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The transferability of lipid loci across African, Asian and European cohorts.

Published version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Kuchenbaecker, Karoline  ORCID logo  https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9726-603X
Telkar, Nikita 
Reiker, Theresa 
Lin, Kuang 

Abstract

Most genome-wide association studies are based on samples of European descent. We assess whether the genetic determinants of blood lipids, a major cardiovascular risk factor, are shared across populations. Genetic correlations for lipids between European-ancestry and Asian cohorts are not significantly different from 1. A genetic risk score based on LDL-cholesterol-associated loci has consistent effects on serum levels in samples from the UK, Uganda and Greece (r = 0.23-0.28, p < 1.9 × 10-14). Overall, there is evidence of reproducibility for ~75% of the major lipid loci from European discovery studies, except triglyceride loci in the Ugandan samples (10% of loci). Individual transferable loci are identified using trans-ethnic colocalization. Ten of fourteen loci not transferable to the Ugandan population have pleiotropic associations with BMI in Europeans; none of the transferable loci do. The non-transferable loci might affect lipids by modifying food intake in environments rich in certain nutrients, which suggests a potential role for gene-environment interactions.

Description

Keywords

Asian People, Black People, Genetic Loci, Genome-Wide Association Study, Humans, Lipids, Risk Factors, White People

Journal Title

Nat Commun

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2041-1723
2041-1723

Volume Title

10

Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Sponsorship
Economic and Social Research Council (ES/K005146/1)
Medical Research Council (G0801566)
Medical Research Council (G0901213)
Medical Research Council (MR/K013491/1)
Medical Research Council (MC_PC_12026)