Title | Genome-wide association study identifies locus influencing human plasma tau levels. |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2017 |
Authors | Chen J, Yu J-T, Wojta K, Wang H-F, Zetterberg H, Blennow K, Yokoyama JS, Weiner MW, Kramer JH, Rosen H, Miller BL, Coppola G, Boxer AL |
Corporate Authors | Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative |
Journal | Neurology |
Volume | 88 |
Issue | 7 |
Pagination | 669-676 |
Date Published | 2017 Feb 14 |
ISSN | 1526-632X |
Keywords | Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Alzheimer Disease, Apolipoprotein E4, Biomarkers, Cognitive Dysfunction, Cohort Studies, Endophenotypes, European Continental Ancestry Group, Female, Genetic Loci, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Genome-Wide Association Study, Humans, Interleukin-2 Receptor alpha Subunit, Male, Middle Aged, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, tau Proteins, Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases, United States |
Abstract | OBJECTIVE: To identify genetic loci associated with plasma tau concentrations in healthy elders and individuals with Alzheimer disease. METHODS: Four hundred sixty-three non-Hispanic white individuals exceeding quality control criteria were included from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI-1) cohort. Association of plasma tau with genetic polymorphisms was performed with a linear regression model. Significant associations were validated in an independent replication cohort consisting of 431 healthy elders or individuals with mild cognitive impairment recruited from the University of California, San Francisco Memory and Aging Center. RESULTS: The minor allele (A) of rs242557 in the microtubule-associated protein tau gene () was associated with higher plasma tau levels at genome-wide significance ( = 4.85 × 10, empiric family-wise error corrected = 0.0024) in a dose-dependent fashion. This association was also observed in the replication cohort ( = 1.0 × 10; joint analysis = 1.2 × 10). Single nucleotide polymorphisms near (rs2187213) ( = 6.15 × 10), (rs7072793, rs7073236) ( = 7.89 × 10), and an intergenic locus on 9p21.3 (rs7047280) ( = 8.13 × 10) were identified as suggestive loci associated with plasma tau levels. CONCLUSIONS: H1c haplotype (rs242557) has previously been identified as a genetic risk factor for progressive supranuclear palsy and corticobasal degeneration. The current findings suggest that plasma tau concentration could be an endophenotype for identifying risk for 4-repeat tauopathies in older individuals. |
DOI | 10.1212/WNL.0000000000003615 |
Alternate Journal | Neurology |
PubMed ID | 28100725 |
PubMed Central ID | PMC5317386 |
Grant List | K01 AG049152 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States K24 AG045333 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States U24 AG021886 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States U01 AG024904 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States R01 AG038791 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States U19 AG024904 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States P01 AG019724 / AG / NIA NIH HHS / United States F31 NS084556 / NS / NINDS NIH HHS / United States U54 NS092089 / NS / NINDS NIH HHS / United States |