title: Non-coding genetic variants in human disease.
abstract: Genetic variants, including single-nucleotide variants (SNVs) and copy number variants (CNVs), in the non-coding regions of the human genome can play an important role in human traits and complex diseases. Most of the genome-wide association study (GWAS) signals map to non-coding regions and potentially point to non-coding variants, whereas their functional interpretation is challenging. In this review, we discuss the human non-coding variants and their contributions to human diseases in the following four parts. (i) Functional annotations of non-coding SNPs mapped by GWAS: we discuss recent progress revealing some of the molecular mechanisms for GWAS signals affecting gene function. (ii) Technical progress in interpretation of non-coding variants: we briefly describe some of the technologies for functional annotations of non-coding variants, including the methods for genome-wide mapping of chromatin interaction, computational tools for functional predictions and the new genome editing technologies useful for dissecting potential functional consequences of non-coding variants. (iii) Non-coding CNVs in human diseases: we review our emerging understanding the role of non-coding CNVs in human disease. (iv) Compound inheritance of large genomic deletions and non-coding variants: compound inheritance at a locus consisting of coding variants plus non-coding ones is described.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Contemporary Anthropology, Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China.
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA and Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA jlupski@bcm.edu.
authors.forename: James R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Lupski
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D056915:DNA Copy Number Variations; D004194:Disease / Q000235:genetics*; D014644:Genetic Variation; D055106:Genome-Wide Association Study; D006801:Humans; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D012045:Regulatory Sequences, Nucleic Acid