant discovery relate to the impact of linkage disequilibrium on signals due to one or multiple functional variants that lie within a credible set. We perform expression quantitative trait locus fine-mapping using the all-but-one approach, conditioning each signal on all others detected in an interval, on the Consortium for the Architecture of Gene Expression cohorts of microarray-based peripheral blood gene expression in 2,138 European-ancestry human adults. We contrast these results with traditional forward stepwise conditional analysis and a Bayesian localization method. All-but-one conditioning significantly modifies effect-size estimates for 51% of 2,351 expression quantitative trait locus peaks, but only modestly affects credible set size and location. On the other hand, both conditioning approaches result in unexpectedly low overlap with Bayesian credible sets, with just 57% peak concordance and between 50% and 70% SNP sharing, leading us to caution against the assumption that any one localization method is superior to another. We also cross reference our results with ATAC-seq data, cell-type-specific expression quantitative trait locus, and activity-by-contact-enhancers, leading to the proposal of a 5-tier approach to further reduce credible set sizes and prioritize likely causal variants for all known inflammatory bowel disease risk loci active in immune cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaret Brown
- Center for Integrative Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - Emily Greenwood
- Center for Integrative Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - Biao Zeng
- Present address for Biao Zeng: Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Joseph E Powell
- Present address for Joseph E Powell: Garvan-Weizmann Center for Cellular Genomics, Sydney, NSW 2010, Australia
| | - Greg Gibson
- Center for Integrative Genomics, School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
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de Menezes RX, Rauschenberger A, 't Hoen PAC, Jonker MA. A powerful global test for spliceQTL effects. Biom J 2023; 65:e2100123. [PMID: 35818126 DOI: 10.1002/bimj.202100123] [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: 04/21/2021] [Revised: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Statistical methods to test for effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on exon inclusion exist but often rely on testing of associations between multiple exon-SNP pairs, with sometimes subsequent summarization of results at the gene level. Such approaches require heavy multiple testing corrections and detect mostly events with large effect sizes. We propose here a test to find spliceQTL (splicing quantitative trait loci) effects that takes all exons and all SNPs into account simultaneously. For any chosen gene, this score-based test looks for an association between the set of exon expressions and the set of SNPs, via a random-effects model framework. It is efficient to compute and can be used if the number of SNPs is larger than the number of samples. In addition, the test is powerful in detecting effects that are relatively small for individual exon-SNP pairs but are observed for many pairs. Furthermore, test results are more often replicated across datasets than pairwise testing results. This makes our test more robust to exon-SNP pair-specific effects, which do not extend to multiple pairs within the same gene. We conclude that the test we propose here offers more power and better replicability in the search for spliceQTL effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renee X de Menezes
- Department of Psychosocial Research and Epidemiology, Room H.8.040, Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Department of Epidemiology and Data Science, Amsterdam UMC, location VUmc, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Armin Rauschenberger
- Department of Epidemiology and Data Science, Amsterdam UMC, location VUmc, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg
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- Biobank-based Integrative Omics Study Consortium, The Netherlands
| | - Peter A C 't Hoen
- Center for Molecular and Biomolecular Informatics, Radboud Institute for Molecular Life Sciences, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Marianne A Jonker
- Department for Health Evidence, section Biostatistics, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
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Sha Z, Hou T, Zhou T, Dai Y, Bao Y, Jin Q, Ye J, Lu Y, Wu L. Causal relationship between atrial fibrillation and leukocyte telomere length: A two sample, bidirectional Mendelian randomization study. Front Cardiovasc Med 2023; 10:1093255. [PMID: 36873417 PMCID: PMC9975167 DOI: 10.3389/fcvm.2023.1093255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2023] [Indexed: 02/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Atrial fibrillation (AF) is an age-related disease, while telomeres play a central role in aging. But the relationship between AF and telomere length (LTL) is still controversial. This study aims to examine the potential causal association between AF and LTL by using Mendelian randomization (MR). Methods Bidirectional two-sample MR, expression and protein quantitative trait loci (eQTL and pQTL)-based MR were performed using genetic variants from United Kingdom Biobank, FinnGen, and a meta-analysis study, which comprised nearly 1 million participants in the Atrial Fibrillation Study and 470,000 participants in the Telomere Length Study. Apart from the inverse variance weighted (IVW) approach as the main MR analysis, complementary analysis approaches and sensitivity analysis were applied. Results The forward MR revealed a significant causal estimate for the genetically predicted AF with LTL shortening [IVW: odds ratio (OR) = 0.989, p = 0.007; eQTL-IVW: OR = 0.988, p = 0.005; pQTL-IVW: OR = 0.975, p < 0.005]. But in the reverse MR analysis, genetically predicted LTL has no significant correlation with AF (IVW: OR = 0.995, p = 0.916; eQTL-IVW: OR = 0.999, p = 0.995; pQTL-IVW: OR = 1.055, p = 0.570). The FinnGen replication data yielded similar findings. Sensitivity analysis ensured the stability of the results. Conclusion The presence of AF leads to LTL shortening rather than the other way around. Aggressive intervention for AF may delay the telomere attrition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zimo Sha
- Department of Cardiology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Tianzhichao Hou
- Department of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Shanghai Institute of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Taojie Zhou
- Department of Cardiology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Yang Dai
- Department of Cardiology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.,Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Yangyang Bao
- Department of Cardiology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Qi Jin
- Department of Cardiology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Jing Ye
- Department of Geriatrics, Medical Center on Aging of Shanghai Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.,International Laboratory in Hematology and Cancer, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine/Ruijin Hospital/CNRS/Inserm/Côte d'Azur University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yiming Lu
- Department of Geriatrics, Medical Center on Aging of Shanghai Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.,International Laboratory in Hematology and Cancer, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine/Ruijin Hospital/CNRS/Inserm/Côte d'Azur University, Shanghai, China
| | - Liqun Wu
- Department of Cardiology, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
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Boahen CK, Oelen R, Le K, Netea MG, Franke L, van der Wijst MGP, Kumar V. Integration of Candida albicans-induced single-cell gene expression data and secretory protein concentrations reveal genetic regulators of inflammation. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1069379. [PMID: 36865558 PMCID: PMC9972217 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1069379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 01/23/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Both gene expression and protein concentrations are regulated by genetic variants. Exploring the regulation of both eQTLs and pQTLs simultaneously in a context- and cell-type dependent manner may help to unravel mechanistic basis for genetic regulation of pQTLs. Here, we performed meta-analysis of Candida albicans-induced pQTLs from two population-based cohorts and intersected the results with Candida-induced cell-type specific expression association data (eQTL). This revealed systematic differences between the pQTLs and eQTL, where only 35% of the pQTLs significantly correlated with mRNA expressions at single cell level, indicating the limitation of eQTLs use as a proxy for pQTLs. By taking advantage of the tightly co-regulated pattern of the proteins, we also identified SNPs affecting protein network upon Candida stimulations. Colocalization of pQTLs and eQTLs signals implicated several genomic loci including MMP-1 and AMZ1. Analysis of Candida-induced single cell gene expression data implicated specific cell types that exhibit significant expression QTLs upon stimulation. By highlighting the role of trans-regulatory networks in determining the abundance of secretory proteins, our study serve as a framework to gain insights into the mechanisms of genetic regulation of protein levels in a context-dependent manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Collins K Boahen
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboud Institute of Molecular Life Sciences (RIMLS), Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Department of Internal Medicine and Radboud Center for Infectious Diseases (RCI), Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Roy Oelen
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Kieu Le
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Mihai G Netea
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboud Center for Infectious Diseases (RCI), Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Department for Immunology and Metabolism, Life and Medical Sciences Institute (LIMES), University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Lude Franke
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Monique G P van der Wijst
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
| | - Vinod Kumar
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboud Institute of Molecular Life Sciences (RIMLS), Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Department of Internal Medicine and Radboud Center for Infectious Diseases (RCI), Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Department of Genetics, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.,Nitte University Centre for Science Education and Research (NUCSER), Nitte (Deemed to be University), Mangalore, India
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40
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Common and rare variant associations with clonal haematopoiesis phenotypes. Nature 2022; 612:301-309. [PMID: 36450978 PMCID: PMC9713173 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05448-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 38.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2021] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Abstract
Clonal haematopoiesis involves the expansion of certain blood cell lineages and has been associated with ageing and adverse health outcomes1-5. Here we use exome sequence data on 628,388 individuals to identify 40,208 carriers of clonal haematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP). Using genome-wide and exome-wide association analyses, we identify 24 loci (21 of which are novel) where germline genetic variation influences predisposition to CHIP, including missense variants in the lymphocytic antigen coding gene LY75, which are associated with reduced incidence of CHIP. We also identify novel rare variant associations with clonal haematopoiesis and telomere length. Analysis of 5,041 health traits from the UK Biobank (UKB) found relationships between CHIP and severe COVID-19 outcomes, cardiovascular disease, haematologic traits, malignancy, smoking, obesity, infection and all-cause mortality. Longitudinal and Mendelian randomization analyses revealed that CHIP is associated with solid cancers, including non-melanoma skin cancer and lung cancer, and that CHIP linked to DNMT3A is associated with the subsequent development of myeloid but not lymphoid leukaemias. Additionally, contrary to previous findings from the initial 50,000 UKB exomes6, our results in the full sample do not support a role for IL-6 inhibition in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease among CHIP carriers. Our findings demonstrate that CHIP represents a complex set of heterogeneous phenotypes with shared and unique germline genetic causes and varied clinical implications.
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Wu Q, Li J, Zhu J, Sun X, He D, Li J, Cheng Z, Zhang X, Xu Y, Chen Q, Zhu Y, Lai M. Gamma-glutamyl-leucine levels are causally associated with elevated cardio-metabolic risks. Front Nutr 2022; 9:936220. [PMID: 36505257 PMCID: PMC9729530 DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2022.936220] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Accepted: 10/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective Gamma-glutamyl dipeptides are bioactive peptides involved in inflammation, oxidative stress, and glucose regulation. Gamma-glutamyl-leucine (Gamma-Glu-Leu) has been extensively reported to be associated with the risk of cardio-metabolic diseases, such as obesity, metabolic syndrome, and type 2 diabetes. However, the causality remains to be uncovered. The aim of this study was to explore the causal-effect relationships between Gamma-Glu-Leu and metabolic risk. Materials and methods In this study, 1,289 subjects were included from a cross-sectional survey on metabolic syndrome (MetS) in eastern China. Serum Gamma-Glu-Leu levels were measured by untargeted metabolomics. Using linear regressions, a two-stage genome-wide association study (GWAS) for Gamma-Glu-Leu was conducted to seek its instrumental single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). One-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses were performed to evaluate the causality between Gamma-Glu-Leu and the metabolic risk. Results Four SNPs are associated with serum Gamma-Glu-Leu levels, including rs12476238, rs56146133, rs2479714, and rs12229654. Out of them, rs12476238 exhibits the strongest association (Beta = -0.38, S.E. = 0.07 in discovery stage, Beta = -0.29, S.E. = 0.14 in validation stage, combined P-value = 1.04 × 10-8). Each of the four SNPs has a nominal association with at least one metabolic risk factor. Both rs12229654 and rs56146133 are associated with body mass index, waist circumference (WC), the ratio of WC to hip circumference, blood pressure, and triglyceride (5 × 10-5 < P < 0.05). rs56146133 also has nominal associations with fasting insulin, glucose, and insulin resistance index (5 × 10-5 < P < 0.05). Using the four SNPs serving as the instrumental SNPs of Gamma-Glu-Leu, the MR analyses revealed that higher Gamma-Glu-Leu levels are causally associated with elevated risks of multiple cardio-metabolic factors except for high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P > 0.05). Conclusion Four SNPs (rs12476238, rs56146133, rs2479714, and rs12229654) may regulate the levels of serum Gamma-Glu-Leu. Higher Gamma-Glu-Leu levels are causally linked to cardio-metabolic risks. Future prospective studies on Gamma-Glu-Leu are required to explain its role in metabolic disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiong Wu
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China,Department of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China,Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jiankang Li
- Institute of Medical Research, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Jinghan Zhu
- The Second School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiaohui Sun
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Di He
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China,Department of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jun Li
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China,Department of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Zongxue Cheng
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China,Department of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Xuhui Zhang
- Hangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou, China,Affiliated Hangzhou Center of Disease Control and Prevention, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yuying Xu
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China,Department of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Qing Chen
- Zhejiang Provincial Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou, China,*Correspondence: Qing Chen,
| | - Yimin Zhu
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China,Department of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China,Cancer Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China,Yimin Zhu,
| | - Maode Lai
- Key Laboratory of Disease Proteomics of Zhejiang Province, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China,State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, School of Basic Medical Sciences and Clinical Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, China,Maode Lai,
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Piga NN, Boua PR, Soremekun C, Shrine N, Coley K, Brandenburg JT, Tobin MD, Ramsay M, Fatumo S, Choudhury A, Batini C. Genetic insights into smoking behaviours in 10,558 men of African ancestry from continental Africa and the UK. Sci Rep 2022; 12:18828. [PMID: 36335192 PMCID: PMC9637114 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-22218-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Smoking is a leading risk factor for many of the top ten causes of death worldwide. Of the 1.3 billion smokers globally, 80% live in low- and middle-income countries, where the number of deaths due to tobacco use is expected to double in the next decade according to the World Health Organization. Genetic studies have helped to identify biological pathways for smoking behaviours, but have mostly focussed on individuals of European ancestry or living in either North America or Europe. We performed a genome-wide association study of two smoking behaviour traits in 10,558 men of African ancestry living in five African countries and the UK. Eight independent variants were associated with either smoking initiation or cessation at P-value < 5 × 10-6, four being monomorphic or rare in European populations. Gene prioritisation strategy highlighted five genes, including SEMA6D, previously described as associated with several smoking behaviour traits. These results confirm the importance of analysing underrepresented populations in genetic epidemiology, and the urgent need for larger genomic studies to boost discovery power to better understand smoking behaviours, as well as many other traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noemi-Nicole Piga
- Genetic Epidemiology Group, Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Palwende Romuald Boua
- Clinical Research Unit of Nanoro, Institut de Recherche en Sciences de La Santé, Nanoro, Burkina Faso
- Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Division of Human Genetics, National Health Laboratory Service and School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Chisom Soremekun
- Department of Immunology and Molecular Biology, College of Health Science, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
- H3Africa Bioinformatics Network (H3ABioNet) Node, Center for Genomics Research and Innovation (CGRI), National Biotechnology Development Agency CGRI/NABDA, Abuja, Nigeria
- The African Computational Genomics (TACG) Research Group, MRC/UVRI LSHTM Uganda Research Unit, Entebbe, Uganda
| | - Nick Shrine
- Genetic Epidemiology Group, Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Kayesha Coley
- Genetic Epidemiology Group, Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Jean-Tristan Brandenburg
- Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Martin D Tobin
- Genetic Epidemiology Group, Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
- National Institute for Health Research Leicester Respiratory Biomedical Research Centre, Glenfield Hospital, Leicester, UK
| | - Michèle Ramsay
- Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Division of Human Genetics, National Health Laboratory Service and School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Segun Fatumo
- H3Africa Bioinformatics Network (H3ABioNet) Node, Center for Genomics Research and Innovation (CGRI), National Biotechnology Development Agency CGRI/NABDA, Abuja, Nigeria
- The African Computational Genomics (TACG) Research Group, MRC/UVRI LSHTM Uganda Research Unit, Entebbe, Uganda
- Department of Non-Communicable Disease Epidemiology (NCDE), London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Ananyo Choudhury
- Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Chiara Batini
- Genetic Epidemiology Group, Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
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43
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Putscher E, Hecker M, Fitzner B, Boxberger N, Schwartz M, Koczan D, Lorenz P, Zettl UK. Genetic risk variants for multiple sclerosis are linked to differences in alternative pre-mRNA splicing. Front Immunol 2022; 13:931831. [PMID: 36405756 PMCID: PMC9670805 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.931831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2022] [Accepted: 10/12/2022] [Indexed: 08/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic immune-mediated disease of the central nervous system to which a genetic predisposition contributes. Over 200 genetic regions have been associated with increased disease risk, but the disease-causing variants and their functional impact at the molecular level are mostly poorly defined. We hypothesized that single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have an impact on pre-mRNA splicing in MS. METHODS Our study focused on 10 bioinformatically prioritized SNP-gene pairs, in which the SNP has a high potential to alter alternative splicing events (ASEs). We tested for differential gene expression and differential alternative splicing in B cells from MS patients and healthy controls. We further examined the impact of the SNP genotypes on ASEs and on splice isoform expression levels. Novel genotype-dependent effects on splicing were verified with splicing reporter minigene assays. RESULTS We were able to confirm previously described findings regarding the relation of MS-associated SNPs with the ASEs of the pre-mRNAs from GSDMB and SP140. We also observed an increased IL7R exon 6 skipping when comparing relapsing and progressive MS patients to healthy subjects. Moreover, we found evidence that the MS risk alleles of the SNPs rs3851808 (EFCAB13), rs1131123 (HLA-C), rs10783847 (TSFM), and rs2014886 (TSFM) may contribute to a differential splicing pattern. Of particular interest is the genotype-dependent exon skipping of TSFM due to the SNP rs2014886. The minor allele T creates a donor splice site, resulting in the expression of the exon 3 and 4 of a short TSFM transcript isoform, whereas in the presence of the MS risk allele C, this donor site is absent, and thus the short transcript isoform is not expressed. CONCLUSION In summary, we found that genetic variants from MS risk loci affect pre-mRNA splicing. Our findings substantiate the role of ASEs with respect to the genetics of MS. Further studies on how disease-causing genetic variants may modify the interactions between splicing regulatory sequence elements and RNA-binding proteins can help to deepen our understanding of the genetic susceptibility to MS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Putscher
- Rostock University Medical Center, Department of Neurology, Division of Neuroimmunology, Rostock, Germany
| | - Michael Hecker
- Rostock University Medical Center, Department of Neurology, Division of Neuroimmunology, Rostock, Germany
| | - Brit Fitzner
- Rostock University Medical Center, Department of Neurology, Division of Neuroimmunology, Rostock, Germany
| | - Nina Boxberger
- Rostock University Medical Center, Department of Neurology, Division of Neuroimmunology, Rostock, Germany
| | - Margit Schwartz
- Rostock University Medical Center, Department of Neurology, Division of Neuroimmunology, Rostock, Germany
| | - Dirk Koczan
- Rostock University Medical Center, Institute of Immunology, Rostock, Germany
| | - Peter Lorenz
- Rostock University Medical Center, Institute of Immunology, Rostock, Germany
| | - Uwe Klaus Zettl
- Rostock University Medical Center, Department of Neurology, Division of Neuroimmunology, Rostock, Germany
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44
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Smith-Byrne K, Cerani A, Guida F, Zhou S, Agudo A, Aleksandrova K, Barricarte A, Barranco MR, Bochers CH, Gram IT, Han J, Amos CI, Hung RJ, Grankvist K, Nøst TH, Imaz L, Chirlaque-López MD, Johansson M, Kaaks R, Kühn T, Martin RM, McKay JD, Pala V, Robbins HA, Sandanger TM, Schibli D, Schulze MB, Travis RC, Vineis P, Weiderpass E, Brennan P, Johansson M, Richards JB. Circulating Isovalerylcarnitine and Lung Cancer Risk: Evidence from Mendelian Randomization and Prediagnostic Blood Measurements. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022; 31:1966-1974. [PMID: 35839461 PMCID: PMC9530646 DOI: 10.1158/1055-9965.epi-21-1033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2021] [Revised: 12/09/2021] [Accepted: 07/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Tobacco exposure causes 8 of 10 lung cancers, and identifying additional risk factors is challenging due to confounding introduced by smoking in traditional observational studies. MATERIALS AND METHODS We used Mendelian randomization (MR) to screen 207 metabolites for their role in lung cancer predisposition using independent genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of blood metabolite levels (n = 7,824) and lung cancer risk (n = 29,266 cases/56,450 controls). A nested case-control study (656 cases and 1,296 matched controls) was subsequently performed using prediagnostic blood samples to validate MR association with lung cancer incidence data from population-based cohorts (EPIC and NSHDS). RESULTS An MR-based scan of 207 circulating metabolites for lung cancer risk identified that blood isovalerylcarnitine (IVC) was associated with a decreased odds of lung cancer after accounting for multiple testing (log10-OR = 0.43; 95% CI, 0.29-0.63). Molar measurement of IVC in prediagnostic blood found similar results (log10-OR = 0.39; 95% CI, 0.21-0.72). Results were consistent across lung cancer subtypes. CONCLUSIONS Independent lines of evidence support an inverse association of elevated circulating IVC with lung cancer risk through a novel methodologic approach that integrates genetic and traditional epidemiology to efficiently identify novel cancer biomarkers. IMPACT Our results find compelling evidence in favor of a protective role for a circulating metabolite, IVC, in lung cancer etiology. From the treatment of a Mendelian disease, isovaleric acidemia, we know that circulating IVC is modifiable through a restricted protein diet or glycine and L-carnatine supplementation. IVC may represent a modifiable and inversely associated biomarker for lung cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karl Smith-Byrne
- Genomic Epidemiology Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC-WHO), Lyon, France
| | - Agustin Cerani
- Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada/Centre for Clinical Epidemiology, Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Florence Guida
- Genomic Epidemiology Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC-WHO), Lyon, France
| | - Sirui Zhou
- Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada/Centre for Clinical Epidemiology, Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Antonio Agudo
- Unit of Nutrition and Cancer, Cancer Epidemiology Research Program, Institut Català d'Oncologia, Spain
| | - Krasimira Aleksandrova
- Nutrition, Immunity and Metabolism Senior Scientist Group, Department of Nutrition and Gerontology, German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke (DIfE), Nuthetal, Germany
- University of Potsdam, Institute of Nutritional Science, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Aurelio Barricarte
- Navarra Institute for Health Research (IdiSNA) Pamplona, Spain
- CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
| | - Miguel Rodríguez Barranco
- CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
- Escuela Andaluza de Salud Pública (EASP), Granada, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria ibs.GRANADA, Granada, Spain
| | - Christoph H. Bochers
- Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada/Centre for Clinical Epidemiology, Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- University of Victoria–Genome British Columbia Proteomics Centre, Victoria, BC, Canada/Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Inger Torhild Gram
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Community Medicine, University of Tromsø, The Arctic University of Norway, Norway
| | - Jun Han
- University of Victoria–Genome British Columbia Proteomics Centre, Victoria, BC, Canada/Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Christopher I. Amos
- Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
| | - Rayjean J. Hung
- Prosserman Centre for Health Research, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Canada
| | - Kjell Grankvist
- Department of Medical Biosciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Therese Haugdhal Nøst
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Community Medicine, University of Tromsø, The Arctic University of Norway, Norway
| | - Liher Imaz
- Ministry of Health of the Basque Government, Public Health Division of Gipuzkoa, Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
- Biodonostia Health Research Institute, Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
| | - María Dolores Chirlaque-López
- CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
- Department of Epidemiology, Regional Health Council, IMIB-Arrixaca, Murcia University, Murcia, Spain
| | | | - Rudolf Kaaks
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Department of Cancer Epidemiology
- Translational Lung Research Center (TLRC) Heidelberg, Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Germany
| | - Tilman Kühn
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Department of Cancer Epidemiology
| | - Richard M. Martin
- Clinical Epidemiology & Public Health, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
| | - James D. McKay
- Genomic Epidemiology Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC-WHO), Lyon, France
| | - Valeria Pala
- Epidemiology and Prevention Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori di Milano
| | - Hilary A. Robbins
- Genomic Epidemiology Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC-WHO), Lyon, France
| | - Torkjel M. Sandanger
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Community Medicine, University of Tromsø, The Arctic University of Norway, Norway
| | - David Schibli
- University of Victoria–Genome British Columbia Proteomics Centre, Victoria, BC, Canada/Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Matthias B. Schulze
- Nutrition, Immunity and Metabolism Senior Scientist Group, Department of Nutrition and Gerontology, German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke (DIfE), Nuthetal, Germany
- University of Potsdam, Institute of Nutritional Science, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Ruth C. Travis
- Cancer Epidemiology Unit, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Paolo Vineis
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Elisabete Weiderpass
- Genomic Epidemiology Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC-WHO), Lyon, France
| | - Paul Brennan
- Genomic Epidemiology Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC-WHO), Lyon, France
| | - Mattias Johansson
- Genomic Epidemiology Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC-WHO), Lyon, France
| | - J. Brent Richards
- Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada/Centre for Clinical Epidemiology, Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine & Department of Human Genetics, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Department of Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology, King's College London, Strand, London, United Kingdom
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Lepamets M, Auwerx C, Nõukas M, Claringbould A, Porcu E, Kals M, Jürgenson T, Morris AP, Võsa U, Bochud M, Stringhini S, Wijmenga C, Franke L, Peterson H, Vilo J, Lepik K, Mägi R, Kutalik Z. Omics-informed CNV calls reduce false-positive rates and improve power for CNV-trait associations. HGG ADVANCES 2022; 3:100133. [PMID: 36035246 PMCID: PMC9399386 DOI: 10.1016/j.xhgg.2022.100133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Accepted: 07/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Copy-number variations (CNV) are believed to play an important role in a wide range of complex traits, but discovering such associations remains challenging. While whole-genome sequencing (WGS) is the gold-standard approach for CNV detection, there are several orders of magnitude more samples with available genotyping microarray data. Such array data can be exploited for CNV detection using dedicated software (e.g., PennCNV); however, these calls suffer from elevated false-positive and -negative rates. In this study, we developed a CNV quality score that weights PennCNV calls (pCNVs) based on their likelihood of being true positive. First, we established a measure of pCNV reliability by leveraging evidence from multiple omics data (WGS, transcriptomics, and methylomics) obtained from the same samples. Next, we built a predictor of omics-confirmed pCNVs, termed omics-informed quality score (OQS), using only PennCNV software output parameters. Promisingly, OQS assigned to pCNVs detected in close family members was up to 35% higher than the OQS of pCNVs not carried by other relatives (p < 3.0 × 10−90), outperforming other scores. Finally, in an association study of four anthropometric traits in 89,516 Estonian Biobank samples, the use of OQS led to a relative increase in the trait variance explained by CNVs of up to 56% compared with published quality filtering methods or scores. Overall, we put forward a flexible framework to improve any CNV detection method leveraging multi-omics evidence, applied it to improve PennCNV calls, and demonstrated its utility by improving the statistical power for downstream association analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maarja Lepamets
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
- Corresponding author
| | - Chiara Auwerx
- Center for Integrative Genomics, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
- Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
- Center for Primary Care and Public Health (Unisanté), Department of Epidemiology and Health Systems, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1010, Switzerland
| | - Margit Nõukas
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
| | | | - Eleonora Porcu
- Center for Integrative Genomics, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
- Center for Primary Care and Public Health (Unisanté), Department of Epidemiology and Health Systems, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1010, Switzerland
| | - Mart Kals
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland, FIMM, HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki 00014, Finland
| | - Tuuli Jürgenson
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
- Institute of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Tartu, Tartu 51009, Estonia
| | | | - Andrew Paul Morris
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
- Centre for Genetics and Genomics Versus Arthritis, Division of Musculoskeletal and Dermatological Sciences, The University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
| | - Urmo Võsa
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
| | - Murielle Bochud
- Center for Primary Care and Public Health (Unisanté), Department of Epidemiology and Health Systems, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1010, Switzerland
| | - Silvia Stringhini
- Unit of Population Epidemiology, Division of Primary Care, Geneva 1205, Switzerland
| | - Cisca Wijmenga
- University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Department of Genetics, 9713 AV Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Lude Franke
- University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Department of Genetics, 9713 AV Groningen, the Netherlands
- Oncode Institute, 3521 AL Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Hedi Peterson
- Institute of Computer Science, University of Tartu, Tartu 51009, Estonia
| | - Jaak Vilo
- Institute of Computer Science, University of Tartu, Tartu 51009, Estonia
| | - Kaido Lepik
- Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
- Center for Primary Care and Public Health (Unisanté), Department of Epidemiology and Health Systems, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1010, Switzerland
- Institute of Computer Science, University of Tartu, Tartu 51009, Estonia
| | - Reedik Mägi
- Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu 51010, Estonia
| | - Zoltán Kutalik
- Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
- Center for Primary Care and Public Health (Unisanté), Department of Epidemiology and Health Systems, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1010, Switzerland
- Corresponding author
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Boulund U, Bastos DM, Ferwerda B, van den Born BJ, Pinto-Sietsma SJ, Galenkamp H, Levin E, Groen AK, Zwinderman AH, Nieuwdorp M. Gut microbiome associations with host genotype vary across ethnicities and potentially influence cardiometabolic traits. Cell Host Microbe 2022; 30:1464-1480.e6. [PMID: 36099924 DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2022.08.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Revised: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Previous studies in mainly European populations have reported that the gut microbiome composition is associated with the human genome. However, the genotype-microbiome interaction in different ethnicities is largely unknown. We performed a large fecal microbiome genome-wide association study of a single multiethnic cohort, the Healthy Life in an Urban Setting (HELIUS) cohort (N = 4,117). Mendelian randomization was performed using the multiethnic Pan-UK Biobank (N = 460,000) to dissect potential causality. We identified ethnicity-specific associations between host genomes and gut microbiota. Certain microbes were associated with genotype in multiple ethnicities. Several of the microbe-associated loci were found to be related to immune functions, interact with glutamate and the mucus layer, or be expressed in the gut or brain. Additionally, we found that gut microbes potentially influence cardiometabolic health factors such as BMI, cholesterol, and blood pressure. This provides insight into the relationship of ethnicity and gut microbiota and into the possible causal effects of gut microbes on cardiometabolic traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrika Boulund
- Department of Internal and Vascular Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Diogo M Bastos
- Department of Internal and Vascular Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Bart Ferwerda
- Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Bert-Jan van den Born
- Department of Internal and Vascular Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Public and Occupational Health, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Sara-Joan Pinto-Sietsma
- Department of Internal and Vascular Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Henrike Galenkamp
- Department of Public and Occupational Health, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Evgeni Levin
- Department of Internal and Vascular Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands; HorAIzon BV, 2645 LT Delfgauw, the Netherlands
| | - Albert K Groen
- Department of Internal and Vascular Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Aeilko H Zwinderman
- Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Max Nieuwdorp
- Department of Internal and Vascular Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
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47
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Nakano M, Ota M, Takeshima Y, Iwasaki Y, Hatano H, Nagafuchi Y, Itamiya T, Maeda J, Yoshida R, Yamada S, Nishiwaki A, Takahashi H, Takahashi H, Akutsu Y, Kusuda T, Suetsugu H, Liu L, Kim K, Yin X, Bang SY, Cui Y, Lee HS, Shoda H, Zhang X, Bae SC, Terao C, Yamamoto K, Okamura T, Ishigaki K, Fujio K. Distinct transcriptome architectures underlying lupus establishment and exacerbation. Cell 2022; 185:3375-3389.e21. [PMID: 35998627 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2022.07.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2022] [Revised: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 07/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex autoimmune disease involving multiple immune cells. To elucidate SLE pathogenesis, it is essential to understand the dysregulated gene expression pattern linked to various clinical statuses with a high cellular resolution. Here, we conducted a large-scale transcriptome study with 6,386 RNA sequencing data covering 27 immune cell types from 136 SLE and 89 healthy donors. We profiled two distinct cell-type-specific transcriptomic signatures: disease-state and disease-activity signatures, reflecting disease establishment and exacerbation, respectively. We then identified candidate biological processes unique to each signature. This study suggested the clinical value of disease-activity signatures, which were associated with organ involvement and therapeutic responses. However, disease-activity signatures were less enriched around SLE risk variants than disease-state signatures, suggesting that current genetic studies may not well capture clinically vital biology. Together, we identified comprehensive gene signatures of SLE, which will provide essential foundations for future genomic and genetic studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masahiro Nakano
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan; Laboratory for Autoimmune Diseases, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Mineto Ota
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan; Department of Functional Genomics and Immunological Diseases, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Yusuke Takeshima
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Yukiko Iwasaki
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Hiroaki Hatano
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan; Laboratory for Human Immunogenetics, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Yasuo Nagafuchi
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan; Department of Functional Genomics and Immunological Diseases, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Takahiro Itamiya
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Junko Maeda
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Ryochi Yoshida
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Saeko Yamada
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Aya Nishiwaki
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Haruka Takahashi
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Hideyuki Takahashi
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Yuko Akutsu
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Takeshi Kusuda
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Suetsugu
- Laboratory for Statistical and Translational Genetics, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan; Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan; Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Hamanomachi hospital, Fukuoka 810-8539, Japan
| | - Lu Liu
- Department of Dermatology, First Affiliated Hospital, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui 230032, China; Institute of Dermatology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui 230032, China
| | - Kwangwoo Kim
- Department of Biology, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, South Korea; Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, South Korea
| | - Xianyong Yin
- Department of Dermatology, First Affiliated Hospital, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui 230032, China; Institute of Dermatology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui 230032, China; Department of Biostatistics, Center for Statistical Genetics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Human Phenome Institute, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - So-Young Bang
- Department of Rheumatology, Hanyang University Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Seoul 04763, South Korea; Hanyang University Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology & Hanyang University Institute for Rheumatology Research, Seoul 04763, South Korea
| | - Yong Cui
- Department of Dermatology, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing 100029, China
| | - Hye-Soon Lee
- Department of Rheumatology, Hanyang University Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Seoul 04763, South Korea; Hanyang University Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology & Hanyang University Institute for Rheumatology Research, Seoul 04763, South Korea
| | - Hirofumi Shoda
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Xuejun Zhang
- Department of Dermatology, First Affiliated Hospital, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui 230032, China; Institute of Dermatology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui 230032, China
| | - Sang-Cheol Bae
- Department of Rheumatology, Hanyang University Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Seoul 04763, South Korea; Hanyang University Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology & Hanyang University Institute for Rheumatology Research, Seoul 04763, South Korea
| | - Chikashi Terao
- Laboratory for Statistical and Translational Genetics, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan; Clinical Research Center, Shizuoka General Hospital, Shizuoka 420-8527, Japan; The Department of Applied Genetics, The School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Shizuoka, Shizuoka 422-8529, Japan
| | - Kazuhiko Yamamoto
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan; Laboratory for Autoimmune Diseases, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
| | - Tomohisa Okamura
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan; Department of Functional Genomics and Immunological Diseases, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Kazuyoshi Ishigaki
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan; Laboratory for Human Immunogenetics, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan.
| | - Keishi Fujio
- Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan.
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Li X, Xiao H, Ma Y, Zhou Z, Chen D. Identifying novel genetic loci associated with polycystic ovary syndrome based on its shared genetic architecture with type 2 diabetes. Front Genet 2022; 13:905716. [PMID: 36105080 PMCID: PMC9464923 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.905716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified several common variants associated with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). However, the etiology behind PCOS remains incomplete. Available evidence suggests a potential genetic correlation between PCOS and type 2 diabetes (T2D). The publicly available data may provide an opportunity to enhance the understanding of the PCOS etiology. Here, we quantified the polygenic overlap between PCOS and T2D using summary statistics of PCOS and T2D and then identified the novel genetic variants associated with PCOS behind this phenotypic association. A bivariate causal mixture model (MiXeR model) found a moderate genetic overlap between PCOS and T2D (Dice coefficient = 44.1% and after adjusting for body mass index, 32.1%). The conditional/conjunctional false discovery rate method identified 11 potential risk variants of PCOS conditional on associations with T2D, 9 of which were novel and 6 of which were jointly associated with two phenotypes. The functional annotation of these genetic variants supports a significant role for genes involved in lipid metabolism, immune response, and the insulin signaling pathway. An expression quantitative trait locus functionality analysis successfully repeated that 5 loci were significantly associated with the expression of candidate genes in many tissues, including the whole blood, subcutaneous adipose, adrenal gland, and cerebellum. We found that SCN2A gene is co-localized with PCOS in subcutaneous adipose using GWAS-eQTL co-localization analyses. A total of 11 candidate genes were differentially expressed in multiple tissues of the PCOS samples. These findings provide a new understanding of the shared genetic architecture between PCOS and T2D and the underlying molecular genetic mechanism of PCOS.
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Porcu E, Claringbould A, Weihs A, Lepik K, Richardson TG, Völker U, Santoni FA, Teumer A, Franke L, Reymond A, Kutalik Z. Limited evidence for blood eQTLs in human sexual dimorphism. Genome Med 2022; 14:89. [PMID: 35953856 PMCID: PMC9373355 DOI: 10.1186/s13073-022-01088-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2021] [Accepted: 07/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The genetic underpinning of sexual dimorphism is very poorly understood. The prevalence of many diseases differs between men and women, which could be in part caused by sex-specific genetic effects. Nevertheless, only a few published genome-wide association studies (GWAS) were performed separately in each sex. The reported enrichment of expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) among GWAS-associated SNPs suggests a potential role of sex-specific eQTLs in the sex-specific genetic mechanism underlying complex traits. METHODS To explore this scenario, we combined sex-specific whole blood RNA-seq eQTL data from 3447 European individuals included in BIOS Consortium and GWAS data from UK Biobank. Next, to test the presence of sex-biased causal effect of gene expression on complex traits, we performed sex-specific transcriptome-wide Mendelian randomization (TWMR) analyses on the two most sexually dimorphic traits, waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and testosterone levels. Finally, we performed power analysis to calculate the GWAS sample size needed to observe sex-specific trait associations driven by sex-biased eQTLs. RESULTS Among 9 million SNP-gene pairs showing sex-combined associations, we found 18 genes with significant sex-biased cis-eQTLs (FDR 5%). Our phenome-wide association study of the 18 top sex-biased eQTLs on >700 traits unraveled that these eQTLs do not systematically translate into detectable sex-biased trait-associations. In addition, we observed that sex-specific causal effects of gene expression on complex traits are not driven by sex-specific eQTLs. Power analyses using real eQTL- and causal-effect sizes showed that millions of samples would be necessary to observe sex-biased trait associations that are fully driven by sex-biased cis-eQTLs. Compensatory effects may further hamper their detection. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that sex-specific eQTLs in whole blood do not translate to detectable sex-specific trait associations of complex diseases, and vice versa that the observed sex-specific trait associations cannot be explained by sex-specific eQTLs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleonora Porcu
- Center for Integrative Genomics, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland. .,Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne, Switzerland. .,University Center for Primary Care and Public Health, Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Annique Claringbould
- University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.,Structural and Computational Biology Unit, European Molecular Biology Laboratories (EMBL), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Antoine Weihs
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Kaido Lepik
- Institute of Computer Science, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia.,Estonian Genome Centre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | | | - Tom G Richardson
- MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit (IEU), Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,Novo Nordisk Research Centre Oxford, Old Road Campus, Oxford, OX3 7DQ, UK
| | - Uwe Völker
- Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.,DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research), partner site Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Federico A Santoni
- Endocrine, Diabetes, and Metabolism Service, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland.,Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Alexander Teumer
- DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research), partner site Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.,Institute for Community Medicine, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Lude Franke
- University Medical Centre Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Alexandre Reymond
- Center for Integrative Genomics, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Zoltán Kutalik
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne, Switzerland. .,University Center for Primary Care and Public Health, Lausanne, Switzerland. .,Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
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50
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Cuomo ASE, Heinen T, Vagiaki D, Horta D, Marioni JC, Stegle O. CellRegMap: a statistical framework for mapping context-specific regulatory variants using scRNA-seq. Mol Syst Biol 2022; 18:e10663. [PMID: 35972065 PMCID: PMC9380406 DOI: 10.15252/msb.202110663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Revised: 06/28/2022] [Accepted: 07/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Single‐cell RNA sequencing (scRNA‐seq) enables characterizing the cellular heterogeneity in human tissues. Recent technological advances have enabled the first population‐scale scRNA‐seq studies in hundreds of individuals, allowing to assay genetic effects with single‐cell resolution. However, existing strategies to analyze these data remain based on principles established for the genetic analysis of bulk RNA‐seq. In particular, current methods depend on a priori definitions of discrete cell types, and hence cannot assess allelic effects across subtle cell types and cell states. To address this, we propose the Cell Regulatory Map (CellRegMap), a statistical framework to test for and quantify genetic effects on gene expression in individual cells. CellRegMap provides a principled approach to identify and characterize genotype–context interactions of known eQTL variants using scRNA‐seq data. This model‐based approach resolves allelic effects across cellular contexts of different granularity, including genetic effects specific to cell subtypes and continuous cell transitions. We validate CellRegMap using simulated data and apply it to previously identified eQTL from two recent studies of differentiating iPSCs, where we uncover hundreds of eQTL displaying heterogeneity of genetic effects across cellular contexts. Finally, we identify fine‐grained genetic regulation in neuronal subtypes for eQTL that are colocalized with human disease variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna S E Cuomo
- European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Cambridge, UK.,Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | - Tobias Heinen
- Division of Computational Genomics and Systems Genetics, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.,European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Genome Biology, Heidelberg, Germany.,Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Danai Vagiaki
- Division of Computational Genomics and Systems Genetics, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.,European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Genome Biology, Heidelberg, Germany.,Faculty of Biosciences, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Danilo Horta
- European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Cambridge, UK
| | - John C Marioni
- European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Cambridge, UK.,Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK.,Cancer Research UK, Cambridge Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | - Oliver Stegle
- European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Cambridge, UK.,Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK.,Division of Computational Genomics and Systems Genetics, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.,European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Genome Biology, Heidelberg, Germany
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