Publications by authors named "Donna Arnett"

Mosaic loss of Y (mLOY) is the most common somatic chromosomal alteration detected in human blood. The presence of mLOY is associated with altered blood cell counts and increased risk of Alzheimer disease, solid tumors, and other age-related diseases. We sought to gain a better understanding of genetic drivers and associated phenotypes of mLOY through analyses of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of a large set of genetically diverse males from the Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) program.

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In studies of individuals of primarily European genetic ancestry, common and low-frequency variants and rare coding variants have been found to be associated with the risk of bipolar disorder (BD) and schizophrenia (SZ). However, less is known for individuals of other genetic ancestries or the role of rare non-coding variants in BD and SZ risk. We performed whole genome sequencing of African American individuals: 1,598 with BD, 3,295 with SZ, and 2,651 unaffected controls (InPSYght study).

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  • The study aimed to investigate how alcohol consumption is linked to stroke occurrences in Nigeria and Ghana by comparing individuals who had strokes to those who didn't.!
  • It involved over 7,368 participants, classifying them into groups based on their alcohol consumption habits, and utilized various statistical models to analyze the data.!
  • Results indicated that current drinkers had a higher risk of stroke, particularly among moderate, binge, and heavy drinkers, while former drinkers showed no significant stroke risk. !
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  • Whole genome sequencing (WGS) helps identify rare genetic variants that may explain the missing heritability of coronary artery disease (CAD) by analyzing 4,949 cases and 17,494 controls from the NHLBI TOPMed program.
  • The study estimates that the heritability of CAD is around 34.3%, with ultra-rare variants contributing about 50%, especially those with low linkage disequilibrium.
  • Functional annotations show significant enrichment of CAD heritability, highlighting the importance of ultra-rare variants and specific regulatory mechanisms in different cells as major factors influencing genetic risk for the disease.
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  • The study investigates how rare non-coding genetic variations affect complex traits, specifically focusing on human height by analyzing data from over 333,100 individuals across three large datasets.
  • Researchers found 29 significant rare variants linked to height, with impacts ranging from a decrease of 7 cm to an increase of 4.7 cm, after considering previously known variants.
  • The team also identified specific non-coding variants near key genes associated with height, demonstrating a new method for understanding the effects of rare variants in regulatory regions using whole-genome sequencing.
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  • Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects about 1 in 7 adults in the U.S., especially African Americans who are more likely to suffer from it.
  • Scientists discovered that certain changes in DNA can help predict who might get CKD, focusing on specific sites in the DNA.
  • The study created a special score using these DNA changes to see how likely someone is to have CKD and found it works well for African Americans, suggesting it could help in checking kidney health in the future.
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Key Points: The predictive performance of an African ancestry–specific polygenic risk score (PRS) was comparable to a European ancestry–derived PRS for kidney traits. However, multi-ancestry PRSs outperform single-ancestry PRSs in Black American populations. Predictive accuracy of PRSs for CKD was improved with the use of race-free eGFR.

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  • Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have successfully identified genes linked to telomere length, but previous research hadn't validated these findings until now.
  • In a large analysis involving over 211,000 people, the study discovered five new signals linked to telomere length and highlighted the importance of blood/immune cells in this area.
  • The researchers confirmed that the genes KBTBD6 and POP5 truly affect telomere length by demonstrating that manipulating these genes can lengthen telomeres and that their regulation is crucial for understanding telomere biology.
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Clonal hematopoiesis (CH) is characterized by the acquisition of a somatic mutation in a hematopoietic stem cell that results in a clonal expansion. These driver mutations can be single nucleotide variants in cancer driver genes or larger structural rearrangements called mosaic chromosomal alterations (mCAs). The factors that influence the variations in mCA fitness and ultimately result in different clonal expansion rates are not well understood.

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Mosaic loss of Y (mLOY) is the most common somatic chromosomal alteration detected in human blood. The presence of mLOY is associated with altered blood cell counts and increased risk of Alzheimer's disease, solid tumors, and other age-related diseases. We sought to gain a better understanding of genetic drivers and associated phenotypes of mLOY through analyses of whole genome sequencing of a large set of genetically diverse males from the Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) program.

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Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) are frequently used to study disease-associated variations. We characterized transcriptional variability from a hiPSC-derived cardiomyocyte (hiPSC-CM) study of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) using donor samples from the HyperGEN study. Multiple hiPSC-CM differentiations over reprogramming events (iPSC generation) across 7 donors were used to assess variabilities from reprogramming, differentiation, and donor LVH status.

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A major focus of academia, industry, and global governmental agencies is to develop and apply artificial intelligence and other advanced analytical tools to transform health care delivery. The American Heart Association supports the creation of tools and services that would further the science and practice of precision medicine by enabling more precise approaches to cardiovascular and stroke research, prevention, and care of individuals and populations. Nevertheless, several challenges exist, and few artificial intelligence tools have been shown to improve cardiovascular and stroke care sufficiently to be widely adopted.

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In 1924, the founders of the American Heart Association (AHA) envisioned an international society focused on the heart and aimed at facilitating research, disseminating information, increasing public awareness, and developing public health policy related to heart disease. This presidential advisory provides a comprehensive review of the past century of cardiovascular and stroke science, with a focus on the AHA's contributions, as well as informed speculation about the future of cardiovascular science into the next century of the organization's history. The AHA is a leader in fundamental, translational, clinical, and population science, and it promotes the concept of the "learning health system," in which a continuous cycle of evidence-based practice leads to practice-based evidence, permitting an iterative refinement in clinical evidence and care.

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  • African ancestry populations have the highest stroke burden globally, yet the genetic factors contributing to stroke in these groups are not well understood, prompting the SIREN study in West Africa to investigate this.
  • The study involved recruiting stroke patients and stroke-free controls to conduct a genome-wide association study (GWAS), leading to DNA analysis that identified significant SNPs near specific genes associated with stroke risk.
  • Key findings highlighted protective genetic variants near AADACL2 and MIR5186 on chromosome 3, as well as other notable associations on chromosomes 5, 6, 12, 16, and 18, which could provide insights for future stroke risk assessment in these populations.
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Background: Frequent fruit and vegetable consumption is considered a promising dietary behaviour that protects health. However, most existing studies about the factors associated with this phenomenon among Africans are based on single-country reports, apart from one meta-regression combining smaller studies. This study harmonized large datasets and assessed factors associated with the frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption in this population.

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Background: Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is associated with a high case fatality rate in resource-limited settings. The independent predictors of poor outcome after ICH in sub-Saharan Africa remains to be characterized in large epidemiological studies. We aimed to determine factors associated with 30-day fatality among West African patients with ICH.

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  • The study focuses on apparent treatment-resistant hypertension (aTRH), defined by the need for four or more antihypertensive medications to control blood pressure in individuals.
  • Researchers analyzed genetic data from 12 cohorts using whole-genome sequencing, comparing aTRH cases to normotensive controls and treatment-responsive patients.
  • A significant genetic variant linked to hypertension was identified, and further validation of these results in larger and more diverse populations is necessary to understand its potential role in aTRH.
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  • Educational attainment is linked to cardiovascular health, and a large genomic study examined how it interacts with cholesterol and triglyceride levels in nearly 226,315 individuals across five population groups.
  • The study identified 18 new genetic variations related to lipid levels—nine for low-density lipoprotein (LDL), seven for high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and two for triglycerides (TG)—some of which interact with educational attainment.
  • Researchers also found five gene targets that potentially interact with FDA-approved drugs, suggesting a connection between genetics and drug responses related to lipid metabolism and overall health.
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  • Non-cigarette tobacco (NCT) use is linked to an increased risk of stroke among indigenous Africans, suggesting a need for better understanding and public health interventions.
  • The study involved 7,617 respondents, showing that those who used smokeless NCT had a significant association with stroke, while smoked NCT did not show a strong link.
  • Increased awareness and targeted policies are essential to address the rising burden of stroke related to NCT usage in the population.
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  • Large-scale whole-genome sequencing (WGS) studies have enhanced our understanding of how rare genetic variants affect complex human traits through better analysis techniques.* -
  • Current methods for analyzing multiple traits are limited in their ability to handle rare variants in large WGS datasets, prompting the development of MultiSTAAR.* -
  • MultiSTAAR enables more powerful analysis by considering relatedness, population structure, and the correlation between traits, leading to the discovery of new genetic associations in lipid traits that single-trait analyses missed.*
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Clonal hematopoiesis (CH) is characterized by the acquisition of a somatic mutation in a hematopoietic stem cell that results in a clonal expansion. These driver mutations can be single nucleotide variants in cancer driver genes or larger structural rearrangements called mosaic chromosomal alterations (mCAs). The factors that influence the variations in mCA fitness and ultimately result in different clonal expansion rates are not well-understood.

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  • Megabase-scale mosaic chromosomal alterations (mCAs) in blood can indicate the risk of various human diseases, and this study analyzes whole-genome sequencing data from 67,390 individuals to better understand mCA rates across different genetic backgrounds.
  • The research found that whole-genome sequencing is more effective than traditional methods for detecting mCAs, revealing that individuals of European ancestry have higher rates of autosomal mCAs and lower rates of chromosome X mCAs compared to those of African or Hispanic ancestry.
  • The study identifies three genetic loci linked to chromosome X loss and associates rare variants in specific genes (DCPS, ADM17, PPP1R16B, and TET2) with autosomal mCAs
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  • Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play crucial roles in regulating lipid metabolism and have been studied in relation to genetic variants and complex traits.
  • This research utilized high-coverage whole-genome sequencing of over 66,000 diverse participants to assess how rare variants in lncRNA genes affect blood lipid levels, using a statistical framework to analyze the associations.
  • The study found 83 lncRNA variants significantly linked to lipid levels, with many being independent of common genetic variations, and replicated a majority of these findings with data from another large cohort.
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Metabolic syndrome (MetS) increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and death. Previous '-omics' studies have identified dysregulated serum metabolites and aberrant DNA methylation in the setting of MetS. However, the relationship between the metabolome and epigenome have not been elucidated.

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