Evidence for negative selection of gene variants that increase dependence on dietary choline in a Gambian cohort.

ABSTRACT: Choline is an essential nutrient, and the amount needed in the diet is modulated by several factors. Given geographical differences in dietary choline intake and disparate frequencies of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in choline metabolism genes between ethnic groups, we tested the hypothesis that 3 SNPs that increase dependence on dietary choline would be under negative selection pressure in settings where choline intake is low: choline dehydrogenase (CHDH) rs12676, methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase 1 (MTHFD1) rs2236225, and phosphatidylethanolamine-N-methyltransferase (PEMT) rs12325817. Evidence of negative selection was assessed in 2 populations: one in The Gambia, West Africa, where there is historic evidence of a choline-poor diet, and the other in the United States, with a

SUBMITTER: Silver MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4511208 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature