Genetic Epidemiology in Latin America: Identifying Strong Genetic Proxies for Complex Disease Risk Factors.

ABSTRACT: Epidemiology seeks to determine the causal effects of exposures on outcomes related to the health and wellbeing of populations. Observational studies, one of the most commonly used designs in epidemiology, can be biased due to confounding and reverse causation, which makes it difficult to establish causal relationships. In recent times, genetically informed methods, like Mendelian randomization (MR), have been developed in an attempt to overcome these disadvantages. MR relies on the association of genetic variants with outcomes of interest, where the genetic variants are proxies or instruments for modifiable exposures. Because genotypes are sorted independently and at random at the time of conception, they are less prone to confounding and reverse causation. Implementation of MR depends on

SUBMITTER: Bonilla C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7288659 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature