| 1. |
- Joshi, Peter K, et al.
(författare)
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Directional dominance on stature and cognition in diverse human populations
- 2015
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 523:7561, s. 459-462
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Homozygosity has long been associated with rare, often devastating, Mendelian disorders, and Darwin was one of the first to recognize that inbreeding reduces evolutionary fitness. However, the effect of the more distant parental relatedness that is common in modern human populations is less well understood. Genomic data now allow us to investigate the effects of homozygosity on traits of public health importance by observing contiguous homozygous segments (runs of homozygosity), which are inferred to be homozygous along their complete length. Given the low levels of genome-wide homozygosity prevalent in most human populations, information is required on very large numbers of people to provide sufficient power. Here we use runs of homozygosity to study 16 health-related quantitative traits in 354,224 individuals from 102 cohorts, and find statistically significant associations between summed runs of homozygosity and four complex traits: height, forced expiratory lung volume in one second, general cognitive ability and educational attainment (P < 1 × 10(-300), 2.1 × 10(-6), 2.5 × 10(-10) and 1.8 × 10(-10), respectively). In each case, increased homozygosity was associated with decreased trait value, equivalent to the offspring of first cousins being 1.2 cm shorter and having 10 months' less education. Similar effect sizes were found across four continental groups and populations with different degrees of genome-wide homozygosity, providing evidence that homozygosity, rather than confounding, directly contributes to phenotypic variance. Contrary to earlier reports in substantially smaller samples, no evidence was seen of an influence of genome-wide homozygosity on blood pressure and low density lipoprotein cholesterol, or ten other cardio-metabolic traits. Since directional dominance is predicted for traits under directional evolutionary selection, this study provides evidence that increased stature and cognitive function have been positively selected in human evolution, whereas many important risk factors for late-onset complex diseases may not have been.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Haycock, Philip C., et al.
(författare)
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Association Between Telomere Length and Risk of Cancer and Non-Neoplastic Diseases A Mendelian Randomization Study
- 2017
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Ingår i: JAMA Oncology. - : American Medical Association. - 2374-2437 .- 2374-2445. ; 3:5, s. 636-651
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- IMPORTANCE: The causal direction and magnitude of the association between telomere length and incidence of cancer and non-neoplastic diseases is uncertain owing to the susceptibility of observational studies to confounding and reverse causation. OBJECTIVE: To conduct a Mendelian randomization study, using germline genetic variants as instrumental variables, to appraise the causal relevance of telomere length for risk of cancer and non-neoplastic diseases. DATA SOURCES: Genomewide association studies (GWAS) published up to January 15, 2015. STUDY SELECTION: GWAS of noncommunicable diseases that assayed germline genetic variation and did not select cohort or control participants on the basis of preexisting diseases. Of 163 GWAS of noncommunicable diseases identified, summary data from 103 were available. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Summary association statistics for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that are strongly associated with telomere length in the general population. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for disease per standard deviation (SD) higher telomere length due to germline genetic variation. RESULTS: Summary data were available for 35 cancers and 48 non-neoplastic diseases, corresponding to 420 081 cases (median cases, 2526 per disease) and 1 093 105 controls (median, 6789 per disease). Increased telomere length due to germline genetic variation was generally associated with increased risk for site-specific cancers. The strongest associations (ORs [ 95% CIs] per 1-SD change in genetically increased telomere length) were observed for glioma, 5.27 (3.15-8.81); serous low-malignant-potential ovarian cancer, 4.35 (2.39-7.94); lung adenocarcinoma, 3.19 (2.40-4.22); neuroblastoma, 2.98 (1.92-4.62); bladder cancer, 2.19 (1.32-3.66); melanoma, 1.87 (1.55-2.26); testicular cancer, 1.76 (1.02-3.04); kidney cancer, 1.55 (1.08-2.23); and endometrial cancer, 1.31 (1.07-1.61). Associations were stronger for rarer cancers and at tissue sites with lower rates of stem cell division. There was generally little evidence of association between genetically increased telomere length and risk of psychiatric, autoimmune, inflammatory, diabetic, and other non-neoplastic diseases, except for coronary heart disease (OR, 0.78 [ 95% CI, 0.67-0.90]), abdominal aortic aneurysm (OR, 0.63 [ 95% CI, 0.49-0.81]), celiac disease (OR, 0.42 [ 95% CI, 0.28-0.61]) and interstitial lung disease (OR, 0.09 [ 95% CI, 0.05-0.15]). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: It is likely that longer telomeres increase risk for several cancers but reduce risk for some non-neoplastic diseases, including cardiovascular diseases.
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| 4. |
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- 2019
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)
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| 5. |
- Aoude, Lauren G, et al.
(författare)
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Nonsense Mutations in the Shelterin Complex Genes ACD and TERF2IP in Familial Melanoma.
- 2015
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Ingår i: Journal of the National Cancer Institute. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1460-2105 .- 0027-8874. ; 107:2, s. 408-408
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The shelterin complex protects chromosomal ends by regulating how the telomerase complex interacts with telomeres. Following the recent finding in familial melanoma of inactivating germline mutations in POT1, encoding a member of the shelterin complex, we searched for mutations in the other five components of the shelterin complex in melanoma families.
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| 6. |
- Morris, John A, et al.
(författare)
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An atlas of genetic influences on osteoporosis in humans and mice.
- 2019
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Ingår i: Nature genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1546-1718 .- 1061-4036. ; 51, s. 258-266
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Osteoporosis is a common aging-related disease diagnosed primarily using bone mineral density (BMD). We assessed genetic determinants of BMD as estimated by heel quantitative ultrasound in 426,824 individuals, identifying 518 genome-wide significant loci (301 novel), explaining 20% of its variance. We identified 13 bone fracture loci, all associated with estimated BMD (eBMD), in ~1.2 million individuals. We then identified target genes enriched for genes known to influence bone density and strength (maximum odds ratio (OR)=58, P=1 × 10-75) from cell-specific features, including chromatin conformation and accessible chromatin sites. We next performed rapid-throughput skeletal phenotyping of 126 knockout mice with disruptions in predicted target genes and found an increased abnormal skeletal phenotype frequency compared to 526 unselected lines (P<0.0001). In-depth analysis of one gene, DAAM2, showed a disproportionate decrease in bone strength relative to mineralization. This genetic atlas provides evidence linking associated SNPs to causal genes, offers new insight into osteoporosis pathophysiology, and highlights opportunities for drug development.
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| 7. |
- Taylor, Nicholas J, et al.
(författare)
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Estimating CDKN2A mutation carrier probability among global familial melanoma cases using GenoMELPREDICT
- 2019
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Ingår i: Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0190-9622 .- 1097-6787. ; 81:2, s. 386-394
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Although rare in the general population, highly penetrant germline mutations in CDKN2A are responsible for 5-40% of melanoma cases reported in melanoma-prone families. We sought to determine whether MELPREDICT was generalizable to a global series of melanoma families and whether performance improvements can be achieved.METHODS: 2,116 familial melanoma cases were ascertained by the international GenoMEL Consortium. We recapitulated the MELPREDICT model within our data (GenoMELPREDICT) to assess performance improvements by adding phenotypic risk factors and history of pancreatic cancer. We report areas under the curve (AUC) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) along with net reclassification indices (NRI) as performance metrics.RESULTS: MELPREDICT performed well (AUC=0.752; 95%CI: 0.730, 0.775), and GenoMELPREDICT performance was similar (AUC=0.748; 95% CI: 0.726, 0.771). Adding a reported history of pancreatic cancer yielded discriminatory improvement (p<0.0001) in GenoMELPREDICT (AUC=0.772; 95%CI: 0.750, 0.793; NRI=0.40). Including phenotypic risk factors did not improve performance.CONCLUSION: The MELPREDICT model functioned well in a global dataset of familial melanoma cases. Adding pancreatic cancer history improved model prediction. GenoMELPREDICT is a simple tool for predicting CDKN2A mutational status among melanoma patients from melanoma-prone families and can aid in counselling these patients towards genetic testing or cancer risk counselling.
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| 8. |
- Taylor, Nicholas J., et al.
(författare)
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Germline Variation at CDKN2A and Associations with Nevus Phenotypes among Members of Melanoma Families
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Investigative Dermatology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0022-202X .- 1523-1747. ; 137:12, s. 2606-2612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Germline mutations in CDKN2A are frequently identified among melanoma kindreds and are associated with increased atypical nevus counts. However, a clear relationship between pathogenic CDKN2A mutation carriage and other nevus phenotypes including counts of common acquired nevi has not yet been established. Using data from GenoMEL, we investigated the relationships between CDKN2A mutation carriage and 2-mm, 5-mm, and atypical nevus counts among blood-related members of melanoma families. Compared with individuals without a pathogenic mutation, those who carried one had an overall higher prevalence of atypical (odds ratio = 1.64; 95% confidence interval = 1.18–2.28) nevi but not 2-mm nevi (odds ratio = 1.06; 95% confidence interval = 0.92–1.21) or 5-mm nevi (odds ratio = 1.26; 95% confidence interval = 0.94–1.70). Stratification by case status showed more pronounced positive associations among non-case family members, who were nearly three times (odds ratio = 2.91; 95% confidence interval = 1.75–4.82) as likely to exhibit nevus counts at or above the median in all three nevus categories simultaneously when harboring a pathogenic mutation (vs. not harboring one). Our results support the hypothesis that unidentified nevogenic genes are co-inherited with CDKN2A and may influence carcinogenesis.
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| 9. |
- Abram, Nerilie J., et al.
(författare)
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Early onset of industrial-era warming across the oceans and continents
- 2016
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 536:7617, s. 411-418
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The evolution of industrial-era warming across the continents and oceans provides a context for future climate change and is important for determining climate sensitivity and the processes that control regional warming. Here we use post-ad 1500 palaeoclimate records to show that sustained industrial-era warming of the tropical oceans first developed during the mid-nineteenth century and was nearly synchronous with Northern Hemisphere continental warming. The early onset of sustained, significant warming in palaeoclimate records and model simulations suggests that greenhouse forcing of industrial-era warming commenced as early as the mid-nineteenth century and included an enhanced equatorial ocean response mechanism. The development of Southern Hemisphere warming is delayed in reconstructions, but this apparent delay is not reproduced in climate simulations. Our findings imply that instrumental records are too short to comprehensively assess anthropogenic climate change and that, in some regions, about 180 years of industrial-era warming has already caused surface temperatures to emerge above pre-industrial values, even when taking natural variability into account.
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| 10. |
- Angeler, David, et al.
(författare)
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Management applications of discontinuity theory
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of Applied Ecology. - : Wiley. - 0021-8901 .- 1365-2664. ; 53:3, s. 688-698
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- 1. Human impacts on the environment are multifaceted and can occur across distinct spatiotemporal scales. Ecological responses to environmental change are therefore difficult to predict, and entail large degrees of uncertainty. Such uncertainty requires robust tools for management to sustain ecosystem goods and services and maintain resilient ecosystems. 2. We propose an approach based on discontinuity theory that accounts for patterns and processes at distinct spatial and temporal scales, an inherent property of ecological systems. Discontinuity theory has not been applied in natural resource management and could therefore improve ecosystem management because it explicitly accounts for ecological complexity. 3. Synthesis and applications. We highlight the application of discontinuity approaches for meeting management goals. Specifically, discontinuity approaches have significant potential to measure and thus understand the resilience of ecosystems, to objectively identify critical scales of space and time in ecological systems at which human impact might be most severe, to provide warning indicators of regime change, to help predict and understand biological invasions and extinctions and to focus monitoring efforts. Discontinuity theory can complement current approaches, providing a broader paradigm for ecological management and conservation.
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