Genomewide association study of C-peptide surfaces key regulatory genes in Indians

A novel antisense lncRNA, ARBAG harboring an RNA destabilizing GWAS variant for C-peptide dictates the transcript isoforms of GABRA6 in cerebellum

Human disease-associated genetic variations often map to long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) genes; however, elucidation of their functional impact is challenging. We previously identified a new genetic variant rs4454083 (A/G) residing in exon of an uncharacterized lncRNA ARBAG that strongly associates with plasma levels of C-peptide, a hormone that regulates insulin bioavailability. On the opposite strand, rs4454083 also corresponds to an intron of a cerebellum-specific GABA receptor subunit gene GABRA6 that mediates strengthening of inhibitory synapses by insulin. Here, we show that alleles of rs4454083 modulate transcript levels of the antisense gene, ARBAG, which then controls the expression of the sense gene, GABRA6. Predisposing to low C-peptide, GG (a minor allele genotype across ethnicities) stabilizes ARBAG lncRNA causing higher transcript levels in cerebellum. ARBAG lncRNA abundance leads to cleavage of GABRA6 mRNA at the complementary region, resulting in a dysfunctional GABRA6 protein that would not be recruited for synapse strengthening. Together, our findings in human cerebellar cell-line and induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs) demonstrate biological role of a novel lncRNA in determining the ratio of mRNA isoforms of a protein-coding gene and the ability of an embedded variant in modulating lncRNA stability leading to inter-individual differences in protein expression.

Multifaceted genome-wide study identifies novel regulatory loci in SLC22A11 and ZNF45 for body mass index in Indians

Obesity, a risk factor for multiple diseases (e.g. diabetes, hypertension, cancers) originates through complex interactions between genes and prevailing environment (food habit and lifestyle) that varies across populations. Indians exhibit a unique obesity phenotype with high abdominal adiposity for a given body weight compared to matched white populations suggesting presence of population-specific genetic and environmental factors influencing obesity. However, Indian population-specific genetic contributors for obesity have not been explored yet. Therefore, to identify potential genetic contributors, we performed a two-staged genome-wide association study (GWAS) for body mass index (BMI), a common measure to evaluate obesity in 5973 Indian adults and the lead findings were further replicated in 1286 Indian adolescents. Our study revealed novel association of variants-rs6913677 in BAI3 gene (p = 1.08 × 10^-8) and rs2078267 in SLC22A11 gene (p = 4.62 × 10^-8) at GWAS significance, and of rs8100011 in ZNF45 gene (p = 1.04 × 10^-7) with near GWAS significance. As genetic loci may dictate the phenotype through modulation of epigenetic processes, we overlapped genetic data of identified signals with their DNA methylation patterns in 236 Indian individuals and performed methylation quantitative trait loci (meth-QTL) analysis. Further, functional roles of discovered variants and underlying genes were speculated using publicly available gene regulatory databases (ENCODE, JASPAR, GeneHancer, GTEx). The identified variants in BAI3 and SLC22A11 genes were found to dictate methylation patterns at unique CpGs harboring critical cis-regulatory elements. Further, BAI3, SLC22A11 and ZNF45 variants were located in repressive chromatin, active enhancer, and active chromatin regions, respectively, in human subcutaneous adipose tissue in ENCODE database. Additionally, these genomic regions represented potential binding sites for key transcription factors implicated in obesity and/or metabolic disorders. Interestingly, GTEx portal identify rs8100011 as a robust cis-expression quantitative trait locus (cis-eQTL) in subcutaneous adipose tissue (p = 1.6 × 10^-7), and ZNF45 gene expression in skeletal muscle of Indian subjects showed an inverse correlation with BMI indicating its possible role in obesity. In conclusion, our study discovered 3 novel population-specific functional genetic variants (rs6913677, rs2078267, rs8100011) in 2 novel (SLC22A11 and ZNF45) and 1 earlier reported gene (BAI3) for BMI in Indians. Our study decodes key genomic loci underlying obesity phenotype in Indians that may serve as prospective drug targets in future.

Genome-Wide Association Study of Metabolic Syndrome Reveals Primary Genetic Variants at CETP Locus in Indians

Indians, a rapidly growing population, constitute vast genetic heterogeneity to that of Western population; however they have become a sedentary population in past decades due to rapid urbanization ensuing in the amplified prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS). We performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of MetS in 10,093 Indian individuals (6,617 MetS and 3,476 controls) of Indo-European origin, that belong to our previous biorepository of The Indian Diabetes Consortium (INDICO). The study was conducted in two stages-discovery phase (N = 2,158) and replication phase (N = 7,935). We discovered two variants within/near the CETP gene-rs1800775 and rs3816117-associated with MetS at genome-wide significance level during replication phase in Indians. Additional CETP loci rs7205804, rs1532624, rs3764261, rs247617, and rs173539 also cropped up as modest signals in Indians. Haplotype association analysis revealed GCCCAGC as the strongest haplotype within the CETP locus constituting all seven CETP signals. In combined analysis, we perceived a novel and functionally relevant sub-GWAS significant locus-rs16890462 in the vicinity of SFRP1 gene. Overlaying gene regulatory data from ENCODE database revealed that single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs16890462 resides in repressive chromatin in human subcutaneous adipose tissue as characterized by the enrichment of H3K27me3 and CTCF marks (repressive gene marks) and diminished H3K36me3 marks (activation gene marks). The variant displayed active DNA methylation marks in adipose tissue, suggesting its likely regulatory activity. Further, the variant also disrupts a potential binding site of a key transcription factor, NRF2, which is known for involvement in obesity and metabolic syndrome.

Genome-wide association study of blood lipids in Indians confirms universality of established variants

Lipids foster energy production and their altered levels have been coupled with metabolic ailments. Indians feature high prevalence of metabolic diseases, yet uncharacterized for genes regulating lipid homeostasis. We performed first GWAS for quantitative lipids (total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, and triglycerides) exclusively in 5271 Indians. Further to corroborate our genetic findings, we investigated DNA methylation marks in peripheral blood in Indians at the identified loci (N = 233) and retrieved gene regulatory features from public domains. Recurrent GWAS loci-CELSR2, CETP, LPL, ZNF259, and BUD13 cropped up as lead signals in Indians, reflecting their universal applicability. Besides established variants, we found certain unreported variants at sub-genome-wide level-QKI, REEP3, TMCC2, FAM129C, FAM241B, and LOC100506207. These variants though failed to attain GWAS significance in Indians, but largely turned out to be active CpG sites in human subcutaneous adipose tissue and showed robust association to two or more lipid traits. Of which, QKI variants showed significant association to all four lipid traits and their designated region was observed to be a key gene regulatory segment denoting active transcription particularly in human subcutaneous adipose tissue. Both established and novel loci were observed to be significantly associated with altered DNA methylation in Indians for specific CpGs that resided in key regulatory elements. Further, gene-based association analysis pinpointed novel GWAS loci-LINC01340 and IQCJ-SCHIP1 for TC; IFT27, IFT88, and LINC02141 for HDL; and TEX26 for TG. Present study ascertains universality of selected known genes and also identifies certain novel loci for lipids in Indians by integrating data from various levels of gene regulation.