Genetic risk for Alzheimer's disease is concentrated in specific macrophage and microglial transcriptional networks.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Genome-wide association studies of Alzheimer's disease (AD) have identified a number of significant risk loci, the majority of which lie in non-coding regions of the genome. The lack of causal alleles and considerable polygenicity remains a significant barrier to translation into mechanistic understanding. This includes identifying causal variants and the cell/tissue types in which they operate. A fuller understanding of the cell types and transcriptional networks involved in AD genetic risk mechanisms will provide important insights into pathogenesis.

Methods

We assessed the significance of the overlap between genome-wide significant AD risk variants and sites of open chromatin from data sets representing diverse tissue types. We then focussed on macrophages and

SUBMITTER: Tansey KE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5828245 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature