@article {1380, title = {Association of fetuin-a with incident diabetes mellitus in community-living older adults: the cardiovascular health study.}, journal = {Circulation}, volume = {125}, year = {2012}, month = {2012 May 15}, pages = {2316-22}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: The liver-secreted protein fetuin-A induces peripheral insulin resistance in vitro. In a pilot study, we observed that higher fetuin-A levels were associated with diabetes mellitus in older persons. However, this finding has not been confirmed in large cohorts. We sought to confirm the association of fetuin-A with incident diabetes mellitus in older persons and to determine whether the association differs by age, sex, and race and among persons with cardiovascular disease (CVD).

METHODS AND RESULTS: Among 3710 community-living individuals >= 65 years of age without diabetes mellitus at baseline, fetuin-A was measured in serum collected in 1992 to 1993. Participants were followed up for 10.6 years (median) for incident diabetes mellitus. Cox regression models evaluated the association of fetuin-A with incident diabetes mellitus. Interaction terms evaluated heterogeneity by age, sex, race, and CVD. Mean age was 75 years; 60 were female; 15 were black; and 16 had CVD. Mean fetuin-A concentrations were 0.47 {\textpm} 0.10 g/L. During follow-up, 305 incident diabetes cases occurred. Each 0.10-g/L (SD)-greater fetuin-A was associated with 19 higher risk of diabetes mellitus (hazard ratio, 1.19; 95 confidence interval, 1.06-1.33) after adjustment for demographics, lifestyle factors, albumin, kidney function, and CVD. Further adjustment for potential mediators (body mass index, waist circumference, hypertension, lipids, and C-reactive protein) moderately attenuated the association (hazard ratio, 1.13; 95 confidence interval, 1.00-1.28). Results were similar by sex, race, and CVD status but were stronger in persons <75 years old (P for interaction=0.01).

CONCLUSIONS: Higher fetuin-A is associated with incident diabetes mellitus in older persons regardless of sex, race, or prevalent CVD status. The association may be attenuated in those >= 75 years of age.

}, keywords = {African Continental Ancestry Group, Age Distribution, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, alpha-2-HS-Glycoprotein, Body Mass Index, C-Reactive Protein, Cardiovascular Diseases, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2, European Continental Ancestry Group, Female, Humans, Incidence, Life Style, Lipids, Male, Pilot Projects, Prevalence, Proportional Hazards Models, Residence Characteristics, Risk Factors, Sex Distribution}, issn = {1524-4539}, doi = {10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.111.072751}, author = {Ix, Joachim H and Biggs, Mary L and Mukamal, Kenneth J and Kizer, Jorge R and Zieman, Susan J and Siscovick, David S and Mozzaffarian, Dariush and Jensen, Majken K and Nelson, Lauren and Ruderman, Neil and Djouss{\'e}, Luc} } @article {6080, title = {Common FABP4 genetic variants and plasma levels of fatty acid binding protein 4 in older adults.}, journal = {Lipids}, volume = {48}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Nov}, pages = {1169-75}, abstract = {

We examined common variants in the fatty acid binding protein 4 gene (FABP4) and plasma levels of FABP4 in adults aged 65 and older from the Cardiovascular Health Study. We genotyped rs16909187, rs1054135, rs16909192, rs10808846, rs7018409, rs2290201, and rs6992708 and measured circulating FABP4 levels among 3190 European Americans and 660 African Americans. Among European Americans, the minor alleles of six single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) were associated with lower FABP4 levels (all p~<=~0.01). Among African Americans, the SNP with the lowest minor allele frequency was associated with lower FABP4 levels (p~=~0.015). The C-A haplotype of rs16909192 and rs2290201 was associated with lower FABP4 levels in both European Americans (frequency~=~16~\%; p~=~0.001) and African Americans (frequency~=~8~\%; p~=~0.04). The haplotype combined a SNP in the first intron with one in the 3{\textquoteright}untranslated region. However, the alleles associated with lower FABP4 levels were associated with higher fasting glucose in meta-analyses from the MAGIC consortium. These results demonstrate associations of common SNP and haplotypes in the FABP4 gene with lower plasma FABP4 but higher fasting glucose levels.

}, keywords = {African Americans, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Blood Glucose, Body Mass Index, Cohort Studies, European Continental Ancestry Group, Fatty Acid-Binding Proteins, Female, Gene Frequency, Genetic Association Studies, Haplotypes, Humans, Insulin, Linkage Disequilibrium, Male, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide}, issn = {1558-9307}, doi = {10.1007/s11745-013-3838-7}, author = {Mukamal, Kenneth J and Wilk, Jemma B and Biggs, Mary L and Jensen, Majken K and Ix, Joachim H and Kizer, Jorge R and Tracy, Russell P and Zieman, Susan J and Mozaffarian, Dariush and Psaty, Bruce M and Siscovick, David S and Djouss{\'e}, Luc} } @article {1552, title = {Fetuin-A, type 2 diabetes, and risk of cardiovascular disease in older adults: the cardiovascular health study.}, journal = {Diabetes Care}, volume = {36}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 May}, pages = {1222-8}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: Fetuin-A, a hepatic secretory protein that simultaneously inhibits arterial calcification and insulin action, is associated with type 2 diabetes, but its association with cardiovascular disease (CVD) is uncertain. Preliminary studies suggest that the association of fetuin-A with CVD might differ among individuals with or without type 2 diabetes.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: This was a prospective study of 3,810 community-living individuals older than 65 years (511 with type 2 diabetes) and free of CVD in 1992 when fetuin-A levels were measured. Participants were followed-up for incident CVD through June 2008.

RESULTS: Mean age was 75 years, and 61\% were women; 1,456 participants had an incident CVD event (248 among individuals with type 2 diabetes). The association of fetuin-A with CVD was modified by type 2 diabetes (P interaction = 0.02). Higher fetuin-A was associated with lower CVD risk among persons without type 2 diabetes [hazard ratio per SD 0.1 g/L higher fetuin-A, 0.93 (95\% CI, 0.88-0.99)], whereas a trend in the opposite direction was observed among individuals with type 2 diabetes, although it was not statistically significant [1.07 (0.93-1.22)]. Among individuals without type 2 diabetes, similar effect modification was observed by obesity and insulin resistance. Consistently, higher fetuin-A was associated with lower CVD risk only in the subgroups without obesity or with HOMA-IR below the median [0.91 (0.85-0.97) and 0.87 (0.79-0.95), respectively].

CONCLUSIONS: The association of fetuin-A with risk of CVD differs among elderly individuals with and without insulin resistance or type 2 diabetes.

}, keywords = {Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Cardiovascular Diseases, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2, Female, Fetuins, Humans, Incidence, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Risk Factors}, issn = {1935-5548}, doi = {10.2337/dc12-1591}, author = {Jensen, Majken K and Bartz, Traci M and Mukamal, Kenneth J and Djouss{\'e}, Luc and Kizer, Jorge R and Tracy, Russell P and Zieman, Susan J and Rimm, Eric B and Siscovick, David S and Shlipak, Michael and Ix, Joachim H} } @article {5995, title = {Genetically elevated fetuin-A levels, fasting glucose levels, and risk of type 2 diabetes: the cardiovascular health study.}, journal = {Diabetes Care}, volume = {36}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Oct}, pages = {3121-7}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: Fetuin-A levels are associated with higher risk of type 2 diabetes, but it is unknown if the association is causal. We investigated common (>5\%) genetic variants in the fetuin-A gene (AHSG) fetuin-A levels, fasting glucose, and risk of type 2 diabetes.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Genetic variation, fetuin-A levels, and fasting glucose were assessed in 2,893 Caucasian and 542 African American community-living individuals 65 years of age or older in 1992-1993.

RESULTS: Common AHSG variants (rs4917 and rs2248690) were strongly associated with fetuin-A concentrations (P<0.0001). In analyses of 259 incident cases of type 2 diabetes, the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were not associated with diabetes risk during follow-up and similar null associations were observed when 579 prevalent cases were included. As expected, higher fetuin-A levels were associated with higher fasting glucose concentrations (1.9 mg/dL [95\% CI, 1.2-2.7] higher per SD in Caucasians), but Mendelian randomization analyses using both SNPs as unbiased proxies for measured fetuin-A did not support an association between genetically predicted fetuin-A levels and fasting glucose (-0.3 mg/dL [95\% CI, -1.9 to 1.3] lower per SD in Caucasians). The difference between the associations of fasting glucose with actual and genetically predicted fetuin-A level was statistically significant (P=0.001). Results among the smaller sample of African Americans trended in similar directions but were statistically insignificant.

CONCLUSIONS: Common variants in the AHSG gene are strongly associated with plasma fetuin-A concentrations, but not with risk of type 2 diabetes or glucose concentrations, raising the possibility that the association between fetuin-A and type 2 diabetes may not be causal.

}, keywords = {alpha-2-HS-Glycoprotein, Blood Glucose, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2, Fasting, Female, Genotype, Humans, Male, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide}, issn = {1935-5548}, doi = {10.2337/dc12-2323}, author = {Jensen, Majken K and Bartz, Traci M and Djouss{\'e}, Luc and Kizer, Jorge R and Zieman, Susan J and Rimm, Eric B and Siscovick, David S and Psaty, Bruce M and Ix, Joachim H and Mukamal, Kenneth J} } @article {6070, title = {A genome-wide association study of depressive symptoms.}, journal = {Biol Psychiatry}, volume = {73}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Apr 01}, pages = {667-78}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Depression is a heritable trait that exists on a continuum of varying severity and duration. Yet, the search for genetic variants associated with depression has had few successes. We exploit the entire continuum of depression to find common variants for depressive symptoms.

METHODS: In this genome-wide association study, we combined the results of 17 population-based studies assessing depressive symptoms with the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. Replication of the independent top hits (p<1{\texttimes}10(-5)) was performed in five studies assessing depressive symptoms with other instruments. In addition, we performed a combined meta-analysis of all 22 discovery and replication studies.

RESULTS: The discovery sample comprised 34,549 individuals (mean age of 66.5) and no loci reached genome-wide significance (lowest p = 1.05{\texttimes}10(-7)). Seven independent single nucleotide polymorphisms were considered for replication. In the replication set (n = 16,709), we found suggestive association of one single nucleotide polymorphism with depressive symptoms (rs161645, 5q21, p = 9.19{\texttimes}10(-3)). This 5q21 region reached genome-wide significance (p = 4.78{\texttimes}10(-8)) in the overall meta-analysis combining discovery and replication studies (n = 51,258).

CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that only a large sample comprising more than 50,000 subjects may be sufficiently powered to detect genes for depressive symptoms.

}, keywords = {Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Chromosomes, Human, Pair 5, Depression, Female, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Genome-Wide Association Study, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide}, issn = {1873-2402}, doi = {10.1016/j.biopsych.2012.09.033}, author = {Hek, Karin and Demirkan, Ayse and Lahti, Jari and Terracciano, Antonio and Teumer, Alexander and Cornelis, Marilyn C and Amin, Najaf and Bakshis, Erin and Baumert, Jens and Ding, Jingzhong and Liu, Yongmei and Marciante, Kristin and Meirelles, Osorio and Nalls, Michael A and Sun, Yan V and Vogelzangs, Nicole and Yu, Lei and Bandinelli, Stefania and Benjamin, Emelia J and Bennett, David A and Boomsma, Dorret and Cannas, Alessandra and Coker, Laura H and de Geus, Eco and De Jager, Philip L and Diez-Roux, Ana V and Purcell, Shaun and Hu, Frank B and Rimma, Eric B and Hunter, David J and Jensen, Majken K and Curhan, Gary and Rice, Kenneth and Penman, Alan D and Rotter, Jerome I and Sotoodehnia, Nona and Emeny, Rebecca and Eriksson, Johan G and Evans, Denis A and Ferrucci, Luigi and Fornage, Myriam and Gudnason, Vilmundur and Hofman, Albert and Illig, Thomas and Kardia, Sharon and Kelly-Hayes, Margaret and Koenen, Karestan and Kraft, Peter and Kuningas, Maris and Massaro, Joseph M and Melzer, David and Mulas, Antonella and Mulder, Cornelis L and Murray, Anna and Oostra, Ben A and Palotie, Aarno and Penninx, Brenda and Petersmann, Astrid and Pilling, Luke C and Psaty, Bruce and Rawal, Rajesh and Reiman, Eric M and Schulz, Andrea and Shulman, Joshua M and Singleton, Andrew B and Smith, Albert V and Sutin, Angelina R and Uitterlinden, Andr{\'e} G and V{\"o}lzke, Henry and Widen, Elisabeth and Yaffe, Kristine and Zonderman, Alan B and Cucca, Francesco and Harris, Tamara and Ladwig, Karl-Heinz and Llewellyn, David J and R{\"a}ikk{\"o}nen, Katri and Tanaka, Toshiko and van Duijn, Cornelia M and Grabe, Hans J and Launer, Lenore J and Lunetta, Kathryn L and Mosley, Thomas H and Newman, Anne B and Tiemeier, Henning and Murabito, Joanne} } @article {8015, title = {Identification of heart rate-associated loci and their effects on cardiac conduction and rhythm disorders.}, journal = {Nat Genet}, volume = {45}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Jun}, pages = {621-31}, abstract = {

Elevated resting heart rate is associated with greater risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality. In a 2-stage meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies in up to 181,171 individuals, we identified 14 new loci associated with heart rate and confirmed associations with all 7 previously established loci. Experimental downregulation of gene expression in Drosophila melanogaster and Danio rerio identified 20 genes at 11 loci that are relevant for heart rate regulation and highlight a role for genes involved in signal transmission, embryonic cardiac development and the pathophysiology of dilated cardiomyopathy, congenital heart failure and/or sudden cardiac death. In addition, genetic susceptibility to increased heart rate is associated with altered cardiac conduction and reduced risk of sick sinus syndrome, and both heart rate-increasing and heart rate-decreasing variants associate with risk of atrial fibrillation. Our findings provide fresh insights into the mechanisms regulating heart rate and identify new therapeutic targets.

}, keywords = {Animals, Arrhythmias, Cardiac, Gene Frequency, Genetic Loci, Genome-Wide Association Study, Heart Conduction System, Heart Rate, Humans, Metabolic Networks and Pathways, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Quantitative Trait Loci}, issn = {1546-1718}, doi = {10.1038/ng.2610}, author = {den Hoed, Marcel and Eijgelsheim, Mark and Esko, T{\~o}nu and Brundel, Bianca J J M and Peal, David S and Evans, David M and Nolte, Ilja M and Segr{\`e}, Ayellet V and Holm, Hilma and Handsaker, Robert E and Westra, Harm-Jan and Johnson, Toby and Isaacs, Aaron and Yang, Jian and Lundby, Alicia and Zhao, Jing Hua and Kim, Young Jin and Go, Min Jin and Almgren, Peter and Bochud, Murielle and Boucher, Gabrielle and Cornelis, Marilyn C and Gudbjartsson, Daniel and Hadley, David and van der Harst, Pim and Hayward, Caroline and den Heijer, Martin and Igl, Wilmar and Jackson, Anne U and Kutalik, Zolt{\'a}n and Luan, Jian{\textquoteright}an and Kemp, John P and Kristiansson, Kati and Ladenvall, Claes and Lorentzon, Mattias and Montasser, May E and Njajou, Omer T and O{\textquoteright}Reilly, Paul F and Padmanabhan, Sandosh and St Pourcain, Beate and Rankinen, Tuomo and Salo, Perttu and Tanaka, Toshiko and Timpson, Nicholas J and Vitart, Veronique and Waite, Lindsay and Wheeler, William and Zhang, Weihua and Draisma, Harmen H M and Feitosa, Mary F and Kerr, Kathleen F and Lind, Penelope A and Mihailov, Evelin and Onland-Moret, N Charlotte and Song, Ci and Weedon, Michael N and Xie, Weijia and Yengo, Loic and Absher, Devin and Albert, Christine M and Alonso, Alvaro and Arking, Dan E and de Bakker, Paul I W and Balkau, Beverley and Barlassina, Cristina and Benaglio, Paola and Bis, Joshua C and Bouatia-Naji, Nabila and Brage, S{\o}ren and Chanock, Stephen J and Chines, Peter S and Chung, Mina and Darbar, Dawood and Dina, Christian and D{\"o}rr, Marcus and Elliott, Paul and Felix, Stephan B and Fischer, Krista and Fuchsberger, Christian and de Geus, Eco J C and Goyette, Philippe and Gudnason, Vilmundur and Harris, Tamara B and Hartikainen, Anna-Liisa and Havulinna, Aki S and Heckbert, Susan R and Hicks, Andrew A and Hofman, Albert and Holewijn, Suzanne and Hoogstra-Berends, Femke and Hottenga, Jouke-Jan and Jensen, Majken K and Johansson, Asa and Junttila, Juhani and K{\"a}{\"a}b, Stefan and Kanon, Bart and Ketkar, Shamika and Khaw, Kay-Tee and Knowles, Joshua W and Kooner, Angrad S and Kors, Jan A and Kumari, Meena and Milani, Lili and Laiho, P{\"a}ivi and Lakatta, Edward G and Langenberg, Claudia and Leusink, Maarten and Liu, Yongmei and Luben, Robert N and Lunetta, Kathryn L and Lynch, Stacey N and Markus, Marcello R P and Marques-Vidal, Pedro and Mateo Leach, Irene and McArdle, Wendy L and McCarroll, Steven A and Medland, Sarah E and Miller, Kathryn A and Montgomery, Grant W and Morrison, Alanna C and M{\"u}ller-Nurasyid, Martina and Navarro, Pau and Nelis, Mari and O{\textquoteright}Connell, Jeffrey R and O{\textquoteright}Donnell, Christopher J and Ong, Ken K and Newman, Anne B and Peters, Annette and Polasek, Ozren and Pouta, Anneli and Pramstaller, Peter P and Psaty, Bruce M and Rao, Dabeeru C and Ring, Susan M and Rossin, Elizabeth J and Rudan, Diana and Sanna, Serena and Scott, Robert A and Sehmi, Jaban S and Sharp, Stephen and Shin, Jordan T and Singleton, Andrew B and Smith, Albert V and Soranzo, Nicole and Spector, Tim D and Stewart, Chip and Stringham, Heather M and Tarasov, Kirill V and Uitterlinden, Andr{\'e} G and Vandenput, Liesbeth and Hwang, Shih-Jen and Whitfield, John B and Wijmenga, Cisca and Wild, Sarah H and Willemsen, Gonneke and Wilson, James F and Witteman, Jacqueline C M and Wong, Andrew and Wong, Quenna and Jamshidi, Yalda and Zitting, Paavo and Boer, Jolanda M A and Boomsma, Dorret I and Borecki, Ingrid B and van Duijn, Cornelia M and Ekelund, Ulf and Forouhi, Nita G and Froguel, Philippe and Hingorani, Aroon and Ingelsson, Erik and Kivimaki, Mika and Kronmal, Richard A and Kuh, Diana and Lind, Lars and Martin, Nicholas G and Oostra, Ben A and Pedersen, Nancy L and Quertermous, Thomas and Rotter, Jerome I and van der Schouw, Yvonne T and Verschuren, W M Monique and Walker, Mark and Albanes, Demetrius and Arnar, David O and Assimes, Themistocles L and Bandinelli, Stefania and Boehnke, Michael and de Boer, Rudolf A and Bouchard, Claude and Caulfield, W L Mark and Chambers, John C and Curhan, Gary and Cusi, Daniele and Eriksson, Johan and Ferrucci, Luigi and van Gilst, Wiek H and Glorioso, Nicola and de Graaf, Jacqueline and Groop, Leif and Gyllensten, Ulf and Hsueh, Wen-Chi and Hu, Frank B and Huikuri, Heikki V and Hunter, David J and Iribarren, Carlos and Isomaa, Bo and Jarvelin, Marjo-Riitta and Jula, Antti and K{\"a}h{\"o}nen, Mika and Kiemeney, Lambertus A and van der Klauw, Melanie M and Kooner, Jaspal S and Kraft, Peter and Iacoviello, Licia and Lehtim{\"a}ki, Terho and Lokki, Marja-Liisa L and Mitchell, Braxton D and Navis, Gerjan and Nieminen, Markku S and Ohlsson, Claes and Poulter, Neil R and Qi, Lu and Raitakari, Olli T and Rimm, Eric B and Rioux, John D and Rizzi, Federica and Rudan, Igor and Salomaa, Veikko and Sever, Peter S and Shields, Denis C and Shuldiner, Alan R and Sinisalo, Juha and Stanton, Alice V and Stolk, Ronald P and Strachan, David P and Tardif, Jean-Claude and Thorsteinsdottir, Unnur and Tuomilehto, Jaako and van Veldhuisen, Dirk J and Virtamo, Jarmo and Viikari, Jorma and Vollenweider, Peter and Waeber, G{\'e}rard and Widen, Elisabeth and Cho, Yoon Shin and Olsen, Jesper V and Visscher, Peter M and Willer, Cristen and Franke, Lude and Erdmann, Jeanette and Thompson, John R and Pfeufer, Arne and Sotoodehnia, Nona and Newton-Cheh, Christopher and Ellinor, Patrick T and Stricker, Bruno H Ch and Metspalu, Andres and Perola, Markus and Beckmann, Jacques S and Smith, George Davey and Stefansson, Kari and Wareham, Nicholas J and Munroe, Patricia B and Sibon, Ody C M and Milan, David J and Snieder, Harold and Samani, Nilesh J and Loos, Ruth J F} } @article {6938, title = {FTO genetic variants, dietary intake and body mass index: insights from 177,330 individuals.}, journal = {Hum Mol Genet}, volume = {23}, year = {2014}, month = {2014 Dec 20}, pages = {6961-72}, abstract = {

FTO is the strongest known genetic susceptibility locus for obesity. Experimental studies in animals suggest the potential roles of FTO in regulating food intake. The interactive relation among FTO variants, dietary intake and body mass index (BMI) is complex and results from previous often small-scale studies in humans are highly inconsistent. We performed large-scale analyses based on data from 177,330 adults (154 439 Whites, 5776 African Americans and 17 115 Asians) from 40 studies to examine: (i) the association between the FTO-rs9939609 variant (or a proxy single-nucleotide polymorphism) and total energy and macronutrient intake and (ii) the interaction between the FTO variant and dietary intake on BMI. The minor allele (A-allele) of the FTO-rs9939609 variant was associated with higher BMI in Whites (effect per allele = 0.34 [0.31, 0.37] kg/m(2), P = 1.9 {\texttimes} 10(-105)), and all participants (0.30 [0.30, 0.35] kg/m(2), P = 3.6 {\texttimes} 10(-107)). The BMI-increasing allele of the FTO variant showed a significant association with higher dietary protein intake (effect per allele = 0.08 [0.06, 0.10] \%, P = 2.4 {\texttimes} 10(-16)), and relative weak associations with lower total energy intake (-6.4 [-10.1, -2.6] kcal/day, P = 0.001) and lower dietary carbohydrate intake (-0.07 [-0.11, -0.02] \%, P = 0.004). The associations with protein (P = 7.5 {\texttimes} 10(-9)) and total energy (P = 0.002) were attenuated but remained significant after adjustment for BMI. We did not find significant interactions between the FTO variant and dietary intake of total energy, protein, carbohydrate or fat on BMI. Our findings suggest a positive association between the BMI-increasing allele of FTO variant and higher dietary protein intake and offer insight into potential link between FTO, dietary protein intake and adiposity.

}, keywords = {Adult, African Americans, Aged, Alleles, Asian Continental Ancestry Group, Body Mass Index, Dietary Carbohydrates, Dietary Fats, Dietary Proteins, Energy Intake, European Continental Ancestry Group, Female, Gene Frequency, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Obesity, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Proteins}, issn = {1460-2083}, doi = {10.1093/hmg/ddu411}, author = {Qi, Qibin and Kilpel{\"a}inen, Tuomas O and Downer, Mary K and Tanaka, Toshiko and Smith, Caren E and Sluijs, Ivonne and Sonestedt, Emily and Chu, Audrey Y and Renstrom, Frida and Lin, Xiaochen and {\"A}ngquist, Lars H and Huang, Jinyan and Liu, Zhonghua and Li, Yanping and Asif Ali, Muhammad and Xu, Min and Ahluwalia, Tarunveer Singh and Boer, Jolanda M A and Chen, Peng and Daimon, Makoto and Eriksson, Johan and Perola, Markus and Friedlander, Yechiel and Gao, Yu-Tang and Heppe, Denise H M and Holloway, John W and Houston, Denise K and Kanoni, Stavroula and Kim, Yu-Mi and Laaksonen, Maarit A and J{\"a}{\"a}skel{\"a}inen, Tiina and Lee, Nanette R and Lehtim{\"a}ki, Terho and Lemaitre, Rozenn N and Lu, Wei and Luben, Robert N and Manichaikul, Ani and M{\"a}nnist{\"o}, Satu and Marques-Vidal, Pedro and Monda, Keri L and Ngwa, Julius S and Perusse, Louis and van Rooij, Frank J A and Xiang, Yong-Bing and Wen, Wanqing and Wojczynski, Mary K and Zhu, Jingwen and Borecki, Ingrid B and Bouchard, Claude and Cai, Qiuyin and Cooper, Cyrus and Dedoussis, George V and Deloukas, Panos and Ferrucci, Luigi and Forouhi, Nita G and Hansen, Torben and Christiansen, Lene and Hofman, Albert and Johansson, Ingegerd and J{\o}rgensen, Torben and Karasawa, Shigeru and Khaw, Kay-Tee and Kim, Mi-Kyung and Kristiansson, Kati and Li, Huaixing and Lin, Xu and Liu, Yongmei and Lohman, Kurt K and Long, Jirong and Mikkil{\"a}, Vera and Mozaffarian, Dariush and North, Kari and Pedersen, Oluf and Raitakari, Olli and Rissanen, Harri and Tuomilehto, Jaakko and van der Schouw, Yvonne T and Uitterlinden, Andr{\'e} G and Zillikens, M Carola and Franco, Oscar H and Shyong Tai, E and Ou Shu, Xiao and Siscovick, David S and Toft, Ulla and Verschuren, W M Monique and Vollenweider, Peter and Wareham, Nicholas J and Witteman, Jacqueline C M and Zheng, Wei and Ridker, Paul M and Kang, Jae H and Liang, Liming and Jensen, Majken K and Curhan, Gary C and Pasquale, Louis R and Hunter, David J and Mohlke, Karen L and Uusitupa, Matti and Cupples, L Adrienne and Rankinen, Tuomo and Orho-Melander, Marju and Wang, Tao and Chasman, Daniel I and Franks, Paul W and S{\o}rensen, Thorkild I A and Hu, Frank B and Loos, Ruth J F and Nettleton, Jennifer A and Qi, Lu} } @article {6853, title = {Fetuin-A and risk of coronary heart disease: A Mendelian randomization analysis and a pooled analysis of AHSG genetic variants in 7 prospective studies.}, journal = {Atherosclerosis}, volume = {243}, year = {2015}, month = {2015 Nov}, pages = {44-52}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Fetuin-A has a plausible role in the inhibition of arterial calcification, but its association with risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) in the general population is unclear. We used two common genetic variants in the fetuin-A gene (AHSG) that are strongly associated with circulating fetuin-A levels to investigate the associations with risk of CHD and subclinical cardiovascular measures (intima-media thickness, ankle-arm index, and coronary artery calcification).

METHODS: Genetic variation and fetuin-A levels were assessed in 3299 community-living individuals (2733 Caucasians and 566 African Americans) 65 years of age or older, free of previous cardiovascular disease, who participated in the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) in 1992-1993.

RESULTS: Among Caucasians, both rs2248690 and rs4917 were associated with 12\% lower fetuin-A concentrations per minor allele (P~<~0.0001). The hazard ratios (HRs) per minor allele for incident CHD were 1.12 (95\% CI: 1.00-1.26) for rs2248690 and 1.02 (0.91-1.14) for rs4917. Using both genotypes as an instrumental variable for measured fetuin-A, the HRs for one standard deviation increase in genetically determined fetuin-A levels on CHD risk were 0.84 (95\% CI: 0.70-1.00) for rs2248690 and 0.97 (95\% CI: 0.82-1.14) for rs4917, respectively. However, in CHS neither of the genotypes were associated with subclinical cardiovascular measures and when CHS data were meta-analyzed with data from six other prospective studies (totaling 26,702 Caucasian participants and 3295 CHD cases), the meta-analyzed HRs for incident CHD were 1.12 (0.93-1.34) and 1.06 (0.93-1.20) for rs2248690 and rs4917, respectively (p heterogeneity 0.005 and 0.0048).

CONCLUSION: Common variants in the AHSG gene are strongly associated with fetuin-A levels, but their concurrent association with CHD risk in current prospective studies is inconsistent. Further investigation in studies with measured fetuin-A and AHSG variants is needed to clarify the potential causal association of fetuin-A with CHD risk.

}, keywords = {Aged, Aged, 80 and over, alpha-2-HS-Glycoprotein, Carotid Intima-Media Thickness, Coronary Vessels, Female, Genetic Variation, Genotype, Heart Diseases, Humans, Insulin Resistance, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Mendelian Randomization Analysis, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Prospective Studies, Risk Factors, Vascular Calcification}, issn = {1879-1484}, doi = {10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2015.08.031}, author = {Laugsand, Lars E and Ix, Joachim H and Bartz, Traci M and Djouss{\'e}, Luc and Kizer, Jorge R and Tracy, Russell P and Dehghan, Abbas and Rexrode, Kathryn and Lopez, Oscar L and Rimm, Eric B and Siscovick, David S and O{\textquoteright}Donnell, Christopher J and Newman, Anne and Mukamal, Kenneth J and Jensen, Majken K} } @article {6615, title = {Genetic loci associated with circulating levels of very long-chain saturated fatty acids.}, journal = {J Lipid Res}, volume = {56}, year = {2015}, month = {2015 Jan}, pages = {176-84}, abstract = {

Very long-chain saturated fatty acids (VLSFAs) are saturated fatty acids with 20 or more carbons. In contrast to the more abundant saturated fatty acids, such as palmitic acid, there is growing evidence that circulating VLSFAs may have beneficial biological properties. Whether genetic factors influence circulating levels of VLSFAs is not known. We investigated the association of common genetic variation with plasma phospholipid/erythrocyte levels of three VLSFAs by performing genome-wide association studies in seven population-based cohorts comprising 10,129 subjects of European ancestry. We observed associations of circulating VLSFA concentrations with common variants in two genes, serine palmitoyl-transferase long-chain base subunit 3 (SPTLC3), a gene involved in the rate-limiting step of de novo sphingolipid synthesis, and ceramide synthase 4 (CERS4). The SPTLC3 variant at rs680379 was associated with higher arachidic acid (20:0 , P = 5.81 {\texttimes} 10(-13)). The CERS4 variant at rs2100944 was associated with higher levels of 20:0 (P = 2.65 {\texttimes} 10(-40)) and in analyses that adjusted for 20:0, with lower levels of behenic acid (P = 4.22 {\texttimes} 10(-26)) and lignoceric acid (P = 3.20 {\texttimes} 10(-21)). These novel associations suggest an inter-relationship of circulating VLSFAs and sphingolipid synthesis.

}, keywords = {Cohort Studies, Fatty Acids, Genetic Loci, Genetic Variation, Genome-Wide Association Study, Humans}, issn = {1539-7262}, doi = {10.1194/jlr.M052456}, author = {Lemaitre, Rozenn N and King, Irena B and Kabagambe, Edmond K and Wu, Jason H Y and McKnight, Barbara and Manichaikul, Ani and Guan, Weihua and Sun, Qi and Chasman, Daniel I and Foy, Millennia and Wang, Lu and Zhu, Jingwen and Siscovick, David S and Tsai, Michael Y and Arnett, Donna K and Psaty, Bruce M and Djouss{\'e}, Luc and Chen, Yii-der I and Tang, Weihong and Weng, Lu-Chen and Wu, Hongyu and Jensen, Majken K and Chu, Audrey Y and Jacobs, David R and Rich, Stephen S and Mozaffarian, Dariush and Steffen, Lyn and Rimm, Eric B and Hu, Frank B and Ridker, Paul M and Fornage, Myriam and Friedlander, Yechiel} } @article {6685, title = {Genetic loci associated with circulating phospholipid trans fatty acids: a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies from the CHARGE Consortium.}, journal = {Am J Clin Nutr}, volume = {101}, year = {2015}, month = {2015 Feb}, pages = {398-406}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Circulating trans fatty acids (TFAs), which cannot be synthesized by humans, are linked to adverse health outcomes. Although TFAs are obtained from diet, little is known about subsequent influences (e.g., relating to incorporation, metabolism, or intercompetition with other fatty acids) that could alter circulating concentrations and possibly modulate or mediate impacts on health.

OBJECTIVE: The objective was to elucidate novel biologic pathways that may influence circulating TFAs by evaluating associations between common genetic variation and TFA biomarkers.

DESIGN: We performed meta-analyses using 7 cohorts of European-ancestry participants (n = 8013) having measured genome-wide variation in single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and circulating TFA biomarkers (erythrocyte or plasma phospholipids), including trans-16:1n-7, total trans-18:1, trans/cis-18:2, cis/trans-18:2, and trans/trans-18:2. We further evaluated SNPs with genome-wide significant associations among African Americans (n = 1082), Chinese Americans (n = 669), and Hispanic Americans (n = 657) from 2 of these cohorts.

RESULTS: Among European-ancestry participants, 31 SNPs in or near the fatty acid desaturase (FADS) 1 and 2 cluster were associated with cis/trans-18:2; a top hit was rs174548 (β = 0.0035, P = 4.90 {\texttimes} 10(-15)), an SNP previously associated with circulating n-3 and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid concentrations. No significant association was identified for other TFAs. rs174548 in FADS1/2 was also associated with cis/trans-18:2 in Hispanic Americans (β = 0.0053, P = 1.05 {\texttimes} 10(-6)) and Chinese Americans (β = 0.0028, P = 0.002) but not African Americans (β = 0.0009, P = 0.34); however, in African Americans, fine mapping identified a top hit in FADS2 associated with cis/trans-18:2 (rs174579: β = 0.0118, P = 4.05 {\texttimes} 10(-5)). The association between rs174548 and cis/trans-18:2 remained significant after further adjustment for individual circulating n-3 and n-6 fatty acids, except arachidonic acid. After adjustment for arachidonic acid concentrations, the association between rs174548 and cis/trans-18:2 was nearly eliminated in European-ancestry participants (β-coefficient reduced by 86\%), with similar reductions in Hispanic Americans and Chinese Americans.

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings provide novel evidence for genetic regulation of cis/trans-18:2 by the FADS1/2 cluster and suggest that this regulation may be influenced/mediated by concentrations of arachidonic acid, an n-6 polyunsaturated fat.

}, keywords = {African Americans, Arachidonic Acid, Asian Americans, Biomarkers, European Continental Ancestry Group, Fatty Acids, Omega-6, Gene Frequency, Genetic Association Studies, Genetic Loci, Genotyping Techniques, Humans, Phospholipids, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Trans Fatty Acids}, issn = {1938-3207}, doi = {10.3945/ajcn.114.094557}, author = {Mozaffarian, Dariush and Kabagambe, Edmond K and Johnson, Catherine O and Lemaitre, Rozenn N and Manichaikul, Ani and Sun, Qi and Foy, Millennia and Wang, Lu and Wiener, Howard and Irvin, Marguerite R and Rich, Stephen S and Wu, Hongyu and Jensen, Majken K and Chasman, Daniel I and Chu, Audrey Y and Fornage, Myriam and Steffen, Lyn and King, Irena B and McKnight, Barbara and Psaty, Bruce M and Djouss{\'e}, Luc and Chen, Ida Y-D and Wu, Jason H Y and Siscovick, David S and Ridker, Paul M and Tsai, Michael Y and Rimm, Eric B and Hu, Frank B and Arnett, Donna K} } @article {6770, title = {Urinary uromodulin, kidney function, and cardiovascular disease in elderly adults.}, journal = {Kidney Int}, volume = {88}, year = {2015}, month = {2015 Nov}, pages = {1126-34}, abstract = {

Urinary uromodulin (uUMOD) is the most common secreted tubular protein in healthy adults. However, the relationship between uUMOD and clinical outcomes is still unclear. Here we measured uUMOD in 192 participants of the Cardiovascular Health Study with over a 30\% decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) over 9 years, 54 with incident end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and in a random subcohort of 958 participants. The association of uUMOD with eGFR decline was evaluated using logistic regression and with incident ESRD, cardiovascular disease, heart failure, and mortality using Cox proportional regression. Mean age was 78 years and median uUMOD was 25.8 μg/ml. In a case-control study evaluating eGFR decline (192 cases and 231 controls), each 1-s.d. higher uUMOD was associated with a 23\% lower odds of eGFR decline (odds ratio 0.77 (95\% CI 0.62-0.96)) and a 10\% lower risk of mortality (hazard ratio 0.90 (95\% CI 0.83-0.98)) after adjusting for demographics, eGFR, albumin/creatinine ratio, and other risk factors. There was no risk association of uUMOD with ESRD, cardiovascular disease, or heart failure after multivariable adjustment. Thus, low uUMOD levels may identify persons at risk of progressive kidney disease and mortality above and beyond established markers of kidney disease, namely eGFR and the albumin/creatinine ratio. Future studies need to confirm these results and evaluate whether uUMOD is a marker of tubular health and/or whether it plays a causal role in preserving kidney function.

}, keywords = {Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Albuminuria, Biomarkers, Cardiovascular Diseases, Case-Control Studies, Creatinine, Disease Progression, Female, Glomerular Filtration Rate, Heart Failure, Humans, Incidence, Kidney Failure, Chronic, Male, Proportional Hazards Models, Uromodulin}, issn = {1523-1755}, doi = {10.1038/ki.2015.192}, author = {Garimella, Pranav S and Biggs, Mary L and Katz, Ronit and Ix, Joachim H and Bennett, Michael R and Devarajan, Prasad and Kestenbaum, Bryan R and Siscovick, David S and Jensen, Majken K and Shlipak, Michael G and Chaves, Paulo H M and Sarnak, Mark J} } @article {6997, title = {Associations of insulin resistance, inflammation and liver synthetic function with very low-density lipoprotein: The Cardiovascular Health Study.}, journal = {Metabolism}, volume = {65}, year = {2016}, month = {2016 Mar}, pages = {92-9}, abstract = {

INTRODUCTION: Production of very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) is increased in states of metabolic syndrome, leading to hypertriglyceridemia. However, metabolic syndrome is often associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which leads to liver fibrosis and inflammation that may decrease VLDL production. In this study, we aim to determine the interactive impact on VLDL profiles from insulin resistance, impairment in liver synthetic function and inflammation.

METHODS: We examined cross-sectional associations of insulin sensitivity, inflammation, and liver synthetic function with VLDL particle (VLDL-P) concentration and size among 1,850 older adults in the Cardiovascular Health Study.

RESULTS: Indices for high insulin sensitivity and low liver synthetic function were associated with lower concentrations of VLDL-P. In addition, insulin resistance preferentially increased concentration of large VLDL and was associated with mean VLDL size. Indices for inflammation however demonstrated a nonlinear relationship with both VLDL-P concentration and VLDL size. When mutually adjusted, one standard deviation (SD) increment in Matsuda index and C-reactive protein (CRP) were associated with 4.9 nmol/L (-8.2 to -1.5, p=0.005) and 6.3 nmol/L (-11.0 to -1.6, p=0.009) lower VLDL-P concentration respectively. In contrast, one-SD increment in factor VII, a marker for liver synthetic function, was associated with 16.9 nmol/L (12.6-21.2, p<0.001) higher VLDL-P concentration. Furthermore, a one-SD increment in the Matsuda index was associated with 1.1 nm (-2.0 to -0.3, p=0.006) smaller mean VLDL size, whereas CRP and factor VII were not associated with VLDL size.

CONCLUSION: Insulin sensitivity, inflammation and markers for liver synthetic function differentially impact VLDL-P concentration and VLDL size. These results underscore the complex effects of insulin resistance and its complications on VLDL production.

}, keywords = {Aged, Aged, 80 and over, C-Reactive Protein, Cross-Sectional Studies, Factor VII, Female, Humans, Inflammation, Insulin Resistance, Lipoproteins, VLDL, Liver, Liver Function Tests, Male, Risk Factors, Socioeconomic Factors}, issn = {1532-8600}, doi = {10.1016/j.metabol.2015.10.017}, author = {Jiang, Z Gordon and de Boer, Ian H and Mackey, Rachel H and Jensen, Majken K and Lai, Michelle and Robson, Simon C and Tracy, Russell and Kuller, Lewis H and Mukamal, Kenneth J} } @article {7004, title = {Genome-Wide Association Study for Incident Myocardial Infarction and Coronary Heart Disease in Prospective Cohort Studies: The CHARGE Consortium.}, journal = {PLoS One}, volume = {11}, year = {2016}, month = {2016}, pages = {e0144997}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Data are limited on genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for incident coronary heart disease (CHD). Moreover, it is not known whether genetic variants identified to date also associate with risk of CHD in a prospective setting.

METHODS: We performed a two-stage GWAS analysis of incident myocardial infarction (MI) and CHD in a total of 64,297 individuals (including 3898 MI cases, 5465 CHD cases). SNPs that passed an arbitrary threshold of 5{\texttimes}10-6 in Stage I were taken to Stage II for further discovery. Furthermore, in an analysis of prognosis, we studied whether known SNPs from former GWAS were associated with total mortality in individuals who experienced MI during follow-up.

RESULTS: In Stage I 15 loci passed the threshold of 5{\texttimes}10-6; 8 loci for MI and 8 loci for CHD, for which one locus overlapped and none were reported in previous GWAS meta-analyses. We took 60 SNPs representing these 15 loci to Stage II of discovery. Four SNPs near QKI showed nominally significant association with MI (p-value<8.8{\texttimes}10-3) and three exceeded the genome-wide significance threshold when Stage I and Stage II results were combined (top SNP rs6941513: p = 6.2{\texttimes}10-9). Despite excellent power, the 9p21 locus SNP (rs1333049) was only modestly associated with MI (HR = 1.09, p-value = 0.02) and marginally with CHD (HR = 1.06, p-value = 0.08). Among an inception cohort of those who experienced MI during follow-up, the risk allele of rs1333049 was associated with a decreased risk of subsequent mortality (HR = 0.90, p-value = 3.2{\texttimes}10-3).

CONCLUSIONS: QKI represents a novel locus that may serve as a predictor of incident CHD in prospective studies. The association of the 9p21 locus both with increased risk of first myocardial infarction and longer survival after MI highlights the importance of study design in investigating genetic determinants of complex disorders.

}, keywords = {Aged, Cohort Studies, Cooperative Behavior, Coronary Artery Disease, Female, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Genome-Wide Association Study, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Myocardial Infarction, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Prospective Studies}, issn = {1932-6203}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0144997}, author = {Dehghan, Abbas and Bis, Joshua C and White, Charles C and Smith, Albert Vernon and Morrison, Alanna C and Cupples, L Adrienne and Trompet, Stella and Chasman, Daniel I and Lumley, Thomas and V{\"o}lker, Uwe and Buckley, Brendan M and Ding, Jingzhong and Jensen, Majken K and Folsom, Aaron R and Kritchevsky, Stephen B and Girman, Cynthia J and Ford, Ian and D{\"o}rr, Marcus and Salomaa, Veikko and Uitterlinden, Andr{\'e} G and Eiriksdottir, Gudny and Vasan, Ramachandran S and Franceschini, Nora and Carty, Cara L and Virtamo, Jarmo and Demissie, Serkalem and Amouyel, Philippe and Arveiler, Dominique and Heckbert, Susan R and Ferrieres, Jean and Ducimetiere, Pierre and Smith, Nicholas L and Wang, Ying A and Siscovick, David S and Rice, Kenneth M and Wiklund, Per-Gunnar and Taylor, Kent D and Evans, Alun and Kee, Frank and Rotter, Jerome I and Karvanen, Juha and Kuulasmaa, Kari and Heiss, Gerardo and Kraft, Peter and Launer, Lenore J and Hofman, Albert and Markus, Marcello R P and Rose, Lynda M and Silander, Kaisa and Wagner, Peter and Benjamin, Emelia J and Lohman, Kurt and Stott, David J and Rivadeneira, Fernando and Harris, Tamara B and Levy, Daniel and Liu, Yongmei and Rimm, Eric B and Jukema, J Wouter and V{\"o}lzke, Henry and Ridker, Paul M and Blankenberg, Stefan and Franco, Oscar H and Gudnason, Vilmundur and Psaty, Bruce M and Boerwinkle, Eric and O{\textquoteright}Donnell, Christopher J} } @article {7328, title = {Detection of genetic loci associated with plasma fetuin-A: A meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies from the CHARGE Consortium.}, journal = {Hum Mol Genet}, year = {2017}, month = {2017 Apr 03}, abstract = {

Plasma fetuin-A is associated with type 2 diabetes, and AHSG, the gene encoding fetuin-A, has been identified as a susceptibility locus for diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Thus far, unbiased investigations of the genetic determinants of plasma fetuin-A concentrations have not been conducted. We searched for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) related to fetuin-A concentrations by a genome-wide association study in six population-based studies.We examined the association of fetuin-A levels with \~{} 2.5 million genotyped and imputed SNPs in 9,055 participants of European descent and 2,119 African Americans. In both ethnicities, strongest associations were centered in a region with a high degree of LD near the AHSG locus. Among 136 genome-wide significant (p < 0.05x10-8) SNPs near the AHSG locus, the top SNP was rs4917 (p = 1.27x10-303), a known coding SNP in exon 6 that is associated with a 0.06 g/L (\~{}13\%) lower fetuin-A level. This variant alone explained 14\% of the variation in fetuin-A levels. Analyses conditioned on rs4917 indicated that the strong association with the AHSG locus stems from additional independent associations of multiple variants among European Americans. In conclusion, levels of fetuin-A in plasma are strongly associated with SNPs in its encoding gene, AHSG, but not elsewhere in the genome. Given the strength of the associations observed for multiple independent SNPs, the AHSG gene is an example of a candidate locus suitable for additional investigations including fine mapping to elucidate the biological basis of the findings and further functional experiments to clarify AHSG as a potential therapeutic target.

}, issn = {1460-2083}, doi = {10.1093/hmg/ddx091}, author = {Jensen, Majken K and Jensen, Richard A and Mukamal, Kenneth J and Guo, Xiuqing and Yao, Jie and Sun, Qi and Cornelis, Marilyn and Liu, Yongmei and Chen, Ming-Huei and Kizer, Jorge R and Djouss{\'e}, Luc and Siscovick, David S and Psaty, Bruce M and Zmuda, Joseph M and Rotter, Jerome I and Garcia, Melissa and Harris, Tamara and Chen, Ida and Goodarzi, Mark O and Nalls, Michael A and Keller, Margaux and Arnold, Alice M and Newman, Anne and Hoogeeven, Ron C and Rexrode, Kathryn M and Rimm, Eric B and Hu, Frank B and Vasan, Ramachandran S and Katz, Ronit and Pankow, James S and Ix, Joachim H} } @article {7346, title = {Discovery and fine-mapping of loci associated with monounsaturated fatty acids through trans-ethnic meta-analysis in Chinese and European populations.}, journal = {J Lipid Res}, year = {2017}, month = {2017 Mar 15}, abstract = {

Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) are unsaturated fatty acids with one double bond and are derived from endogenous synthesis and dietary intake. Accumulating evidence has suggested that plasma and erythrocyte MUFA levels were associated with cardiometabolic disorders including cardiovascular disease (CVD), type 2 diabetes (T2D) and metabolic syndrome (MS). Previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified seven loci for plasma and erythrocyte palmitoleic acid and oleic acid levels in populations of European origin. To identify additional MUFA-associated loci and the potential causal variant at each locus, we performed ethnic-specific GWAS meta-analyses and trans-ethnic meta-analyses in over 15,000 participants of Chinese- and European-ancestry. We identified novel genome-wide significant associations for vaccenic acid at FADS1/2 and PKD2L1 [log10(Bayes factor)>=8.07] and for gondoic acid at FADS1/2 and GCKR [log10(Bayes factor)>=61619;6.22], and also observed improved fine-mapping resolutions at FADS1/2 and GCKR loci. The greatest improvement was observed at GCKR, where the number of variants in the 99\% credible set was reduced from 16 (covering ~95kb) to five (covering ~20kb, including a missense variant rs1260326) after trans-ethnic meta-analysis. We also confirmed the previously reported associations of PKD2L1, FADS1/2, GCKR and HIF1AN with palmitoleic acid and of FADS1/2 and LPCAT3 with oleic acid in the Chinese-specific GWAS and trans-ethnic meta-analyses. Pathway-based analyses suggested that the identified loci were enriched in unsaturated fatty acids metabolism and signaling pathways. Our findings provided novel insight into the genetic basis relevant to MUFA metabolism and biology.

}, issn = {1539-7262}, doi = {10.1194/jlr.P071860}, author = {Hu, Yao and Tanaka, Toshiko and Zhu, Jingwen and Guan, Weihua and Wu, Jason H Y and Psaty, Bruce M and McKnight, Barbara and King, Irena B and Sun, Qi and Richard, Melissa and Manichaikul, Ani and Frazier-Wood, Alexis C and Kabagambe, Edmond K and Hopkins, Paul N and Ordovas, Jose M and Ferrucci, Luigi and Bandinelli, Stefania and Arnett, Donna K and Chen, Yii-der I and Liang, Shuang and Siscovick, David S and Tsai, Michael Y and Rich, Stephen S and Fornage, Myriam and Hu, Frank B and Rimm, Eric B and Jensen, Majken K and Lemaitre, Rozenn N and Mozaffarian, Dariush and Steffen, Lyn M and Morris, Andrew P and Li, Huaixing and Lin, Xu} } @article {7791, title = {Genome-wide association meta-analysis of circulating odd-numbered chain saturated fatty acids: Results from the CHARGE Consortium.}, journal = {PLoS One}, volume = {13}, year = {2018}, month = {2018}, pages = {e0196951}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Odd-numbered chain saturated fatty acids (OCSFA) have been associated with potential health benefits. Although some OCSFA (e.g., C15:0 and C17:0) are found in meats and dairy products, sources and metabolism of C19:0 and C23:0 are relatively unknown, and the influence of non-dietary determinants, including genetic factors, on circulating levels of OCSFA is not established.

OBJECTIVE: To elucidate the biological processes that influence circulating levels of OCSFA by investigating associations between genetic variation and OCSFA.

DESIGN: We performed a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of plasma phospholipid/erythrocyte levels of C15:0, C17:0, C19:0, and C23:0 among 11,494 individuals of European descent. We also investigated relationships between specific single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the lactase (LCT) gene, associated with adult-onset lactase intolerance, with circulating levels of dairy-derived OCSFA, and evaluated associations of candidate sphingolipid genes with C23:0 levels.

RESULTS: We found no genome-wide significant evidence that common genetic variation is associated with circulating levels of C15:0 or C23:0. In two cohorts with available data, we identified one intronic SNP (rs13361131) in myosin X gene (MYO10) associated with C17:0 level (P = 1.37{\texttimes}10-8), and two intronic SNP (rs12874278 and rs17363566) in deleted in lymphocytic leukemia 1 (DLEU1) region associated with C19:0 level (P = 7.07{\texttimes}10-9). In contrast, when using a candidate-gene approach, we found evidence that three SNPs in LCT (rs11884924, rs16832067, and rs3816088) are associated with circulating C17:0 level (adjusted P = 4{\texttimes}10-2). In addition, nine SNPs in the ceramide synthase 4 (CERS4) region were associated with circulating C23:0 levels (adjusted P<5{\texttimes}10-2).

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that circulating levels of OCSFA may be predominantly influenced by non-genetic factors. SNPs associated with C17:0 level in the LCT gene may reflect genetic influence in dairy consumption or in metabolism of dairy foods. SNPs associated with C23:0 may reflect a role of genetic factors in the synthesis of sphingomyelin.

}, keywords = {Fatty Acids, Genome-Wide Association Study, Humans, Introns, Lactase, Myosins, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Sphingomyelins, Sphingosine N-Acyltransferase, Tumor Suppressor Proteins}, issn = {1932-6203}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0196951}, author = {de Oliveira Otto, Marcia C and Lemaitre, Rozenn N and Sun, Qi and King, Irena B and Wu, Jason H Y and Manichaikul, Ani and Rich, Stephen S and Tsai, Michael Y and Chen, Y D and Fornage, Myriam and Weihua, Guan and Aslibekyan, Stella and Irvin, Marguerite R and Kabagambe, Edmond K and Arnett, Donna K and Jensen, Majken K and McKnight, Barbara and Psaty, Bruce M and Steffen, Lyn M and Smith, Caren E and Riserus, Ulf and Lind, Lars and Hu, Frank B and Rimm, Eric B and Siscovick, David S and Mozaffarian, Dariush} } @article {8912, title = {HDL (High-Density Lipoprotein) Subspecies, Prevalent Covert Brain Infarcts, and Incident Overt Ischemic Stroke: Cardiovascular Health Study.}, journal = {Stroke}, year = {2021}, month = {2021 Oct 14}, pages = {STROKEAHA121034299}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Whether HDL (high-density lipoprotein) is associated with risk of vascular brain injury is unclear. HDL is comprised of many apo (apolipoprotein) species, creating distinct subtypes of HDL.

METHODS: We utilized sandwich ELISA to determine HDL subspecies from plasma collected in 1998/1999 from 2001 CHS (Cardiovascular Health Study) participants (mean age, 80 years).

RESULTS: In cross-sectional analyses, participants with higher apoA1 in plasma and lower apoE in HDL were less likely to have prevalent covert magnetic resonance imaging-defined infarcts: odds ratio for apoA1 Q4 versus Q1, 0.68 (95\% CI, 0.50-0.93), and odds ratio for apoE Q4 versus Q1, 1.36 (95\% CI, 1.01-1.84). Similarly, apoA1 in the subspecies of HDL that lacked apoC3, apoJ, or apoE was inversely related to covert infarcts, and apoE in the subspecies of HDL that lacked apoC3 or apoJ was directly related to covert infarcts in prospective analyses. In contrast, the concentrations of apoA1 and apoE in the complementary subspecies of HDL that contained these apos were unrelated to covert infarcts. Patterns of associations between incident overt ischemic stroke and apoA1, apoE, and apoA1 and apoE in subspecies of HDL were similar to those observed for covert infarcts but less pronounced.

CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights HDL subspecies defined by apo content as relevant biomarkers of covert and overt vascular brain injury.

}, issn = {1524-4628}, doi = {10.1161/STROKEAHA.121.034299}, author = {Koch, Manja and Aroner, Sarah A and Fitzpatrick, Annette L and Longstreth, W T and Furtado, Jeremy D and Mukamal, Kenneth J and Jensen, Majken K} } @article {8706, title = {Hemostatic factor levels and cognitive decline in older adults: The Cardiovascular Health Study.}, journal = {J Thromb Haemost}, year = {2021}, month = {2021 Mar 16}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Hemostasis is a key factor in cerebrovascular disease, but the association of hemostatic factors with cognitive decline is unclear.

OBJECTIVE: To prospectively evaluate associations of 20 hemostatic factor levels with changes in cognition during >=8~years of follow-up in the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) of older adults.

METHODS: We included participants of an existing CHS cross-sectional substudy (n~=~400) with hemostatic factors measured in 1989-1990. Between 1989-1990 and 1998-1999, cognitive function was measured using the Modified Mini-Mental State Examination (3MSE) and Digit Symbol Substitution Tests. Mixed-effects linear regression models estimated change in cognitive function over time, adjusting for sociodemographic and clinical factors and APOE genotype, using Bonferroni adjustment. We also derived principal components to account for the interrelationship among factors.

RESULTS: Of 20 factors evaluated individually, only higher levels of plasmin-α -antiplasmin complex (PAP), tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI), and lower factor X (FXc) levels were associated with faster cognitive decline, estimated by annual change in 3MSE points (1 standard deviation PAP β~=~-0.65, 95\% confidence interval [CI]: -1.08 to -0.21; TFPI β~=~-0.55, 95\% CI: -0.90 to -0.19; FXc β~=~0.52, 95\% CI: 0.21-0.84). One of four principal components, loading positively on D-dimer, prothrombin fragment 1.2 (F1.2), and PAP was significantly associated with change in 3MSE.

CONCLUSIONS: Levels of PAP, TPFI, and FXc and a combination of factors driven by PAP, D-dimer, and F1.2 were associated with cognitive decline. Whether these findings can be used to improve dementia prevention or prediction requires further study.

}, issn = {1538-7836}, doi = {10.1111/jth.15300}, author = {Harrington, Laura B and Ehlert, Alexa N and Thacker, Evan L and Jenny, Nancy S and Lopez, Oscar and Cushman, Mary and Fitzpatrick, Annette and Mukamal, Kenneth J and Jensen, Majken K} } @article {9183, title = {Associations between Alcohol Consumption and HDL Subspecies Defined by ApoC3, ApoE and ApoJ: the Cardiovascular Health Study.}, journal = {Curr Probl Cardiol}, volume = {48}, year = {2022}, month = {2022 Sep 10}, pages = {101395}, abstract = {

Alcohol consumption increases circulating high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), but HDL protein cargo may better reflect HDL function. This study examined the associations between alcohol intake and HDL subspecies containing or lacking apoC3, apoE, and apoJ in a well-phenotyped cohort. We performed a cross-sectional analysis of 2092 Cardiovascular Health Study participants aged 70 or older with HDL subspecies measured in stored specimens from 1998 to 1999. Associations between alcohol intake and apoA1 defined HDL subspecies lacking or containing apoC3, apoE, and apoJ, and circulating levels of total apoA1, apoC3, apoE, and apoJ were examined. HDL subspecies lacking and containing apoC3, apoE, and apoJ were all positively associated with alcohol intake, with \~{}1\% per additional drink per week or \~{}7\% per additional drink per day (subspecies without the apolipoproteins, P <= 2 {\texttimes} 10, subspecies with the apolipoproteins, P <= 3 {\texttimes} 10). Total apoA1 was also directly associated with alcohol consumption, with a 1\% increase per additional drink per week (P = 1 {\texttimes} 10). Total apoC3 blood levels were 0.5\% higher per additional drink per week (P = 0.01), but the association was driven by a few heavily drinking men. Alcohol intake was positively associated with HDL subspecies lacking and containing apoC3, apoE, or apoJ, and with total plasma apoA1. ApoC3 was directly, albeit not as robustly associated with alcohol intake. HDL protein cargo is crucial for its anti-atherosclerotic functions, but it remains to be determined whether HDL subspecies play a role in the putative association between limited alcohol intake and lower risk of coronary heart disease.

}, issn = {1535-6280}, doi = {10.1016/j.cpcardiol.2022.101395}, author = {Wilkens, Trine L and S{\o}rensen, Helle and Jensen, Majken K and Furtado, Jeremy D and Dragsted, Lars O and Mukamal, Kenneth J} } @article {9613, title = {Levels of procoagulant factors and peak thrombin generation in relation to dementia risk in older adults: The Cardiovascular Health Study.}, journal = {Thromb Res}, volume = {235}, year = {2024}, month = {2024 Mar}, pages = {148-154}, abstract = {

INTRODUCTION: Markers of hemostasis such as procoagulant factors and peak thrombin generation are associated with cardiovascular outcomes, but their associations with dementia risk are unclear. We aimed to evaluate prospective associations of selected procoagulant factors and peak thrombin generation with dementia risk.

METHODS: We measured levels of 7 hemostatic factors (fibrinogen, factor VII coagulant activity [FVIIc], activated factor VII [FVIIa], factor VIIa-antithrombin [FVIIa-AT], factor XI antigen [FXI], peak thrombin generation, and platelet count) among participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study, a cohort of older adults free of dementia in 1992/1993 (n~=~3185). Dementia was adjudicated and classified by DSM-IV criteria through 1998/1999. Cox proportional hazards models estimated hazard ratios (HRs) for any dementia associated with 1-standard deviation (SD) differences, adjusting for sociodemographic and clinical factors and APOE genotype. Secondary analyses separately evaluated the risk of vascular dementia, Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease, and mixed dementia.

RESULTS: At baseline, participants had a median age of 73~years. Over 5.4~years of follow-up, we identified 448 dementia cases. There was no evidence of linear associations between levels of these hemostatic factors with any dementia risk (HRs per 1-SD difference ranged from 1.0 to 1.1; 95~\% confidence intervals included 1.0). Results of secondary analyses by dementia subtype were similar.

CONCLUSIONS: In this prospective study, there was no strong evidence of linear associations between levels of fibrinogen, FVIIc, FVIIa, FVIIa-AT, FXI, peak thrombin generation, or platelet count with dementia risk. Despite their associations with cardiovascular disease, higher levels of these biomarkers measured among older adults may not reflect dementia risk.

}, keywords = {Aged, Anticoagulants, Antithrombin III, Antithrombins, Dementia, Factor VIIa, Fibrinogen, Hemostatics, Humans, Prospective Studies, Thrombin}, issn = {1879-2472}, doi = {10.1016/j.thromres.2024.01.024}, author = {Harrington, Laura B and Ehlert, Alexa N and Thacker, Evan L and Jenny, Nancy S and Lopez, Oscar and Cushman, Mary and Olson, Nels C and Fitzpatrick, Annette and Mukamal, Kenneth J and Jensen, Majken K} }