| 1. |
- Deming, Yuetiva, et al.
(author)
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Sex-specific genetic predictors of Alzheimer’s disease biomarkers
- 2018
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In: Acta Neuropathologica. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0001-6322 .- 1432-0533. ; 136:6, s. 857-872
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of amyloid-β 42 (Aβ42) and tau have been evaluated as endophenotypes in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) genetic studies. Although there are sex differences in AD risk, sex differences have not been evaluated in genetic studies of AD endophenotypes. We performed sex-stratified and sex interaction genetic analyses of CSF biomarkers to identify sex-specific associations. Data came from a previous genome-wide association study (GWAS) of CSF Aβ42 and tau (1527 males, 1509 females). We evaluated sex interactions at previous loci, performed sex-stratified GWAS to identify sex-specific associations, and evaluated sex interactions at sex-specific GWAS loci. We then evaluated sex-specific associations between prefrontal cortex (PFC) gene expression at relevant loci and autopsy measures of plaques and tangles using data from the Religious Orders Study and Rush Memory and Aging Project. In Aβ42, we observed sex interactions at one previous and one novel locus: rs316341 within SERPINB1 (p = 0.04) and rs13115400 near LINC00290 (p = 0.002). These loci showed stronger associations among females (β = − 0.03, p = 4.25 × 10−8; β = 0.03, p = 3.97 × 10−8) than males (β = − 0.02, p = 0.009; β = 0.01, p = 0.20). Higher levels of expression of SERPINB1, SERPINB6, and SERPINB9 in PFC was associated with higher levels of amyloidosis among females (corrected p values < 0.02) but not males (p > 0.38). In total tau, we observed a sex interaction at a previous locus, rs1393060 proximal to GMNC (p = 0.004), driven by a stronger association among females (β = 0.05, p = 4.57 × 10−10) compared to males (β = 0.02, p = 0.03). There was also a sex-specific association between rs1393060 and tangle density at autopsy (pfemale = 0.047; pmale = 0.96), and higher levels of expression of two genes within this locus were associated with lower tangle density among females (OSTN p = 0.006; CLDN16 p = 0.002) but not males (p ≥ 0.32). Results suggest a female-specific role for SERPINB1 in amyloidosis and for OSTN and CLDN16 in tau pathology. Sex-specific genetic analyses may improve understanding of AD’s genetic architecture.
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| 2. |
- Hohman, Timothy J, et al.
(author)
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Sex-Specific Association of Apolipoprotein E With Cerebrospinal Fluid Levels of Tau.
- 2018
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In: JAMA neurology. - : American Medical Association (AMA). - 2168-6157 .- 2168-6149. ; 75:8
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The strongest genetic risk factor for Alzheimer disease (AD), the apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene, has a stronger association among women compared with men. Yet limited work has evaluated the association between APOE alleles and markers of AD neuropathology in a sex-specific manner.To evaluate sex differences in the association between APOE and markers of AD neuropathology measured in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) during life or in brain tissue at autopsy.This multicohort study selected data from 10 longitudinal cohort studies of normal aging and AD. Cohorts had variable recruitment criteria and follow-up intervals and included population-based and clinic-based samples. Inclusion in our analysis required APOE genotype data and either CSF data available for analysis. Analyses began on November 6, 2017, and were completed on December 20, 2017.Biomarker analyses included levels of β-amyloid 42, total tau, and phosphorylated tau measured in CSF. Autopsy analyses included Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease staging for neuritic plaques and Braak staging for neurofibrillary tangles.Of the 1798 patients in the CSF biomarker cohort, 862 were women, 226 had AD, 1690 were white, and the mean (SD) age was 70 [9] years. Of the 5109 patients in the autopsy cohort, 2813 were women, 4953 were white, and the mean (SD) age was 84 (9) years. After correcting for multiple comparisons using the Bonferroni procedure, we observed a statistically significant interaction between APOE-ε4 and sex on CSF total tau (β=0.41; 95% CI, 0.27-0.55; P<.001) and phosphorylated tau (β=0.24; 95% CI, 0.09-0.38; P=.001), whereby APOE showed a stronger association among women compared with men. Post hoc analyses suggested this sex difference was present in amyloid-positive individuals (β=0.41; 95% CI, 0.20-0.62; P<.001) but not among amyloid-negative individuals (β=0.06; 95% CI, -0.18 to 0.31; P=.62). We did not observe sex differences in the association between APOE and β-amyloid 42, neuritic plaque burden, or neurofibrillary tangle burden.We provide robust evidence of a stronger association between APOE-ε4 and CSF tau levels among women compared with men across multiple independent data sets. Interestingly, APOE-ε4 is not differentially associated with autopsy measures of neurofibrillary tangles. Together, the sex difference in the association between APOE and CSF measures of tau and the lack of a sex difference in the association with neurofibrillary tangles at autopsy suggest that APOE may modulate risk for neurodegeneration in a sex-specific manner, particularly in the presence of amyloidosis.
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| 3. |
- Moshontz, Hannah, et al.
(author)
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The Psychological Science Accelerator: Advancing Psychology Through a Distributed Collaborative Network
- 2018
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In: Advances in Methods and Practices in Psychological Science. - : SAGE Publications. - 2515-2459 .- 2515-2467. ; 1:4, s. 501-515
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Concerns about the veracity of psychological research have been growing. Many findings in psychological science are based on studies with insufficient statistical power and nonrepresentative samples, or may otherwise be limited to specific, ungeneralizable settings or populations. Crowdsourced research, a type of large-scale collaboration in which one or more research projects are conducted across multiple lab sites, offers a pragmatic solution to these and other current methodological challenges. The Psychological Science Accelerator (PSA) is a distributed network of laboratories designed to enable and support crowdsourced research projects. These projects can focus on novel research questions or replicate prior research in large, diverse samples. The PSA’s mission is to accelerate the accumulation of reliable and generalizable evidence in psychological science. Here, we describe the background, structure, principles, procedures, benefits, and challenges of the PSA. In contrast to other crowdsourced research networks, the PSA is ongoing (as opposed to time limited), efficient (in that structures and principles are reused for different projects), decentralized, diverse (in both subjects and researchers), and inclusive (of proposals, contributions, and other relevant input from anyone inside or outside the network). The PSA and other approaches to crowdsourced psychological science will advance understanding of mental processes and behaviors by enabling rigorous research and systematic examination of its generalizability.
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| 4. |
- Nelson, Peter T., et al.
(author)
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Limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy (LATE) : consensus working group report
- 2019
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In: Brain. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0006-8950 .- 1460-2156. ; 142, s. 1503-1527
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We describe a recently recognized disease entity, limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy (LATE). LATE neuropathological change (LATE-NC) is defined by a stereotypical TDP-43 proteinopathy in older adults, with or without coexisting hippocampal sclerosis pathology. LATE-NC is a common TDP-43 proteinopathy, associated with an amnestic dementia syndrome that mimicked Alzheimer's-type dementia in retrospective autopsy studies. LATE is distinguished from frontotemporal lobar degeneration with TDP-43 pathology based on its epidemiology (LATE generally affects older subjects), and relatively restricted neuroanatomical distribution of TDP-43 proteinopathy. In community-based autopsy cohorts, similar to 25% of brains had sufficient burden of LATE-NC to be associated with discernible cognitive impairment. Many subjects with LATE-NC have comorbid brain pathologies, often including amyloid-beta plaques and tauopathy. Given that the oldest-old' are at greatest risk for LATE-NC, and subjects of advanced age constitute a rapidly growing demographic group in many countries, LATE has an expanding but under-recognized impact on public health. For these reasons, a working group was convened to develop diagnostic criteria for LATE, aiming both to stimulate research and to promote awareness of this pathway to dementia. We report consensus-based recommendations including guidelines for diagnosis and staging of LATE-NC. For routine autopsy workup of LATE-NC, an anatomically-based preliminary staging scheme is proposed with TDP-43 immunohistochemistry on tissue from three brain areas, reflecting a hierarchical pattern of brain involvement: amygdala, hippocampus, and middle frontal gyrus. LATE-NC appears to affect the medial temporal lobe structures preferentially, but other areas also are impacted. Neuroimaging studies demonstrated that subjects with LATE-NC also had atrophy in the medial temporal lobes, frontal cortex, and other brain regions. Genetic studies have thus far indicated five genes with risk alleles for LATE-NC: GRN, TMEM106B, ABCC9, KCNMB2, and APOE. The discovery of these genetic risk variants indicate that LATE shares pathogenetic mechanisms with both frontotemporal lobar degeneration and Alzheimer's disease, but also suggests disease-specific underlying mechanisms. Large gaps remain in our understanding of LATE. For advances in prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, there is an urgent need for research focused on LATE, including in vitro and animal models. An obstacle to clinical progress is lack of diagnostic tools, such as biofluid or neuroimaging biomarkers, for ante-mortem detection of LATE. Development of a disease biomarker would augment observational studies seeking to further define the risk factors, natural history, and clinical features of LATE, as well as eventual subject recruitment for targeted therapies in clinical trials.
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| 5. |
- Nelson, Peter T., et al.
(author)
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Reply : LATE to the PART-y
- 2019
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In: Brain. - : Oxford University Press. - 0006-8950 .- 1460-2156. ; 142
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Journal article (other academic/artistic)
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| 6. |
- Zhang, Rong, et al.
(author)
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ISL1 is a major susceptibility gene for classic bladder exstrophy and a regulator of urinary tract development
- 2017
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In: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2045-2322. ; 7
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Previously genome-wide association methods in patients with classic bladder exstrophy (CBE) found association with ISL1, a master control gene expressed in pericloacal mesenchyme. This study sought to further explore the genetics in a larger set of patients following-up on the most promising genomic regions previously reported. Genotypes of 12 markers obtained from 268 CBE patients of Australian, British, German Italian, Spanish and Swedish origin and 1,354 ethnically matched controls and from 92 CBE case-parent trios from North America were analysed. Only marker rs6874700 at the ISL1 locus showed association (p = 2.22 x 10(-08)). A meta-analysis of rs6874700 of our previous and present study showed a p value of 9.2 x 10(-19). Developmental biology models were used to clarify the location of ISL1 activity in the forming urinary tract. Genetic lineage analysis of Isl1-expressing cells by the lineage tracer mouse model showed Isl1-expressing cells in the urinary tract of mouse embryos at E10.5 and distributed in the bladder at E15.5. Expression of isl1 in zebrafish larvae staged 48 hpf was detected in a small region of the developing pronephros. Our study supports ISL1 as a major susceptibility gene for CBE and as a regulator of urinary tract development.
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