Meta-Analysis of Genome-Wide Association Studies with Correlated Individuals: Application to the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL).

ABSTRACT: Investigators often meta-analyze multiple genome-wide association studies (GWASs) to increase the power to detect associations of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with a trait. Meta-analysis is also performed within a single cohort that is stratified by, e.g., sex or ancestry group. Having correlated individuals among the strata may complicate meta-analyses, limit power, and inflate Type 1 error. For example, in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL), sources of correlation include genetic relatedness, shared household, and shared community. We propose a novel mixed-effect model for meta-analysis, "MetaCor," which accounts for correlation between stratum-specific effect estimates. Simulations show that MetaCor controls inflation better than alternatives such

SUBMITTER: Sofer T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4981554 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature