Interrogating causal pathways linking genetic variants, small molecule metabolites, and circulating lipids.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Emerging technologies based on mass spectrometry or nuclear magnetic resonance enable the monitoring of hundreds of small metabolites from tissues or body fluids. Profiling of metabolites can help elucidate causal pathways linking established genetic variants to known disease risk factors such as blood lipid traits.

Methods

We applied statistical methodology to dissect causal relationships between single nucleotide polymorphisms, metabolite concentrations, and serum lipid traits, focusing on 95 genetic loci reproducibly associated with the four main serum lipids (total-, low-density lipoprotein-, and high-density lipoprotein- cholesterol and triglycerides). The dataset used included 2,973 individuals from two independent population-based cohorts with data for 151

SUBMITTER: Shin SY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4062056 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature