title: Independent inheritance of serum immunoglobulin E concentrations and airway responsiveness.
abstract: Elevated serum Immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels and increased airway responsiveness (AR) are correlated traits that are characteristic of asthma. It is not known to what extent these traits arise from distinct or shared genetic determinants. We investigated the genetic and environmental components of variance of serum total and specific IgE levels and AR in an Australian population-based sample of 232 Caucasian nuclear families. The inter-relationships of the genetic determinants of these traits were also investigated. Log(e) total serum IgE levels had a narrow-sense heritability (h(2)(N)) of 47.3% (SE = 10.0%). Specific serum IgE levels against house dust mite and timothy grass, measured as a RAST Index, ad a h(2)(N) of 33.8% (SE = 7.3%). AR, quantified by the log(e) dose-response slope to methacholine (DRS), had a h(2)(N) of 30.0% (SE = 12.3%). Extended modeling demonstrated an approximate 70% overlap in the genetic determinants of total and specific serum IgE levels. The genetic determinants of serum IgE levels and AR exhibited less than 30% sharing. These data are consistent with the existence of multiple genetic determinants of the pathophysiologic traits associated with asthma, and suggest that AR is genetically distinct from atopy. These results have implications for gene discovery programs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA. lyle@ichr.uwa.edu.au
authors.forename: L J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Palmer
authors.forename: P R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Burton
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Faux
authors.forename: A L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: James
authors.forename: A W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Musk
authors.forename: W O
authors.initials: WO
authors.lastname: Cookson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001249:Asthma / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D016535:Bronchial Hyperreactivity / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression / Q000502:physiology; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008957:Models, Genetic; D012130:Respiratory Hypersensitivity / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D007073:Immunoglobulin E