Potential Susceptibility Loci Identified for Renal Cell Carcinoma by Targeting Obesity-Related Genes

Identification of potential susceptibility loci for non-small cell lung cancer through whole genome sequencing in circadian rhythm genes

Lung cancer is a malignant tumor with a high morbidity and mortality rate worldwide, causing an increasing disease burden. Of these, the most common type is non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), which accounts for 80-85% of all lung cancer cases. Genetic research is crucial for continuously discovering susceptibility genes related to lung cancer for in-depth study. The role of genetic predisposition in the development of NSCLC, particularly within circadian rhythm pathways known to govern various physiological processes, is increasingly acknowledged. Yet, the association between genetic variants of circadian rhythm-related genes and NSCLC susceptibility among Chinese populations is not fully understood. This study carried out a two-phase (discovery and validation stages) research design to identify genetic variants associated with NSCLC risk within the circadian rhythm pathway. We employed extensive whole-genome sequencing (WGS) for 1,104 NSCLC cases and 9,635 controls. FastGWA-GLMM was used for single-locus risk association analysis of NSCLC, and we screened candidate SNPs in the validation set that comprised 4,444 cases and 174,282 controls from the Biobank Japan Project (BBJ). Furthermore, GCTA-COJO conditional analysis was utilized to confirm SNPs related to NSCLC risk. Finally, potential genetic variations that may regulate gene expression were explored in GTEx and QTLbase. RNA sequencing data were utilized for transcriptomic verification. Our study identified eight candidate SNPs associated with NSCLC susceptibility within the circadian rhythm pathway that met the requirement with P < 0.05 in both the discovery and validation populations. After conditional analysis, five of these SNPs remained. The A allele of CUL1 rs78524436 (ORmeta = 1.18, 95%CI: 1.09-1.29, Pmeta = 7.99e-5) and the A allele of TEF rs9611588 (ORmeta = 1.06, 95%CI: 1.02-1.10, Pmeta = 1.28e-3) were associated with an increased risk of NSCLC. The A allele of FBXL21 rs2069868 (ORmeta = 0.86, 95%CI: 0.80-0.96, Pmeta = 4.78e-4), the T allele of CSNK1D rs147316973 (ORmeta = 0.76, 95%CI: 0.65-0.88, Pmeta = 5.93e-4), and the A allele of RORA rs1589701 (ORmeta = 0.94, 95%CI: 0.91-0.98, Pmeta = 3.40e-3) were associated with a lower risk of NSCLC, separately. The eQTL results revealed an association between RORA rs1589701 and TEF rs9611588 with the expression levels of RORA and TEF, respectively. Transcriptome data indicated that RORA and TEF showed lower expression levels in tumor tissues compared to normal tissues (P < 0.001). Moreover, poorer survival was observed in patients with lower RORA and TEF expressions (log-rank P < 0.05). Our findings spotlight potential susceptibility loci within circadian rhythm pathway genes that modulate NSCLC carcinogenesis, which enriches the understanding of the genetic susceptibility of NSCLC in the Chinese population and provides a more solid basis for exploring the biological mechanism of circadian rhythm genes in NSCLC.

Multi-ancestry genome-wide association study of kidney cancer identifies 63 susceptibility regions

Here, in a multi-ancestry genome-wide association study meta-analysis of kidney cancer (29,020 cases and 835,670 controls), we identified 63 susceptibility regions (50 novel) containing 108 independent risk loci. In analyses stratified by subtype, 52 regions (78 loci) were associated with clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and 6 regions (7 loci) with papillary RCC. Notably, we report a variant common in African ancestry individuals ( rs7629500 ) in the 3' untranslated region of VHL, nearly tripling clear cell RCC risk (odds ratio 2.72, 95% confidence interval 2.23-3.30). In cis-expression quantitative trait locus analyses, 48 variants from 34 regions point toward 83 candidate genes. Enrichment of hypoxia-inducible factor-binding sites underscores the importance of hypoxia-related mechanisms in kidney cancer. Our results advance understanding of the genetic architecture of kidney cancer, provide clues for functional investigation and enable generation of a validated polygenic risk score with an estimated area under the curve of 0.65 (0.74 including risk factors) among European ancestry individuals.

Renal Cell Cancer and Obesity

Cancers are a frequent cause of morbidity and mortality. There are many risk factors for tumours, including advanced age, personal or family history of cancer, some types of viral infections, exposure to radiation and some chemicals, smoking and alcohol consumption, as well as obesity. Increasing evidence suggest the role of obesity in the initiation and progression of various cancers, including renal cell carcinoma. Since tumours require energy for their uncontrollable growth, it appears plausible that their initiation and development is associated with the dysregulation of cells metabolism. Thus, any state characterised by an intake of excessive energy and nutrients may favour the development of various cancers. There are many factors that promote the development of renal cell carcinoma, including hypoxia, inflammation, insulin resistance, excessive adipose tissue and adipokines and others. There are also many obesity-related alterations in genes expression, including DNA methylation, single nucleotide polymorphisms, histone modification and miRNAs that can promote renal carcinogenesis. This review focuses on the impact of obesity on the risk of renal cancers development, their aggressiveness and patients’ survival.