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Fazel-Najafabadi M, Looger LL, Rallabandi HR, Nath SK. A Multilayered Post-Genome-Wide Association Study Analysis Pipeline Defines Functional Variants and Target Genes for Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. Arthritis Rheumatol 2024; 76:1071-1084. [PMID: 38369936 DOI: 10.1002/art.42829] [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: 09/14/2023] [Revised: 01/31/2024] [Accepted: 02/14/2024] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), an autoimmune disease with incompletely understood etiology, has a strong genetic component. Although genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have revealed multiple SLE susceptibility loci and associated single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), the precise causal variants, target genes, cell types, tissues, and mechanisms of action remain largely unknown. METHODS Here, we report a comprehensive post-GWAS analysis using extensive bioinformatics, molecular modeling, and integrative functional genomic and epigenomic analyses to optimize fine-mapping. We compile and cross-reference immune cell-specific expression quantitative trait loci (cis- and trans-expression quantitative trait loci) with promoter capture high-throughput capture chromatin conformation (PCHi-C), allele-specific chromatin accessibility, and massively parallel reporter assay data to define predisposing variants and target genes. We experimentally validate a predicted locus using CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and Western blot. RESULTS Anchoring on 452 index SNPs, we selected 9,931 high linkage disequilibrium (r2 > 0.8) SNPs and defined 182 independent non-human leukocyte antigen (HLA) SLE loci. The 3,746 SNPs from 143 loci were identified as regulating 564 unique genes. Target genes are enriched in lupus-related tissues and associated with other autoimmune diseases. Of these, 329 SNPs (106 loci) showed significant allele-specific chromatin accessibility and/or enhancer activity, indicating regulatory potential. Using CRISPR/Cas9, we validated reference SNP identifier 57668933 (rs57668933) as a functional variant regulating multiple targets, including SLE-risk gene ELF1 in B cells. CONCLUSION We demonstrate and validate post-GWAS strategies for using multidimensional data to prioritize likely causal variants with cognate gene targets underlying SLE pathogenesis. Our results provide a catalog of significantly SLE-associated SNPs and loci, target genes, and likely biochemical mechanisms to guide experimental characterization.
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Chen M, Tu J, Huang M, Cheng Y, Sun L. A retrospective cohort study of Epstein-Barr virus infection status and systemic lupus erythematosus. Clin Rheumatol 2024; 43:1521-1530. [PMID: 38509241 DOI: 10.1007/s10067-024-06917-4] [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: 09/18/2023] [Revised: 02/04/2024] [Accepted: 02/18/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) are very closely related. This study estimated the impact of EBV infection status on clinical manifestations and disease remission in patients with SLE. METHOD A retrospective study was performed using electronic health records of patients with SLE. The SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI-2 K) was used to assess disease activity. VCAIgM or EAIgM positive or EBVDNA copies ≥ 50 IU/mL were defined as lytic infection group, EBNA-IgG or VCAIgG-positive and who were negative for both VCAIgM and EAIgM with EBVDNA copies < 50 IU/mL were defined as the latent infection group. The endpoint (disease remission) was defined as a decrease in SLEDAI-2 K score of ≥ 1 grade or ≥ 4 points from baseline. The association between EBV infection status and disease remission was assessed using propensity score weighting and multivariable Cox regression models. RESULTS There were 75 patients with SLE in the EBV lytic infection group and 142 patients in the latent infection group. The SLEDAI-2 K score was higher in the lytic infection group (10.00 (6.25, 16.00) vs. 8.00 (5.00, 10.00), Z = 3.96, P < 0.001). There was a significant difference in the effect of EBV lytic infection on disease remission compared to latent infection (HR 0.30, 95% CI 0.19-0.49, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Patients with SLE with lytic EBV infection have higher disease activity and take longer to achieve remission. Our study furthers our understanding of the relationship between SLE and EBV infection and may inform better treatment practices in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengjie Chen
- Department of Rheumatology, The First People's Hospital of Wenling, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jianxin Tu
- Department of Rheumatology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Mingyu Huang
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Yongjun Cheng
- Department of Rheumatology, The First People's Hospital of Wenling, Zhejiang, China
| | - Li Sun
- Department of Rheumatology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China.
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3
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Nigrovic PA, Wang Q, Kim T, Martinez-Bonet M, Aguiar VRC, Sim S, Cui J, Sparks JA, Chen X, Todd M, Wauford B, Marion MC, Langefeld CD, Weirauch MT, Gutierrez-Arcelus M. High-throughput identification of functional regulatory SNPs in systemic lupus erythematosus. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.08.16.553538. [PMID: 37645953 PMCID: PMC10462027 DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.16.553538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies implicate multiple loci in risk for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), but few contain exonic variants, rendering systematic identification of non-coding variants essential to decoding SLE genetics. We utilized SNP-seq and bioinformatic enrichment to interrogate 2180 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 87 SLE risk loci for potential binding of transcription factors and related proteins from B cells. 52 SNPs that passed initial screening were tested by electrophoretic mobility shift and luciferase reporter assays. To validate the approach, we studied rs2297550 in detail, finding that the risk allele enhanced binding to the transcription factor Ikaros (IKZF1), thereby modulating expression of IKBKE. Correspondingly, primary cells from genotyped healthy donors bearing the risk allele expressed higher levels of the interferon / NF-κB regulator IKKϵ. Together, these findings define a set of likely functional non-coding lupus risk variants and identify a new regulatory pathway involving rs2297550, Ikaros, and IKKϵ implicated by human genetics in risk for SLE.
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Fu Y, Kelly JA, Gopalakrishnan J, Pelikan RC, Tessneer KL, Pasula S, Grundahl K, Murphy DA, Gaffney PM. Massively parallel reporter assay confirms regulatory potential of hQTLs and reveals important variants in lupus and other autoimmune diseases. HGG ADVANCES 2024; 5:100279. [PMID: 38389303 PMCID: PMC10943488 DOI: 10.1016/j.xhgg.2024.100279] [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: 09/08/2023] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 02/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024] Open
Abstract
We designed a massively parallel reporter assay (MPRA) in an Epstein-Barr virus transformed B cell line to directly characterize the potential for histone post-translational modifications, i.e., histone quantitative trait loci (hQTLs), expression QTLs (eQTLs), and variants on systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and autoimmune (AI) disease risk haplotypes to modulate regulatory activity in an allele-dependent manner. Our study demonstrates that hQTLs, as a group, are more likely to modulate regulatory activity in an MPRA compared with other variant classes tested, including a set of eQTLs previously shown to interact with hQTLs and tested AI risk variants. In addition, we nominate 17 variants (including 11 previously unreported) as putative causal variants for SLE and another 14 for various other AI diseases, prioritizing these variants for future functional studies in primary and immortalized B cells. Thus, we uncover important insights into the mechanistic relationships among genotype, epigenetics, and gene expression in SLE and AI disease phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yao Fu
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Jennifer A Kelly
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Jaanam Gopalakrishnan
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA; Neuro-Immune Regulome Unit, National Eye Institute, National Institute of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Richard C Pelikan
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Kandice L Tessneer
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Satish Pasula
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Kiely Grundahl
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - David A Murphy
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA
| | - Patrick M Gaffney
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA.
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5
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Viel KCMF, Parameswaran S, Donmez OA, Forney CR, Hass MR, Yin C, Jones SH, Prosser HK, Diouf AA, Gittens OE, Edsall LE, Chen X, Rowden H, Dunn KA, Guo R, VonHandorf A, Leong MML, Ernst K, Kaufman KM, Lawson LP, Gewurz B, Zhao B, Kottyan LC, Weirauch MT. Shared and distinct interactions of type 1 and type 2 Epstein-Barr Nuclear Antigen 2 with the human genome. BMC Genomics 2024; 25:273. [PMID: 38475709 PMCID: PMC10935964 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-024-10183-8] [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: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND There are two major genetic types of Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV): type 1 (EBV-1) and type 2 (EBV-2). EBV functions by manipulating gene expression in host B cells, using virus-encoded gene regulatory proteins including Epstein-Barr Nuclear Antigen 2 (EBNA2). While type 1 EBNA2 is known to interact with human transcription factors (hTFs) such as RBPJ, EBF1, and SPI1 (PU.1), type 2 EBNA2 shares only ~ 50% amino acid identity with type 1 and thus may have distinct binding partners, human genome binding locations, and functions. RESULTS In this study, we examined genome-wide EBNA2 binding in EBV-1 and EBV-2 transformed human B cells to identify shared and unique EBNA2 interactions with the human genome, revealing thousands of type-specific EBNA2 ChIP-seq peaks. Computational predictions based on hTF motifs and subsequent ChIP-seq experiments revealed that both type 1 and 2 EBNA2 co-occupy the genome with SPI1 and AP-1 (BATF and JUNB) hTFs. However, type 1 EBNA2 showed preferential co-occupancy with EBF1, and type 2 EBNA2 preferred RBPJ. These differences in hTF co-occupancy revealed possible mechanisms underlying type-specific gene expression of known EBNA2 human target genes: MYC (shared), CXCR7 (type 1 specific), and CD21 (type 2 specific). Both type 1 and 2 EBNA2 binding events were enriched at systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and multiple sclerosis (MS) risk loci, while primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) risk loci were specifically enriched for type 2 peaks. CONCLUSIONS This study reveals extensive type-specific EBNA2 interactions with the human genome, possible differences in EBNA2 interaction partners, and a possible new role for type 2 EBNA2 in autoimmune disorders. Our results highlight the importance of considering EBV type in the control of human gene expression and disease-related investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kenyatta C M F Viel
- Molecular and Developmental Biology Graduate Program, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, 45267, USA
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Sreeja Parameswaran
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Omer A Donmez
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Carmy R Forney
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Matthew R Hass
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Cailing Yin
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Sydney H Jones
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Hayley K Prosser
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Arame A Diouf
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Olivia E Gittens
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Lee E Edsall
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Xiaoting Chen
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Hope Rowden
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Katelyn A Dunn
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Rui Guo
- Department of Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Tufts University School of Medicine, 145 Harrison Ave, Boston, MA, 02111, USA
| | - Andrew VonHandorf
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Merrin Man Long Leong
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Kevin Ernst
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Kenneth M Kaufman
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, 45267, USA
- Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Lucinda P Lawson
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA
| | - Ben Gewurz
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Bo Zhao
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Leah C Kottyan
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA.
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, 45267, USA.
- Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA.
| | - Matthew T Weirauch
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA.
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, 45267, USA.
- Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA.
- Division of Biomedical Informatics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA.
- Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA.
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6
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Zhang Y, Hou G, Shen N. Non-coding DNA variants for risk in lupus. Best Pract Res Clin Rheumatol 2024:101937. [PMID: 38429183 DOI: 10.1016/j.berh.2024.101937] [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: 01/17/2024] [Revised: 02/08/2024] [Accepted: 02/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024]
Abstract
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is a multifactorial autoimmune disease that arises from a dynamic interplay between genetics and environmental triggers. The advent of sophisticated genomics technology has catalyzed a shift in our understanding of disease etiology, spotlighting the pivotal role of non-coding DNA variants in SLE pathogenesis. In this review, we present a comprehensive examination of the non-coding variants associated with SLE, shedding light on their role in influencing disease risk and progression. We discuss the latest methodological advancements that have been instrumental in the identification and functional characterization of these genomic elements, with a special focus on the transformative power of CRISPR-based gene-editing technologies. Additionally, the review probes into the therapeutic opportunities that arise from modulating non-coding regions associated with SLE. Through an exploration of the complex network of non-coding DNA, this review aspires to decode the genetic puzzle of SLE and set the stage for groundbreaking gene-based therapeutic interventions and the advancement of precision medicine strategies tailored to SLE management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yutong Zhang
- Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001, China
| | - Guojun Hou
- Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001, China
| | - Nan Shen
- Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001, China.
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7
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Shook MS, Lu X, Chen X, Parameswaran S, Edsall L, Trimarchi MP, Ernst K, Granitto M, Forney C, Donmez OA, Diouf AA, VonHandorf A, Rothenberg ME, Weirauch MT, Kottyan LC. Systematic identification of genotype-dependent enhancer variants in eosinophilic esophagitis. Am J Hum Genet 2024; 111:280-294. [PMID: 38183988 PMCID: PMC10870143 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2023.12.008] [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: 05/24/2023] [Revised: 12/01/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 01/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a rare atopic disorder associated with esophageal dysfunction, including difficulty swallowing, food impaction, and inflammation, that develops in a small subset of people with food allergies. Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified 9 independent EoE risk loci reaching genome-wide significance (p < 5 × 10-8) and 27 additional loci of suggestive significance (5 × 10-8 < p < 1 × 10-5). In the current study, we perform linkage disequilibrium (LD) expansion of these loci to nominate a set of 531 variants that are potentially causal. To systematically interrogate the gene regulatory activity of these variants, we designed a massively parallel reporter assay (MPRA) containing the alleles of each variant within their genomic sequence context cloned into a GFP reporter library. Analysis of reporter gene expression in TE-7, HaCaT, and Jurkat cells revealed cell-type-specific gene regulation. We identify 32 allelic enhancer variants, representing 6 genome-wide significant EoE loci and 7 suggestive EoE loci, that regulate reporter gene expression in a genotype-dependent manner in at least one cellular context. By annotating these variants with expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) and chromatin looping data in related tissues and cell types, we identify putative target genes affected by genetic variation in individuals with EoE. Transcription factor enrichment analyses reveal possible roles for cell-type-specific regulators, including GATA3. Our approach reduces the large set of EoE-associated variants to a set of 32 with allelic regulatory activity, providing functional insights into the effects of genetic variation in this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Molly S Shook
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Xiaoming Lu
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Xiaoting Chen
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Sreeja Parameswaran
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Lee Edsall
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Michael P Trimarchi
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Kevin Ernst
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Marissa Granitto
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Carmy Forney
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Omer A Donmez
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Arame A Diouf
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Andrew VonHandorf
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Marc E Rothenberg
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA; Division of Allergy and Immunology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Matthew T Weirauch
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA; Division of Biomedical Informatics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA; Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA; Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA.
| | - Leah C Kottyan
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA; Division of Allergy and Immunology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA; Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA.
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8
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Wang Q, Martínez-Bonet M, Kim T, Sparks JA, Ishigaki K, Chen X, Sudman M, Aguiar V, Sim S, Hernandez MC, Chiu DJ, Wactor A, Wauford B, Marion MC, Gutierrez-Arcelus M, Bowes J, Eyre S, Nordal E, Prahalad S, Rygg M, Videm V, Raychaudhuri S, Weirauch MT, Langefeld CD, Thompson SD, Nigrovic PA. Identification of a regulatory pathway governing TRAF1 via an arthritis-associated non-coding variant. CELL GENOMICS 2023; 3:100420. [PMID: 38020975 PMCID: PMC10667332 DOI: 10.1016/j.xgen.2023.100420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2022] [Revised: 06/16/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023]
Abstract
TRAF1/C5 was among the first loci shown to confer risk for inflammatory arthritis in the absence of an associated coding variant, but its genetic mechanism remains undefined. Using Immunochip data from 3,939 patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and 14,412 control individuals, we identified 132 plausible common non-coding variants, reduced serially by single-nucleotide polymorphism sequencing (SNP-seq), electrophoretic mobility shift, and luciferase studies to the single variant rs7034653 in the third intron of TRAF1. Genetically manipulated experimental cells and primary monocytes from genotyped donors establish that the risk G allele reduces binding of Fos-related antigen 2 (FRA2), encoded by FOSL2, resulting in reduced TRAF1 expression and enhanced tumor necrosis factor (TNF) production. Conditioning on this JIA variant eliminated attributable risk for rheumatoid arthritis, implicating a mechanism shared across the arthritis spectrum. These findings reveal that rs7034653, FRA2, and TRAF1 mediate a pathway through which a non-coding functional variant drives risk of inflammatory arthritis in children and adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiang Wang
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Marta Martínez-Bonet
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Laboratory of Immune-regulation, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain
| | - Taehyeung Kim
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jeffrey A. Sparks
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kazuyoshi Ishigaki
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Xiaoting Chen
- Center of Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Marc Sudman
- Center of Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Vitor Aguiar
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Sangwan Sim
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Darren J. Chiu
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alexandra Wactor
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Brian Wauford
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Miranda C. Marion
- Department of Biostatistics and Data Science, and Center for Precision Medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Maria Gutierrez-Arcelus
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Center of Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - John Bowes
- Centre for Genetics and Genomics Versus Arthritis, Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, UK
- NIHR Manchester Musculoskeletal Biomedical Research Unit, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester, UK
| | - Stephen Eyre
- Centre for Genetics and Genomics Versus Arthritis, Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, UK
- NIHR Manchester Musculoskeletal Biomedical Research Unit, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester, UK
| | - Ellen Nordal
- University Hospital of North Norway and UIT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Sampath Prahalad
- Emory University Department of Pediatrics and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Marite Rygg
- Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
- Department of Pediatrics, St. Olav’s University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Vibeke Videm
- Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Soumya Raychaudhuri
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Centre for Genetics and Genomics Versus Arthritis, Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, UK
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
- Center for Data Science, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Matthew T. Weirauch
- Center of Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
- Divisions of Human Genetics, Biomedical Informatics, and Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Carl D. Langefeld
- Department of Biostatistics and Data Science, and Center for Precision Medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Susan D. Thompson
- Center of Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Peter A. Nigrovic
- Division of Immunology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation, and Immunity, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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Abstract
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a severe multisystem autoimmune disease that can cause injury in almost every body system. While considered a classic example of autoimmunity, it is still relatively poorly understood. Treatment with immunosuppressive agents is challenging, as many agents are relatively non-specific, and the underlying disease is characterized by unpredictable flares and remissions. This State of The Art Review provides a comprehensive current summary of systemic lupus erythematosus based on recent literature. In basic and translational science, this summary includes the current state of genetics, epigenetics, differences by ancestry, and updates about the molecular and immunological pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus. In clinical science, the summary includes updates in diagnosis and classification, clinical features and subphenotypes, and current guidelines and strategies for treatment. The paper also provides a comprehensive review of the large number of recent clinical trials in systemic lupus erythematosus. Current knowns and unknowns are presented, and potential directions for the future are suggested. Improved knowledge of immunological pathogenesis and the molecular differences that exist between patients should help to personalize treatment, minimize side effects, and achieve better outcomes in this difficult disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric F Morand
- School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
- Department of Rheumatology, Monash Health, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
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Antontseva EV, Degtyareva AO, Korbolina EE, Damarov IS, Merkulova TI. Human-genome single nucleotide polymorphisms affecting transcription factor binding and their role in pathogenesis. Vavilovskii Zhurnal Genet Selektsii 2023; 27:662-675. [PMID: 37965371 PMCID: PMC10641029 DOI: 10.18699/vjgb-23-77] [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: 01/17/2023] [Revised: 03/24/2023] [Accepted: 03/30/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are the most common type of variation in the human genome. The vast majority of SNPs identified in the human genome do not have any effect on the phenotype; however, some can lead to changes in the function of a gene or the level of its expression. Most SNPs associated with certain traits or pathologies are mapped to regulatory regions of the genome and affect gene expression by changing transcription factor binding sites. In recent decades, substantial effort has been invested in searching for such regulatory SNPs (rSNPs) and understanding the mechanisms by which they lead to phenotypic differences, primarily to individual differences in susceptibility to diseases and in sensitivity to drugs. The development of the NGS (next-generation sequencing) technology has contributed not only to the identification of a huge number of SNPs and to the search for their association (genome-wide association studies, GWASs) with certain diseases or phenotypic manifestations, but also to the development of more productive approaches to their functional annotation. It should be noted that the presence of an association does not allow one to identify a functional, truly disease-associated DNA sequence variant among multiple marker SNPs that are detected due to linkage disequilibrium. Moreover, determination of associations of genetic variants with a disease does not provide information about the functionality of these variants, which is necessary to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of the development of pathology and to design effective methods for its treatment and prevention. In this regard, the functional analysis of SNPs annotated in the GWAS catalog, both at the genome-wide level and at the level of individual SNPs, became especially relevant in recent years. A genome-wide search for potential rSNPs is possible without any prior knowledge of their association with a trait. Thus, mapping expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) makes it possible to identify an SNP for which - among transcriptomes of homozygotes and heterozygotes for its various alleles - there are differences in the expression level of certain genes, which can be located at various distances from the SNP. To predict rSNPs, approaches based on searches for allele-specific events in RNA-seq, ChIP-seq, DNase-seq, ATAC-seq, MPRA, and other data are also used. Nonetheless, for a more complete functional annotation of such rSNPs, it is necessary to establish their association with a trait, in particular, with a predisposition to a certain pathology or sensitivity to drugs. Thus, approaches to finding SNPs important for the development of a trait can be categorized into two groups: (1) starting from data on an association of SNPs with a certain trait, (2) starting from the determination of allele-specific changes at the molecular level (in a transcriptome or regulome). Only comprehensive use of strategically different approaches can considerably enrich our knowledge about the role of genetic determinants in the molecular mechanisms of trait formation, including predisposition to multifactorial diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- E V Antontseva
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia
| | - A O Degtyareva
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia
| | - E E Korbolina
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia
| | - I S Damarov
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia
| | - T I Merkulova
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia
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11
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Fazel-Najafabadi M, Looger LL, Reddy-Rallabandi H, Nath SK. A multilayered post-GWAS analysis pipeline defines functional variants and target genes for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2023:2023.04.07.23288295. [PMID: 37066327 PMCID: PMC10104240 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.07.23288295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/18/2023]
Abstract
Objectives Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), an autoimmune disease with incompletely understood etiology, has a strong genetic component. Although genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have revealed multiple SLE susceptibility loci and associated single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), the precise causal variants, target genes, cell types, tissues, and mechanisms of action remain largely unknown. Methods Here, we report a comprehensive post-GWAS analysis using extensive bioinformatics, molecular modeling, and integrative functional genomic and epigenomic analyses to optimize fine-mapping. We compile and cross-reference immune cell-specific expression quantitative trait loci ( cis - and trans -eQTLs) with promoter-capture Hi-C, allele-specific chromatin accessibility, and massively parallel reporter assay data to define predisposing variants and target genes. We experimentally validate a predicted locus using CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, qPCR, and Western blot. Results Anchoring on 452 index SNPs, we selected 9,931 high-linkage disequilibrium (r 2 >0.8) SNPs and defined 182 independent non-HLA SLE loci. 3,746 SNPs from 143 loci were identified as regulating 564 unique genes. Target genes are enriched in lupus-related tissues and associated with other autoimmune diseases. Of these, 329 SNPs (106 loci) showed significant allele-specific chromatin accessibility and/or enhancer activity, indicating regulatory potential. Using CRISPR/Cas9, we validated rs57668933 as a functional variant regulating multiple targets, including SLE risk gene ELF1 , in B-cells. Conclusion We demonstrate and validate post-GWAS strategies for utilizing multi-dimensional data to prioritize likely causal variants with cognate gene targets underlying SLE pathogenesis. Our results provide a catalog of significantly SLE-associated SNPs and loci, target genes, and likely biochemical mechanisms, to guide experimental characterization.
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12
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Mulvey B, Selmanovic D, Dougherty JD. Sex Significantly Impacts the Function of Major Depression-Linked Variants In Vivo. Biol Psychiatry 2023; 94:466-478. [PMID: 36803612 PMCID: PMC10425576 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2023.02.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2022] [Revised: 01/19/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 02/17/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Genome-wide association studies have discovered blocks of common variants-likely transcriptional-regulatory-associated with major depressive disorder (MDD), though the functional subset and their biological impacts remain unknown. Likewise, why depression occurs in females more frequently than males is unclear. We therefore tested the hypothesis that risk-associated functional variants interact with sex and produce greater impact in female brains. METHODS We developed techniques to directly measure regulatory variant activity and sex interactions using massively parallel reporter assays in the mouse brain in vivo, in a cell type-specific manner, and applied these approaches to measure activity of >1000 variants from >30 MDD loci. RESULTS We identified extensive sex-by-allele effects in mature hippocampal neurons, suggesting that sex-differentiated impacts of genetic risk may underlie sex bias in disease. Unbiased informatics approaches indicated that functional MDD variants recurrently disrupt a number of transcription factor binding motifs, including those of sex hormone receptors. We confirmed a role for the latter by performing massively parallel reporter assays in neonatal mice on the day of birth (during a sex-differentiating hormone surge) and hormonally quiescent juveniles. CONCLUSIONS Our study provides novel insights into the influence of age, biological sex, and cell type on regulatory variant function and provides a framework for in vivo parallel assays to functionally define interactions between organismal variables such as sex and regulatory variation. Moreover, we experimentally demonstrate that a portion of the sex differences seen in MDD occurrence may be a product of sex-differentiated effects at associated regulatory variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernard Mulvey
- Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri; Department of Genetics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Din Selmanovic
- Department of Genetics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Joseph D Dougherty
- Department of Genetics, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri; Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri; Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
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13
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Fu Y, Kelly JA, Gopalakrishnan J, Pelikan RC, Tessneer KL, Pasula S, Grundahl K, Murphy DA, Gaffney PM. Massively Parallel Reporter Assay Confirms Regulatory Potential of hQTLs and Reveals Important Variants in Lupus and Other Autoimmune Diseases. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.08.17.553722. [PMID: 37645944 PMCID: PMC10462090 DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.17.553722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
Objective To systematically characterize the potential for histone post-translational modifications, i.e., histone quantitative trait loci (hQTLs), expression QTLs (eQTLs), and variants on systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and autoimmune (AI) disease risk haplotypes to modulate gene expression in an allele dependent manner. Methods We designed a massively parallel reporter assay (MPRA) containing ~32K variants and transfected it into an Epstein-Barr virus transformed B cell line generated from an SLE case. Results Our study expands our understanding of hQTLs, illustrating that epigenetic QTLs are more likely to contribute to functional mechanisms than eQTLs and other variant types, and a large proportion of hQTLs overlap transcription start sites (TSS) of noncoding RNAs. In addition, we nominate 17 variants (including 11 novel) as putative causal variants for SLE and another 14 for various other AI diseases, prioritizing these variants for future functional studies primary and immortalized B cells. Conclusion We uncover important insights into the mechanistic relationships between genotype, epigenetics, gene expression, and SLE and AI disease phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yao Fu
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Jennifer A Kelly
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Jaanam Gopalakrishnan
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- Neuro-Immune Regulome Unit, National Eye Institute, National Institute of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - Richard C Pelikan
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Kandice L Tessneer
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Satish Pasula
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Kiely Grundahl
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - David A Murphy
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - Patrick M Gaffney
- Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
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14
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Tang X, Liu Z, Liu H, Zhang H, Tian Y, Xia S, Sun Z, Luo G. Construction of lncRNA- and circRNA-associated ceRNA networks in the prostatic urethra of rats after simulating transurethral laser prostatectomy (TULP). Mol Cell Biochem 2023:10.1007/s11010-023-04804-1. [PMID: 37410211 DOI: 10.1007/s11010-023-04804-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 06/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023]
Abstract
Non-coding RNA appears to be involved in wound repair. Competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) appears to be an important post-transcriptional mechanism, it means that long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) or circular RNA (circRNA) acts as a microRNA (miRNA) sponge to further regulate mRNA. However, ceRNA network related to wound repair after prostatectomy has yet been constructed. TULP is the main surgical method of prostatectomy, but there have been no reports of TULP rat models in the past. We simulated TULP on rats, and observed the whole process of wound injury and repair after operation through pathological examination of wound tissue. Next, we discovered 732 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DElncRNAs), 47 differentially expressed circRNAs (DEcircRNAs), 17 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs), and 1892 differentially expressed mRNAs (DEmRNAs) related to wound repair after TULP through full transcriptome microarray and bioinformatics methods, and confirmed the reliability of transcriptome data by quantitative Reverse Transcription PCR (qRT-PCR), and immunohistochemistry. Then, we constructed the lncRNA- and circRNA-associated ceRNA regulatory networks related to wound repair after TULP in rats. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses showed that molecules in these networks were mainly involved in inflammatory infiltration, cell differentiation, and intercellular interactions and involved signal pathways such as the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway. Thus, this study successfully established the TULP model in rats, revealed potentially important biomarkers and ceRNA networks after prostatectomy in rats, and provided theoretical support for the repair of post-prostatectomy wound.
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Affiliation(s)
- XiaoHu Tang
- Medical College, Guizhou University, Guiyang, 550025, Guizhou Province, China
- Department of Urology Surgery, Guizhou Province People's Hospital, Guiyang, 550002, Guizhou Province, China
| | - ZhiYan Liu
- School of Clinical Medicine, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, 550025, Guizhou Province, China
| | - Hao Liu
- Department of Urology Surgery, Guizhou Province People's Hospital, Guiyang, 550002, Guizhou Province, China
| | - Heng Zhang
- Department of Urology Surgery, Guizhou Province People's Hospital, Guiyang, 550002, Guizhou Province, China
| | - Ye Tian
- Department of Urology Surgery, Guizhou Province People's Hospital, Guiyang, 550002, Guizhou Province, China
| | - ShuJie Xia
- Department of Urology Surgery, Shanghai First People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 201620, China
| | - ZhaoLin Sun
- Medical College, Guizhou University, Guiyang, 550025, Guizhou Province, China
| | - GuangHeng Luo
- Department of Urology Surgery, Guizhou Province People's Hospital, Guiyang, 550002, Guizhou Province, China.
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Guga S, Wang Y, Graham DC, Vyse TJ. A review of genetic risk in systemic lupus erythematosus. Expert Rev Clin Immunol 2023; 19:1247-1258. [PMID: 37496418 DOI: 10.1080/1744666x.2023.2240959] [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: 10/25/2022] [Accepted: 05/10/2023] [Indexed: 07/28/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is a complex multisystem autoimmune disease with a wide range of signs and symptoms in affected individuals. The utilization of genome-wide association study (GWAS) technology has led to an explosion in the number of genetic risk factors mapped for autoimmune diseases, including SLE. AREAS COVERED In this review, we summarize the more recent genetic risk loci mapped in SLE, which bring the total number of loci mapped to approximately 200. We review prioritization analyses of the associated variants and experimental validation of the putative causal variants. This includes the implementation of new bioinformatic techniques to align genomic and functional data and the use of transcriptomics with single-cell RNA-sequencing, CRISPR genome editing, and Massive Parallel Reporter Assays to analyze non-coding regulatory genetics. EXPERT OPINION Despite progress in identifying more genetic risk loci and variant-gene pairs for SLE, understanding its pathogenesis and applying findings clinically remains challenging. The polygenic risk score (PRS) has been used as an application of SLE genetics, but with limited performance in non-EUR populations. In the next few years, advancements in proteomics, post-translational modification estimation, and whole-genome sequencing will enhance disease understanding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suri Guga
- Department of Medical & Molecular Genetics, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Yuxuan Wang
- Department of Medical & Molecular Genetics, King's College London, London, UK
| | | | - Timothy J Vyse
- Department of Medical & Molecular Genetics, King's College London, London, UK
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16
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Richard D, Capellini TD, Diekman BO. Epigenetics as a mediator of genetic risk in osteoarthritis: role during development, homeostasis, aging, and disease progression. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 2023; 324:C1078-C1088. [PMID: 36971423 PMCID: PMC10191130 DOI: 10.1152/ajpcell.00574.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 03/16/2023] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023]
Abstract
The identification of genomic loci that are associated with osteoarthritis (OA) has provided a starting point for understanding how genetic variation activates catabolic processes in the joint. However, genetic variants can only alter gene expression and cellular function when the epigenetic environment is permissive to these effects. In this review, we provide examples of how epigenetic shifts at distinct life stages can alter the risk for OA, which we posit is critical for the proper interpretation of genome-wide association studies (GWAS). During development, intensive work on the growth and differentiation factor 5 (GDF5) locus has revealed the importance of tissue-specific enhancer activity in controlling both joint development and the subsequent risk for OA. During homeostasis in adults, underlying genetic risk factors may help establish beneficial or catabolic "set points" that dictate tissue function, with a strong cumulative effect on OA risk. During aging, methylation changes and the reorganization of chromatin can "unmask" the effects of genetic variants. The destructive function of variants that alter aging would only mediate effects after reproductive competence and thus avoid any evolutionary selection pressure, as consistent with larger frameworks of biological aging and its relationship to disease. A similar "unmasking" may occur during OA progression, which is supported by the finding of distinct expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) in chondrocytes depending on the degree of tissue degradation. Finally, we propose that massively parallel reporter assays (MPRAs) will be a valuable tool to test the function of putative OA GWAS variants in chondrocytes from different life stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Richard
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
| | - Terence D Capellini
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
| | - Brian O Diekman
- Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, and North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States
- Thurston Arthritis Research Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States
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17
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Hui-Yuen J, Jiang K, Malkiel S, Eberhard BA, Walters H, Diamond B, Jarvis J. B lymphocytes in treatment-naive paediatric patients with lupus are epigenetically distinct from healthy children. Lupus Sci Med 2023; 10:10/1/e000921. [PMID: 37202122 DOI: 10.1136/lupus-2023-000921] [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: 02/23/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND SLE is likely triggered by gene-environment interactions. We have shown that most SLE-associated haplotypes encompass genomic regions enriched for epigenetic marks associated with enhancer function in lymphocytes, suggesting genetic risk is exerted through altered gene regulation. Data remain scarce on how epigenetic variance contributes to disease risk in paediatric SLE (pSLE). We aim to identify differences in epigenetically regulated chromatin architecture in treatment-naive patients with pSLE compared with healthy children. METHODS Using the assay for transposase-accessible chromatin with sequencing (ATACseq), we surveyed open chromatin in 10 treatment-naive patients with pSLE, with at least moderate disease severity, and 5 healthy children. We investigated whether regions of open chromatin unique to patients with pSLE demonstrate enrichment for specific transcriptional regulators, using standard computational approaches to identify unique peaks and a false discovery rate of <0.05. Further analyses for histone modification enrichment and variant calling were performed using bioinformatics packages in R and Linux. RESULTS We identified 30 139 differentially accessible regions (DAR) unique to pSLE B cells; 64.3% are more accessible in pSLE than healthy children. Many DAR are found in distal, intergenic regions and enriched for enhancer histone marks (p=0.027). B cells from adult patients with SLE contain more regions of inaccessible chromatin than those in pSLE. In pSLE B cells, 65.2% of the DAR are located within or near known SLE haplotypes. Further analysis revealed enrichment of transcription factor binding motifs within these DAR that may regulate genes involved in pro-inflammatory responses and cellular adhesion. CONCLUSIONS We demonstrate an epigenetically distinct profile in pSLE B cells when compared with healthy children and adults with lupus, indicating that pSLE B cells are predisposed for disease onset/development. Increased chromatin accessibility in non-coding genomic regions controlling activation of inflammation suggest that transcriptional dysregulation by regulatory elements controlling B cell activation plays an important role in pSLE pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joyce Hui-Yuen
- Pediatric Rheumatology, Northwell Health, Lake Success, New York, USA
- Pediatrics, Hofstra Northwell School of Medicine at Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, USA
- Center for Autoimmune, Musculoskeletal, and Hematopoietic Diseases Research, The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, Manhasset, New York, USA
| | - Kaiyu Jiang
- Pediatrics, University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, New York, USA
| | - Susan Malkiel
- Center for Autoimmune, Musculoskeletal, and Hematopoietic Diseases Research, The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, Manhasset, New York, USA
| | - Barbara Anne Eberhard
- Pediatric Rheumatology, Northwell Health, Lake Success, New York, USA
- Pediatrics, Hofstra Northwell School of Medicine at Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, USA
| | - Heather Walters
- Pediatric Rheumatology, Northwell Health, Lake Success, New York, USA
- Pediatrics, Hofstra Northwell School of Medicine at Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, USA
| | - Betty Diamond
- Center for Autoimmune, Musculoskeletal, and Hematopoietic Diseases Research, The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, Manhasset, New York, USA
| | - James Jarvis
- Pediatrics, University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, New York, USA
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Stankey CT, Lee JC. Translating non-coding genetic associations into a better understanding of immune-mediated disease. Dis Model Mech 2023; 16:297044. [PMID: 36897113 PMCID: PMC10040244 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.049790] [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] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies have identified hundreds of genetic loci that are associated with immune-mediated diseases. Most disease-associated variants are non-coding, and a large proportion of these variants lie within enhancers. As a result, there is a pressing need to understand how common genetic variation might affect enhancer function and thereby contribute to immune-mediated (and other) diseases. In this Review, we first describe statistical and experimental methods to identify causal genetic variants that modulate gene expression, including statistical fine-mapping and massively parallel reporter assays. We then discuss approaches to characterise the mechanisms by which these variants modulate immune function, such as clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-based screens. We highlight examples of studies that, by elucidating the effects of disease variants within enhancers, have provided important insights into immune function and uncovered key pathways of disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christina T Stankey
- Genetic Mechanisms of Disease Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London NW1 1AT, UK
- Department of Immunology and Inflammation, Imperial College London, London W12 0NN, UK
| | - James C Lee
- Genetic Mechanisms of Disease Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London NW1 1AT, UK
- Institute of Liver and Digestive Health, Royal Free Hospital, University College London, London NW3 2PF, UK
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Cooper YA, Guo Q, Geschwind DH. Multiplexed functional genomic assays to decipher the noncoding genome. Hum Mol Genet 2022; 31:R84-R96. [PMID: 36057282 PMCID: PMC9585676 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddac194] [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: 07/02/2022] [Revised: 08/08/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Linkage disequilibrium and the incomplete regulatory annotation of the noncoding genome complicates the identification of functional noncoding genetic variants and their causal association with disease. Current computational methods for variant prioritization have limited predictive value, necessitating the application of highly parallelized experimental assays to efficiently identify functional noncoding variation. Here, we summarize two distinct approaches, massively parallel reporter assays and CRISPR-based pooled screens and describe their flexible implementation to characterize human noncoding genetic variation at unprecedented scale. Each approach provides unique advantages and limitations, highlighting the importance of multimodal methodological integration. These multiplexed assays of variant effects are undoubtedly poised to play a key role in the experimental characterization of noncoding genetic risk, informing our understanding of the underlying mechanisms of disease-associated loci and the development of more robust predictive classification algorithms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yonatan A Cooper
- Department of Human Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Medical Scientist Training Program, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Qiuyu Guo
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Daniel H Geschwind
- Department of Human Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Program in Neurogenetics, Department of Neurology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Center for Autism Research and Treatment, Semel Institute, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Institute of Precision Health, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Gao M, Liu S, Chatham WW, Mountz JD, Hsu HC. IL-4-Induced Quiescence of Resting Naive B Cells Is Disrupted in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY (BALTIMORE, MD. : 1950) 2022; 209:1513-1522. [PMID: 36165181 PMCID: PMC9741951 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.2200409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2022] [Accepted: 08/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Activated naive (aNAV) B cells have been shown to be the precursor of the CD11c+T-bet+ IgD-CD27- double-negative (DN)2 or atypical memory (aMEM) B cells in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). To determine factors that maintain resting naive (rNAV) B cells, the transcriptomic program in naive (IGHD+IGHM +) B cells in human healthy control subjects (HC) and subjects with SLE was analyzed by single-cell RNA-sequencing analysis. In HC, naive B cells expressed IL-4 pathway genes, whereas in SLE, naive B cells expressed type I IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs). In HC, aNAV B cells exhibited upregulation of the gene signature of germinal center and classical memory (cMEM) B cells. In contrast, in SLE, aNAV B cells expressed signature genes of aMEM. In vitro exposure of SLE B cells to IL-4 promoted B cell development into CD27+CD38+ plasmablasts/plasma and IgD-CD27+ cMEM B cells. The same treatment blocked the development of CD11c+Tbet+ aNAV and DN2 B cells and preserved DN B cells as CD11c-Tbet- DN1 B cells. Lower expression of IL-4R and increased intracellular IFN-β in naive B cells was correlated with the accumulation of CD21-IgD- B cells and the development of anti-Smith and anti-DNA autoantibodies in patients with SLE (n = 47). Our results show that IL-4R and type I IFN signaling in naive B cells induce the development of distinct lineages of cMEM versus aMEM B cells, respectively. Furthermore, diminished IL-4R signaling shifted activated B cell development from the DN1 to the DN2 trajectory in patients with SLE. Therapies that enhance IL-4R signaling may be beneficial for ISGhi SLE patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Gao
- University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL; and
| | - Shanrun Liu
- University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL; and
| | - W Winn Chatham
- University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL; and
| | - John D Mountz
- University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL; and
- Birmingham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Birmingham, AL
| | - Hui-Chen Hsu
- University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL; and
- Birmingham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Birmingham, AL
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21
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Crinzi EA, Haley EK, Poppenberg KE, Jiang K, Tutino VM, Jarvis JN. Analysis of chromatin data supports a role for CD14+ monocytes/macrophages in mediating genetic risk for juvenile idiopathic arthritis. Front Immunol 2022; 13:913555. [PMID: 36248892 PMCID: PMC9559786 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.913555] [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: 04/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
IntroductionGenome wide association studies (GWAS) have identified multiple regions that confer genetic risk for the polyarticular/oligoarticular forms of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). However, genome-wide scans do not identify the cells impacted by genetic polymorphisms on the risk haplotypes or the genes impacted by those variants. We have shown that genetic variants driving JIA risk are likely to affect both innate and adaptive immune functions. We provide additional evidence that JIA risk variants impact innate immunity.Materials and methodsWe queried publicly available H3K4me1/H3K27ac ChIP-seq data in CD14+ monocytes to determine whether the linkage disequilibrium (LD) blocks incorporating the SNPs that tag JIA risk loci showed enrichment for these epigenetic marks. We also queried monocyte/macrophage GROseq data, a functional readout of active enhancers. We defined the topologically associated domains (TADs) encompassing enhancers on the risk haplotypes and identified genes within those TADs expressed in monocytes. We performed ontology analyses of these genes to identify cellular processes that may be impacted by these variants. We also used whole blood RNAseq data from the Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) data base to determine whether SNPs lying within monocyte GROseq peaks influence plausible target genes within the TADs encompassing the JIA risk haplotypes.ResultsThe LD blocks encompassing the JIA genetic risk regions were enriched for H3K4me1/H3K27ac ChIPseq peaks (p=0.00021 and p=0.022) when compared to genome background. Eleven and sixteen JIA were enriched for resting and activated macrophage GROseq peaks, respectively risk regions (p=0.04385 and p=0.00004). We identified 321 expressed genes within the TADs encompassing the JIA haplotypes in human monocytes. Ontological analysis of these genes showed enrichment for multiple immune functions. Finally, we found that SNPs lying within the GROseq peaks are strongly associated with expression levels of plausible target genes in human whole blood.ConclusionsThese findings support the idea that both innate and adaptive immunity are impacted by JIA genetic risk variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth A. Crinzi
- Department of Pediatrics, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, United States
| | - Emma K. Haley
- Department of Pediatrics, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, United States
| | - Kerry E. Poppenberg
- Canon Stroke and Vascular Center, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, United States
- Department of Neurosurgery, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, United States
| | - Kaiyu Jiang
- Department of Pediatrics, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, United States
| | - Vincent M. Tutino
- Canon Stroke and Vascular Center, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, United States
- Department of Neurosurgery, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, United States
| | - James N. Jarvis
- Department of Pediatrics, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, United States
- Genetics, Genomics, & Bioinformatics Program, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, United States
- *Correspondence: James N. Jarvis,
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22
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Lu M, Feng R, Liu Y, Qin Y, Deng H, Xiao Y, Yin C. Identifying celiac disease-related chemicals by transcriptome-wide association study and chemical-gene interaction analyses. Front Genet 2022; 13:990483. [PMID: 36118884 PMCID: PMC9478571 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.990483] [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: 07/10/2022] [Accepted: 08/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Celiac disease (CeD) is one of the most common intestinal inflammatory diseases, and its incidence and prevalence have increased over time. CeD affects multiple organs and systems in the body, and environmental factors play a key role in its complex pathogenesis. Although gluten exposure is known to be the causative agent, many unknown environmental factors can trigger or exacerbate CeD. In this study, we investigated the influence of genetic and environmental factors on CeD. Data from a CeD genome-wide association study that included 12,041 CeD cases and 12,228 controls were used to conduct a transcriptome-wide association study (TWAS) using FUSION software. Gene expression reference data were obtained for the small intestine, whole blood, peripheral blood, and lymphocytes. We performed Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analyses using the significant genes identified by the TWAS and conducted a protein–protein interaction network analysis based on the STRING database to detect the function of TWAS-identified genes for CeD. We also performed a chemical-related gene set enrichment analysis (CGSEA) using the TWAS-identified genes to test the relationships between chemicals and CeD. The TWAS identified 8,692 genes, including 101 significant genes (padjusted < 0.05). The CGSEA identified 2,559 chemicals, including 178 chemicals that were significantly correlated with CeD. This study performed a TWAS (for genetic factors) and CGSEA (for environmental factors) and identified several CeD-associated genes and chemicals. The findings expand our understanding of the genetic and environmental factors related to immune-mediated diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengnan Lu
- Department of Pediatrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiao Tong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Ruoyang Feng
- Department of Joint Surgery, HongHui Hospital, Xi’an Jiao Tong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Yuesheng Liu
- Department of Pediatrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiao Tong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Yujie Qin
- Department of Pediatrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiao Tong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Hongyang Deng
- Department of Pediatrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiao Tong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Yanfeng Xiao
- Department of Pediatrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiao Tong University, Xi’an, China
- *Correspondence: Yanfeng Xiao, ; Chunyan Yin,
| | - Chunyan Yin
- Department of Pediatrics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiao Tong University, Xi’an, China
- *Correspondence: Yanfeng Xiao, ; Chunyan Yin,
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23
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Eapen AA, Parameswaran S, Forney C, Edsall LE, Miller D, Donmez O, Dunn K, Lu X, Granitto M, Rowden H, Magier AZ, Pujato M, Chen X, Kaufman K, Bernstein DI, Devonshire AL, Rothenberg ME, Weirauch MT, Kottyan LC. Epigenetic and transcriptional dysregulation in CD4+ T cells in patients with atopic dermatitis. PLoS Genet 2022; 18:e1009973. [PMID: 35576187 PMCID: PMC9135339 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009973] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2021] [Revised: 05/26/2022] [Accepted: 04/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Atopic dermatitis (AD) is one of the most common skin disorders among children. Disease etiology involves genetic and environmental factors, with 29 independent AD risk loci enriched for risk allele-dependent gene expression in the skin and CD4+ T cell compartments. We investigated the potential epigenetic mechanisms responsible for the genetic susceptibility of CD4+ T cells. To understand the differences in gene regulatory activity in peripheral blood T cells in AD, we measured chromatin accessibility (an assay based on transposase-accessible chromatin sequencing, ATAC-seq), nuclear factor kappa B subunit 1 (NFKB1) binding (chromatin immunoprecipitation with sequencing, ChIP-seq), and gene expression levels (RNA-seq) in stimulated CD4+ T cells from subjects with active moderate-to-severe AD, as well as in age-matched non-allergic controls. Open chromatin regions in stimulated CD4+ T cells were highly enriched for AD genetic risk variants, with almost half of the AD risk loci overlapping AD-dependent ATAC-seq peaks. AD-specific open chromatin regions were strongly enriched for NF-κB DNA-binding motifs. ChIP-seq identified hundreds of NFKB1-occupied genomic loci that were AD- or control-specific. As expected, the AD-specific ChIP-seq peaks were strongly enriched for NF-κB DNA-binding motifs. Surprisingly, control-specific NFKB1 ChIP-seq peaks were not enriched for NFKB1 motifs, but instead contained motifs for other classes of human transcription factors, suggesting a mechanism involving altered indirect NFKB1 binding. Using DNA sequencing data, we identified 63 instances of altered genotype-dependent chromatin accessibility at 36 AD risk variant loci (30% of AD risk loci) that might lead to genotype-dependent gene expression. Based on these findings, we propose that CD4+ T cells respond to stimulation in an AD-specific manner, resulting in disease- and genotype-dependent chromatin accessibility alterations involving NFKB1 binding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy A. Eapen
- Division of Allergy and Immunology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, Michigan, United States of America
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Sreeja Parameswaran
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Carmy Forney
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Lee E. Edsall
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Daniel Miller
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Omer Donmez
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Katelyn Dunn
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Xiaoming Lu
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Marissa Granitto
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Hope Rowden
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Adam Z. Magier
- Division of Allergy and Immunology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Mario Pujato
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Xiaoting Chen
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Kenneth Kaufman
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Divisions of Biomedical Informatics and Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Cincinnati Veterans Administration, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - David I. Bernstein
- Division of Immunology, Allergy, and Rheumatology, University of Cincinnati, College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Ashley L. Devonshire
- Division of Allergy and Immunology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Marc E. Rothenberg
- Division of Allergy and Immunology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Matthew T. Weirauch
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Divisions of Biomedical Informatics and Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Leah C. Kottyan
- Division of Allergy and Immunology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America
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24
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Zhou T, Zhu X, Ye Z, Wang YF, Yao C, Xu N, Zhou M, Ma J, Qin Y, Shen Y, Tang Y, Yin Z, Xu H, Zhang Y, Zang X, Ding H, Yang W, Guo Y, Harley JB, Namjou B, Kaufman KM, Kottyan LC, Weirauch MT, Hou G, Shen N. Lupus enhancer risk variant causes dysregulation of IRF8 through cooperative lncRNA and DNA methylation machinery. Nat Commun 2022; 13:1855. [PMID: 35388006 PMCID: PMC8987079 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29514-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2021] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite strong evidence that human genetic variants affect the expression of many key transcription factors involved in autoimmune diseases, establishing biological links between non-coding risk variants and the gene targets they regulate remains a considerable challenge. Here, we combine genetic, epigenomic, and CRISPR activation approaches to screen for functional variants that regulate IRF8 expression. We demonstrate that the locus containing rs2280381 is a cell-type-specific enhancer for IRF8 that spatially interacts with the IRF8 promoter. Further, rs2280381 mediates IRF8 expression through enhancer RNA AC092723.1, which recruits TET1 to the IRF8 promoter regulating IRF8 expression by affecting methylation levels. The alleles of rs2280381 modulate PU.1 binding and chromatin state to regulate AC092723.1 and IRF8 expression differentially. Our work illustrates an integrative strategy to define functional genetic variants that regulate the expression of critical genes in autoimmune diseases and decipher the mechanisms underlying the dysregulation of IRF8 expression mediated by lupus risk variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tian Zhou
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China ,grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Shanghai Cancer Institute, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200032 China ,Shenzhen Futian Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Shenzhen, 518040 China
| | - Xinyi Zhu
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China
| | - Zhizhong Ye
- Shenzhen Futian Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Shenzhen, 518040 China
| | - Yong-Fei Wang
- grid.194645.b0000000121742757Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077 China
| | - Chao Yao
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences (SIBS), University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai, 200031 China
| | - Ning Xu
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China
| | - Mi Zhou
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Sheng Yushou Center of Cell Biology and Immunology, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), Shanghai, 200240 China
| | - Jianyang Ma
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China
| | - Yuting Qin
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China
| | - Yiwei Shen
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China
| | - Yuanjia Tang
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China
| | - Zhihua Yin
- Shenzhen Futian Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Shenzhen, 518040 China
| | - Hong Xu
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200127 China ,grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Key Laboratory of Gynecologic Oncology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200127 China
| | - Yutong Zhang
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China
| | - Xiaoli Zang
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China
| | - Huihua Ding
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China
| | - Wanling Yang
- grid.194645.b0000000121742757Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077 China
| | - Ya Guo
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Sheng Yushou Center of Cell Biology and Immunology, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), Shanghai, 200240 China
| | - John B. Harley
- grid.413848.20000 0004 0420 2128US Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA
| | - Bahram Namjou
- grid.239573.90000 0000 9025 8099Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA
| | - Kenneth M. Kaufman
- grid.239573.90000 0000 9025 8099Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA ,grid.239573.90000 0000 9025 8099Division of Immunobiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA ,grid.24827.3b0000 0001 2179 9593Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA
| | - Leah C. Kottyan
- grid.239573.90000 0000 9025 8099Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA ,grid.24827.3b0000 0001 2179 9593Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA ,grid.239573.90000 0000 9025 8099Division of Allergy and Immunology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA
| | - Matthew T. Weirauch
- grid.239573.90000 0000 9025 8099Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA ,grid.24827.3b0000 0001 2179 9593Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA ,grid.239573.90000 0000 9025 8099Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA ,grid.239573.90000 0000 9025 8099Division of Biomedical Informatics, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA
| | - Guojun Hou
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China ,grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Shanghai Cancer Institute, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200032 China ,Shenzhen Futian Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Shenzhen, 518040 China
| | - Nan Shen
- grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293Shanghai Institute of Rheumatology, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200001 China ,grid.16821.3c0000 0004 0368 8293State Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Shanghai Cancer Institute, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SJTUSM), Shanghai, 200032 China ,Shenzhen Futian Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Shenzhen, 518040 China ,grid.239573.90000 0000 9025 8099Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA ,grid.24827.3b0000 0001 2179 9593Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229 USA
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25
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Afrasiabi A, Keane JT, Ong LTC, Alinejad-Rokny H, Fewings NL, Booth DR, Parnell GP, Swaminathan S. Genetic and transcriptomic analyses support a switch to lytic phase in Epstein Barr virus infection as an important driver in developing Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. J Autoimmun 2021; 127:102781. [PMID: 34952359 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaut.2021.102781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2021] [Revised: 12/04/2021] [Accepted: 12/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
To investigate the molecular mechanisms through which Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) may contribute to Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) pathogenesis, we interrogated SLE genetic risk loci for signatures of EBV infection. We first compared the gene expression profile of SLE risk genes across 459 different cell/tissue types. EBV-infected B cells (LCLs) had the strongest representation of highly expressed SLE risk genes. By determining an SLE risk allele effect on gene expression (expression quantitative trait loci, eQTL) in LCLs and 16 other immune cell types, we identified 79 SLE risk locus:gene pairs putatively interacting with EBV infection. A total of 10 SLE risk genes from this list (CD40, LYST, JAZF1, IRF5, BLK, IKZF2, IL12RB2, FAM167A, PTPRC and SLC15A) were targeted by the EBV transcription factor, EBNA2, differentially expressed between LCLs and B cells, and the majority were also associated with EBV DNA copy number, and expression level of EBV encoded genes. Our final gene network model based on these genes is suggestive of a nexus involving SLE risk loci and EBV latency III and B cell proliferation signalling pathways. Collectively, our findings provide further evidence to support the interaction between SLE risk loci and EBV infection that is in part mediated by EBNA2. This interplay may increase the tendency towards EBV lytic switching dependent on the presence of SLE risk alleles. These results support further investigation into targeting EBV as a therapeutic strategy for SLE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali Afrasiabi
- EBV Molecular Lab, Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia; BioMedical Machine Learning Lab (BML), The Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Jeremy Thomas Keane
- EBV Molecular Lab, Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Lawrence T C Ong
- EBV Molecular Lab, Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Hamid Alinejad-Rokny
- BioMedical Machine Learning Lab (BML), The Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Health Data Analytics Program Leader, AI-enabled Processes (AIP) Research Centre, Macquarie University, Sydney, 2109, Australia; Core Member of UNSW Data Science Hub, The University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney), Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia
| | - Nicole Louise Fewings
- EBV Molecular Lab, Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Westmead Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - David Richmond Booth
- EBV Molecular Lab, Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Grant Peter Parnell
- EBV Molecular Lab, Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Biomedical Informatics and Digital Health, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
| | - Sanjay Swaminathan
- EBV Molecular Lab, Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Department of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
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26
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Ha E, Bae SC, Kim K. Recent advances in understanding the genetic basis of systemic lupus erythematosus. Semin Immunopathol 2021; 44:29-46. [PMID: 34731289 DOI: 10.1007/s00281-021-00900-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2021] [Accepted: 10/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a polygenic chronic autoimmune disease leading to multiple organ damage. A large heritability of up to 66% is estimated in SLE, with roughly 180 reported susceptibility loci that have been identified mostly by genome-wide association studies (GWASs) and account for approximately 30% of genetic heritability. A vast majority of risk variants reside in non-coding regions, which makes it quite challenging to interpret their functional implications in the SLE-affected immune system, suggesting the importance of understanding cell type-specific epigenetic regulation around SLE GWAS variants. The latest genetic studies have been highly fruitful as several dozens of SLE loci were newly discovered in the last few years and many loci have come to be understood in systemic approaches integrating GWAS signals with other biological resources. In this review, we summarize SLE-associated genetic variants in both the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and non-MHC loci, examining polygenetic risk scores for SLE and their associations with clinical features. Finally, variant-driven pathogenetic functions underlying genetic associations are described, coupled with discussion about challenges and future directions in genetic studies on SLE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eunji Ha
- Department of Biology, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.,Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Sang-Cheol Bae
- Department of Rheumatology, Hanyang University Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Seoul, Republic of Korea. .,Hanyang University Institute for Rheumatology Research, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
| | - Kwangwoo Kim
- Department of Biology, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea. .,Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
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Li C, Zhao H, Cheng L, Wang B. Allogeneic vs. autologous mesenchymal stem/stromal cells in their medication practice. Cell Biosci 2021; 11:187. [PMID: 34727974 PMCID: PMC8561357 DOI: 10.1186/s13578-021-00698-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Mesenchymal stem/stromal cell (MSC)-based therapeutics is already available for treatment of a range of diseases or medical conditions. Autologous or allogeneic MSCs obtained from self or donors have their own advantages and disadvantages in their medical practice. Therapeutic benefits of using autologous vs. allogeneic MSCs are inconclusive. Transplanted MSCs within the body interact with their physical microenvironment or niche, physiologically or pathologically, and such cells in a newly established tissue microenvironment may be impacted by the pathological harmful environmental factors to alter their unique biological behaviors. Meanwhile, a temporary microenvironment/niche may be also altered by the resident or niche-surrounding MSCs. Therefore, the functional plasticity and heterogeneity of MSCs caused by different donors and subpopulations of MSCs may result in potential uncertainty in their safe and efficacious medical practice. Acknowledging a connection between MSCs' biology and their existing microenvironment, donor-controlled clinical practice for the long-term therapeutic benefit is suggested to further consider minimizing MSCs potential harm for MSC-based individual therapies. In this review, we summarize the advantages and disadvantages of autologous vs. allogeneic MSCs in their therapeutic applications. Among other issues, we highlight the importance of better understanding of the various microenvironments that may affect the properties of niche-surrounding MSCs and discuss the clinical applications of MSCs within different contexts for treatment of different diseases including cardiomyopathy, lupus and lupus nephritis, diabetes and diabetic complications, bone and cartilage repair, cancer and tissue fibrosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenghai Li
- Stem Cell Program of Clinical Research Center, People's Hospital of Zhengzhou University, 7 Weiwu Road, Zhengzhou, 450003, China.
| | - Hua Zhao
- Institute of Reproductive Medicine, People's Hospital of Zhengzhou University, 7 Weiwu Road, Zhengzhou, 450003, China
| | - Linna Cheng
- Institute of Hematology, People's Hospital of Zhengzhou University, 7 Weiwu Road, Zhengzhou, 450003, China
| | - Bin Wang
- Department of Neurosurgery, People's Hospital of Zhengzhou University, 7 Weiwu Road, Zhengzhou, 450003, China.
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Functional interrogation of autoimmune disease genetics using CRISPR/Cas9 technologies and massively parallel reporter assays. Semin Immunopathol 2021; 44:137-147. [PMID: 34508276 PMCID: PMC8837574 DOI: 10.1007/s00281-021-00887-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Genetic studies, including genome-wide association studies, have identified many common variants that are associated with autoimmune diseases. Strikingly, in addition to being frequently observed in healthy individuals, a number of these variants are shared across diseases with diverse clinical presentations. This highlights the potential for improved autoimmune disease understanding which could be achieved by characterising the mechanism by which variants lead to increased risk of disease. Of particular interest is the potential for identifying novel drug targets or of repositioning drugs currently used in other diseases. The majority of autoimmune disease variants do not alter coding regions and it is often difficult to generate a plausible hypothetical mechanism by which variants affect disease-relevant genes and pathways. Given the interest in this area, considerable effort has been invested in developing and applying appropriate methodologies. Two of the most important technologies in this space include both low- and high-throughput genomic perturbation using the CRISPR/Cas9 system and massively parallel reporter assays. In this review, we introduce the field of autoimmune disease functional genomics and use numerous examples to demonstrate the recent and potential future impact of these technologies.
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Mulvey B, Dougherty JD. Transcriptional-regulatory convergence across functional MDD risk variants identified by massively parallel reporter assays. Transl Psychiatry 2021; 11:403. [PMID: 34294677 PMCID: PMC8298436 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01493-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2021] [Revised: 06/02/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Family and population studies indicate clear heritability of major depressive disorder (MDD), though its underlying biology remains unclear. The majority of single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) linkage blocks associated with MDD by genome-wide association studies (GWASes) are believed to alter transcriptional regulators (e.g., enhancers, promoters) based on enrichment of marks correlated with these functions. A key to understanding MDD pathophysiology will be elucidation of which SNPs are functional and how such functional variants biologically converge to elicit the disease. Furthermore, retinoids can elicit MDD in patients and promote depressive-like behaviors in rodent models, acting via a regulatory system of retinoid receptor transcription factors (TFs). We therefore sought to simultaneously identify functional genetic variants and assess retinoid pathway regulation of MDD risk loci. Using Massively Parallel Reporter Assays (MPRAs), we functionally screened over 1000 SNPs prioritized from 39 neuropsychiatric trait/disease GWAS loci, selecting SNPs based on overlap with predicted regulatory features-including expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) and histone marks-from human brains and cell cultures. We identified >100 SNPs with allelic effects on expression in a retinoid-responsive model system. Functional SNPs were enriched for binding sequences of retinoic acid-receptive transcription factors (TFs), with additional allelic differences unmasked by treatment with all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA). Finally, motifs overrepresented across functional SNPs corresponded to TFs highly specific to serotonergic neurons, suggesting an in vivo site of action. Our application of MPRAs to screen MDD-associated SNPs suggests a shared transcriptional-regulatory program across loci, a component of which is unmasked by retinoids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernard Mulvey
- Departments of Genetics and Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Joseph D Dougherty
- Departments of Genetics and Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
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