Genome-wide meta-analysis identifies 127 open-angle glaucoma loci with consistent effect across ancestries

Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), is a heritable common cause of blindness world-wide. To identify risk loci, we conduct a large multi-ethnic meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies on a total of 34,179 cases and 349,321 controls, identifying 44 previously unreported risk loci and confirming 83 loci that were previously known. The majority of loci have broadly consistent effects across European, Asian and African ancestries. Cross-ancestry data improve fine-mapping of causal variants for several loci. Integration of multiple lines of genetic evidence support the functional relevance of the identified POAG risk loci and highlight potential contributions of several genes to POAG pathogenesis, including SVEP1, RERE, VCAM1, ZNF638, CLIC5, SLC2A12, YAP1, MXRA5, and SMAD6. Several drug compounds targeting POAG risk genes may be potential glaucoma therapeutic candidates. Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is highly heritable, yet not well understood from a genetic perspective. Here, the authors perform a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies in 34,179 POAG cases, identifying 44 previously unreported risk loci and mapping effects across multiple ethnicities

AMELIORATION DU CONTRASTE EN IRM CEREBRALE DANS LE CONTEXTE DE LA SCLEROSE EN PLAQUES

International audienceL’inflammation et la démyélinisation présentes dans les lésions de SEP entrainent une modification des temps de relaxation T1 et T2, paramètres propres à chaque tissu et permettant d’obtenir un contraste en IRM. Intégrée au protocole IRM clinique de la SEP, la séquence 3D Double Inversion Récupération (DIR) comporte une préparation d’aimantation composée de 2 impulsions RF et temps d’inversion. Ces derniers sont définis à partir d’un T1 supposé des tissus, de telle sorte que les signaux de la substance blanche (SB) et du liquide cérébro-spinal (LCS) soient saturés afin de mettre en évidence les lésions de la substance grise (SG). Repérer ces lésions a un intérêt particulier en SEP puisqu’elles sont spécifiques de la maladie et ont une valeur pronostique importante pour les patients. Dans la pratique, leur détection est encore très limitée au champ clinique (3T), le contraste SG/SB obtenu avec la séquence 3D DIR conventionnelle étant parfois insuffisant. Ce travail cherche ainsi à exploiter les travaux récents utilisant le contrôle optimal pour améliorer les schémas de préparation de séquences IRM, afin d’améliorer la visualisation des lésions corticales de la SEP

Cerebrospinal fluid interleukin (IL)-10 and IL-10:IL-6 ratio as biomarkers for small B-cell lymphoproliferations with leptomeningeal dissemination

International audienceWe here report for the first time that low levels of interleukin (IL)-10 do not exclude lymphomatous meningitis (LM) in B-cell lymphoproliferative disorders (CLPD). Unexpectedly, IL-10 levels and IL-10:IL-6 ratio in CLPD differed from the levels observed in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). We report the usefulness of adding the IL-10:IL-6 ratio in order to potentially reveal more aggressive lymphomas: either a transformation or an association with another “hidden” lymphoma such as primary CNS lymphoma (PCNSL)

Dysfunction of lipid sensor GPR120 leads to obesity in both mouse and human

Free fatty acids provide an important energy source as nutrients, and act as signalling molecules in various cellular processes. Several G-protein-coupled receptors have been identified as free-fatty-acid receptors important in physiology as well as in several diseases. GPR120 (also known as O3FAR1) functions as a receptor for unsaturated long-chain free fatty acids and has a critical role in various physiological homeostasis mechanisms such as adipogenesis, regulation of appetite and food preference. Here we show that GPR120-deficient mice fed a high-fat diet develop obesity, glucose intolerance and fatty liver with decreased adipocyte differentiation and lipogenesis and enhanced hepatic lipogenesis. Insulin resistance in such mice is associated with reduced insulin signalling and enhanced inflammation in adipose tissue. In human, we show that GPR120 expression in adipose tissue is significantly higher in obese individuals than in lean controls. GPR120 exon sequencing in obese subjects reveals a deleterious non-synonymous mutation (p.R270H) that inhibits GPR120 signalling activity. Furthermore, the p.R270H variant increases the risk of obesity in European populations. Overall, this study demonstrates that the lipid sensor GPR120 has a key role in sensing dietary fat and, therefore, in the control of energy balance in both humans and rodents

Genome-wide meta-analysis identifies 127 open-angle glaucoma loci with consistent effect across ancestries

Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), is a heritable common cause of blindness world-wide. To identify risk loci, we conduct a large multi-ethnic meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies on a total of 34,179 cases and 349,321 controls, identifying 44 previously unreported risk loci and confirming 83 loci that were previously known. The majority of loci have broadly consistent effects across European, Asian and African ancestries. Cross-ancestry data improve fine-mapping of causal variants for several loci. Integration of multiple lines of genetic evidence support the functional relevance of the identified POAG risk loci and highlight potential contributions of several genes to POAG pathogenesis, including SVEP1, RERE, VCAM1, ZNF638, CLIC5, SLC2A12, YAP1, MXRA5, and SMAD6. Several drug compounds targeting POAG risk genes may be potential glaucoma therapeutic candidates. Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is highly heritable, yet not well understood from a genetic perspective. Here, the authors perform a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies in 34,179 POAG cases, identifying 44 previously unreported risk loci and mapping effects across multiple ethnicities.Peer reviewe

Large-scale multitrait genome-wide association analyses identify hundreds of glaucoma risk loci

Glaucoma, a leading cause of irreversible blindness, is a highly heritable human disease. Previous genome-wide association studies have identified over 100 loci for the most common form, primary open-angle glaucoma. Two key glaucoma-associated traits also show high heritability: intraocular pressure and optic nerve head excavation damage quantified as the vertical cup-to-disc ratio. Here, since much of glaucoma heritability remains unexplained, we conducted a large-scale multitrait genome-wide association study in participants of European ancestry combining primary open-angle glaucoma and its two associated traits (total sample size over 600,000) to substantially improve genetic discovery power (263 loci). We further increased our power by then employing a multiancestry approach, which increased the number of independent risk loci to 312, with the vast majority replicating in a large independent cohort from 23andMe, Inc. (total sample size over 2.8 million; 296 loci replicated at P < 0.05, 240 after Bonferroni correction). Leveraging multiomics datasets, we identified many potential druggable genes, including neuro-protection targets likely to act via the optic nerve, a key advance for glaucoma because all existing drugs only target intraocular pressure. We further used Mendelian randomization and genetic correlation-based approaches to identify novel links to other complex traits, including immune-related diseases such as multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus erythematosus