Exploring the Major Sources and Extent of Heterogeneity in a Genome-Wide Association Meta-Analysis.

ABSTRACT: Genome-wide association (GWA) meta-analysis has become a popular approach for discovering genetic variants responsible for complex diseases. The between-study heterogeneity effect is a severe issue that may complicate the interpretation of results. Aiming to improve the interpretation of meta-analysis results, we empirically explored the extent and source of heterogeneity effect. We analyzed a previously reported GWA meta-analysis of obesity, in which over 21,000 subjects from seven individual samples were meta-analyzed. We first evaluated the extent and distribution of heterogeneity across the entire genome. We then studied the effects of several potentially confounding factors, including age, ethnicity, gender composition, study type, and genotype imputation on heterogeneity with a rando

SUBMITTER: Pei YF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4761279 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature