ZRANB3 is an African-specific type 2 diabetes locus associated with beta-cell mass and insulin response.

Genome analysis of diverse human populations has contributed to the identification of novel genomic loci for diseases of major clinical and public health impact. Here, we report a genome-wide analysis of type 2 diabetes (T2D) in sub-Saharan Africans, an understudied ancestral group. We analyze ~18 million autosomal SNPs in 5,231 individuals from Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya. We identify a previously-unreported genome-wide significant locus: ZRANB3 (Zinc Finger RANBP2-Type Containing 3, lead SNP p = 2.831 × 10-9). Knockdown or genomic knockout of the zebrafish ortholog results in reduction in pancreatic β-cell number which we demonstrate to be due to increased apoptosis in islets. siRNA transfection of murine Zranb3 in MIN6 β-cells results in impaired insulin secretion in response to high glucose, implicating Zranb3 in β-cell functional response to high glucose conditions. We also show transferability in our study of 32 established T2D loci. Our findings advance understanding of the genetics of T2D in non-European ancestry populations

ZRANB3 is an African-specific type 2 diabetes locus associated with beta-cell mass and insulin response

Abstract: Genome analysis of diverse human populations has contributed to the identification of novel genomic loci for diseases of major clinical and public health impact. Here, we report a genome-wide analysis of type 2 diabetes (T2D) in sub-Saharan Africans, an understudied ancestral group. We analyze ~18 million autosomal SNPs in 5,231 individuals from Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya. We identify a previously-unreported genome-wide significant locus: ZRANB3 (Zinc Finger RANBP2-Type Containing 3, lead SNP p = 2.831 × 10−9). Knockdown or genomic knockout of the zebrafish ortholog results in reduction in pancreatic β-cell number which we demonstrate to be due to increased apoptosis in islets. siRNA transfection of murine Zranb3 in MIN6 β-cells results in impaired insulin secretion in response to high glucose, implicating Zranb3 in β-cell functional response to high glucose conditions. We also show transferability in our study of 32 established T2D loci. Our findings advance understanding of the genetics of T2D in non-European ancestry populations

The Type 2 Diabetes Knowledge Portal: an Open access Genetic Resource Dedicated to Type 2 Diabetes and Related Traits

Associations between human genetic variation and clinical phenotypes have become a foundation of biomedical research. Most repositories of these data seek to be disease-agnostic and therefore lack disease-focused views. The Type 2 Diabetes Knowledge Portal (T2DKP) is a public resource of genetic datasets and genomic annotations dedicated to type 2 diabetes (T2D) and related traits. Here, we seek to make the T2DKP more accessible to prospective users and more useful to existing users. First, we evaluate the T2DKP\u27s comprehensiveness by comparing its datasets with those of other repositories. Second, we describe how researchers unfamiliar with human genetic data can begin using and correctly interpreting them via the T2DKP. Third, we describe how existing users can extend their current workflows to use the full suite of tools offered by the T2DKP. We finally discuss the lessons offered by the T2DKP toward the goal of democratizing access to complex disease genetic results

An Essential Role for DYF-11/MIP-T3 in Assembling Functional Intraflagellar Transport Complexes

MIP-T3 is a human protein found previously to associate with microtubules and the kinesin-interacting neuronal protein DISC1 (Disrupted-in-Schizophrenia 1), but whose cellular function(s) remains unknown. Here we demonstrate that the C. elegans MIP-T3 ortholog DYF-11 is an intraflagellar transport (IFT) protein that plays a critical role in assembling functional kinesin motor-IFT particle complexes. We have cloned a loss of function dyf-11 mutant in which several key components of the IFT machinery, including Kinesin-II, as well as IFT subcomplex A and B proteins, fail to enter ciliary axonemes and/or mislocalize, resulting in compromised ciliary structures and sensory functions, and abnormal lipid accumulation. Analyses in different mutant backgrounds further suggest that DYF-11 functions as a novel component of IFT subcomplex B. Consistent with an evolutionarily conserved cilia-associated role, mammalian MIP-T3 localizes to basal bodies and cilia, and zebrafish mipt3 functions synergistically with the Bardet-Biedl syndrome protein Bbs4 to ensure proper gastrulation, a key cilium- and basal body-dependent developmental process. Our findings therefore implicate MIP-T3 in a previously unknown but critical role in cilium biogenesis and further highlight the emerging role of this organelle in vertebrate development

BBS4 is necessary for ciliary localization of TrkB receptor and activation by BDNF.

Primary cilia regulate an expanding list of signaling pathways in many different cell types. It is likely that identification of the full catalog of pathways associated with cilia will be necessary to fully understand their role in regulation of signaling and the implications for diseases associated with their dysfunction, ciliopathies. Bardet-Biedl Syndrome (BBS) is one such ciliopathy which is characterized by a spectrum of phenotypes. These include neural defects such as impaired cognitive development, centrally mediated hyperphagia and peripheral sensory defects. Here we investigate potential defects in a signaling pathway associated with neuronal function, brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) signaling. Upon loss of BBS4 expression in cultured cells, we observed decreased phosphorylation and activation by BDNF of its target receptor, TrkB. Assessment of ciliary localization revealed that, TrkB localized to the axonemes or basal bodies of cilia only in the presence of BDNF. Axonemal localization, specifically, was abrogated with loss of BBS4. Finally, we present evidence that loss of the ciliary axoneme through depletion of KIF3A impedes activation of TrkB. Taken together, these data suggest the possibility of a previously uninvestigated pathway associated with perturbation of ciliary proteins

Reduced TRKB activation with loss of ciliary axoneme.

<p>(A–D) Immunofluorescent staining of empty vector (EV) control or sh<i>KIF3A-</i>treated hTERT-RPE1 cells cultured in BDNF-supplemented media and stained using antibody against pTRKB (red) or ciliary markers labeling axoneme (ARL13B, green) or basal body (γ-tubulin, green). Region around cilia denoted by dashed box and magnified inset. Scale bar  = 10 µm. Imaged at 100× magnification. (E) Quantification of basal body localization of pTRKB and TRKB in control (black) or sh<i>KIF3A</i>-treated (striped) cells calculated as the proportion that co-localize with pTRKB or TRKB with or without BDNF. Error bars represent standard deviation. No significant difference between control and sh<i>KIF3A</i>. (F) Western blot detection for pTRKB and TRKB in hTERT-RPE1 cells treated with or without BDNF and with or without sh<i>KIF3A</i>. (G) Quantification of TRKB activation calculated as the average ratio of pTRKB to TRKB protein, measured by ImageJ densitometry analysis. Error bars depict standard deviation across a minimum of three experiments. *significant change (p<0.01, t-test) from control; **significant change (p<0.01, t-test) from BDNF-treated control cells. (H) Western blot detection in hTERT-RPE1 cells of pTRKB and TRKB, as well as Actin, in the presence or absence of BDNF and the presence or absence of a short hairpin targeting the 3′UTR (sh<i>BBS4</i>) or a vector expressing <i>BBS4</i>. (I) Quantification of the average activation of TRKB in hTERT-RPE1 cells quantified as the amount of pTRKB relative to the amount of TRKB for indicated treatments. *significant change (p<0.01, t-test) from control; **significant change (p<0.05, t-test) from BDNF-treated control.</p