Type 2 diabetes susceptibility loci in the Ashkenazi Jewish population.
Until last year, type 2 diabetes (T2D) susceptibility loci have hardly been identified, despite great effort. Recently, however, several whole-genome association (WGA) studies jointly uncovered 10 robustly replicated loci. Here, we examine these loci in the Ashkenazi Jewish (AJ) population in a sample of 1,131 cases versus 1,147 controls. Genetic predisposition to T2D in the AJ population was found similar to that established in the previous studies. One SNP, rs7754840 in the CDKAL1 gene, presented a significantly stronger effect in the AJ population as compared to the general Caucasian population. This may possibly be due to the increased homogeneity of the AJ population. The use of the SNPs considered in this study, to identify individuals at high (or low) risk to develop T2D, was found of limited value. Our study, however, strongly supports the robustness of WGA studies for the identification of genes affecting complex traits in general and T2D in particular.
Department of Genetics, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 91904, Jerusalem, Israel.
Michal
M
Bronstein
Anne
A
Pisanté
Benjamin
B
Yakir
Ariel
A
Darvasi
D016022:Case-Control Studies; D051360:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 5 / Q000235:genetics; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000208:ethnology / Q000235:genetics*; D005787:Gene Frequency; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005828:Genetics, Population; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D007585:Jews / Q000235:genetics*; D015810:Linkage Disequilibrium; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D040641:Quantitative Trait Loci; D044465:White People / Q000235:genetics; D012359:tRNA Methyltransferases
D012359:tRNA Methyltransferases; D051360:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 5; C525110:CDKAL1 protein, human