Publications by authors named "Jia N Foo"

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is an aggressive malignancy and the most common form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) that occurs worldwide. To discover risk factors and pathogenesis of DLBCL, we performed the largest GWAS of DLBCL to date in samples of East Asian ancestry, consisting of 2,888 patients with DLBCL and 12,458 controls. The meta-analysis identified three novel loci, rs2233434 on 6p21.

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  • Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive movement disorder becoming more common due to an aging population, and researchers aimed to explore rare genetic variants that could help explain its development.
  • Whole-exome sequencing was conducted on a large group of PD cases and controls of Asian ancestry, revealing significant links between the genes GBA1 and SMPD1 and the risk of developing PD, confirmed in additional samples.
  • The research found that specific SMPD1 variants that reduced enzyme activity were particularly associated with PD risk, with a prominent Asian-specific variant being common among carriers.
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Knowledge on the genetic basis of Parkinson's disease has grown tremendously since the discovery of the first monogenic form, caused by a mutation in α-synuclein, and with the subsequent identification of multiple other causative genes and associated loci. Genetic studies provide insights into the phenotypic heterogeneity and global distribution of Parkinson's disease. By shedding light on the underlying biological mechanisms, genetics facilitates the identification of new biomarkers and therapeutic targets.

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Synaptic Vesicle Glycoprotein 2C (SV2C), characterized by its selective expression in discrete brain regions such as the midbrain, has recently emerged as a promising player in Parkinson's Disease (PD) - a debilitating neurodegenerative disorder affecting millions worldwide. This review aims to consolidate our current understanding of SV2C's function, its involvement in PD pathogenesis, and to evaluate its potential as a therapeutic target. Integrating previous findings of SV2C, from genetics to molecular studies, and drawing on insights from the largest East Asian genome-wide association study that highlights as a novel risk factor for PD, we explore the potential pathways through which SV2C may influence the disease.

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Background: Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is largely a sporadic disease with few reported familial cases. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in sporadic PSP in Caucasian populations have identified MAPT as the most commonly associated genetic risk locus with the strongest effect size. At present there are limited data on genetic factors associated with PSP in Asian populations.

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Lysosomal dysfunction plays an important role in neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease (PD) and possibly Parkinson-plus syndromes such as progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). This role is exemplified by the involvement of variants in the GBA1 gene, which results in a deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme glucocerebrosidase and is the most frequently identified genetic factor underlying PD worldwide. Pathogenic variants in the SMPD1 gene are a recessive cause of Niemann-Pick disease types A and B.

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  • Human pluripotent stem cell-derived kidney organoids provide new ways to study polycystic kidney disease (PKD), which currently has no effective treatment.
  • Researchers created models that showed signs of PKD, including tubular injury and increased activity of the renin-angiotensin aldosterone system, while also discovering various metabolic changes during cyst formation.
  • They found that activating autophagy could significantly reduce cyst formation, and the FDA-approved drug minoxidil proved effective in decreasing cyst development in vivo, highlighting the organoid model's potential for drug discovery and understanding disease mechanisms.
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  • Researchers conducted a large-scale study on Parkinson's disease, analyzing data from over 49,000 cases and more than 2 million controls across multiple ancestries, including European, East Asian, Latin American, and African.
  • They discovered 78 significant genetic locations related to the disease, with 12 potentially new loci that could contribute to Parkinson's risk.
  • The study also identified 25 potential risk genes linked to these novel loci, providing a foundation for future research on Parkinson's disease in diverse populations.
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Objectives To evaluate and compare different polygenic risk score (PRS) models in predicting Parkinsons disease (PD) across diverse ancestries, focusing on identifying the most suitable approach for each population and potentially contributing to equitable advancements in precision medicine. Methods We constructed a total of 105 PRS across individual level data from seven diverse ancestries. First, a cross-ancestry conventional PRS comparison was implemented by utilizing the 90 known European risk loci with weighted effects from four independent summary statistics including European, East Asian, Latino/Admixed American, and African/Admixed.

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  • Scientists studied over 176,000 people to see how certain genes might protect against Parkinson's disease (PD) and Alzheimer's disease (AD).
  • They found that specific types of a gene called HLA could help reduce the risk of these diseases and lower harmful proteins in the brain.
  • This suggests that our immune system might help protect us from PD and AD, which could lead to new treatments in the future.
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  • People with Down syndrome (DS) seem to age faster than others, but scientists aren't sure why.
  • A study looked at how "biological age" of people with DS compared to healthy people and found that DS individuals are, on average, around 18.4 to 19.1 years older biologically than their actual age.
  • The researchers discovered that a specific gene on chromosome 21 called DYRK1A plays a big role in causing this accelerated ageing, and finding ways to reduce its effects could help people with DS.
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3M syndrome is a rare genetic familial disorder characterized by short stature, growth retardation, facial dysmorphism, skeletal abnormalities, fleshy protruding heels, and normal intelligence, caused by mutations in the , and genes. In the present study, a novel homozygous missense variant of (NP_001161842.1, c.

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Objective: Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) encompasses a spectrum of neurodegenerative disorders, including behavioural variant FTD (bvFTD), semantic variant primary progressive aphasia (svPPA) and non-fluent variant PPA (nfvPPA). While a strong genetic component is implicated in FTD, genetic FTD in Asia is less frequently reported. We aimed to investigate the frequency of Southeast Asian FTD patients harbouring known genetic FTD variants.

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  • Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have uncovered several genetic variants linked to Parkinson's disease (PD) in the Chinese population through whole-genome sequencing involving nearly 2,000 cases and 2,500 controls, along with a replication study of over 8,200 cases and 9,400 controls.
  • Researchers identified a new risk variant and confirmed four previously known variants, as well as three notable variants in the LRRK2 gene, all showing strong statistical significance for PD.
  • The study suggests that genetic factors influencing PD are shared across populations, revealing both commonality and differences, and emphasizes the potential of whole-genome sequencing to enhance our understanding of PD's genetic makeup.
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Background: Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a rare, disabling, neurodegenerative disease, with few studies done in Asian populations.

Methods: We prospectively characterized the clinical features and disease burden in a consecutively-recruited multi-ethnic Asian PSP cohort. Patients were extensively phenotyped using the Movement Disorder Society (MDS-PSP) clinical diagnostic criteria and the PSP-Clinical Deficits Scale (PSP-CDS).

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Background And Aims: Single nucleotide polymorphism rs6903956 has been identified as one of the genetic risk factors for coronary artery disease (CAD). However, rs6903956 lies in a non-coding locus on chromosome 6p24.1.

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RhoGTPase regulators play a key role in the development of the nervous system, and their dysfunction can result in brain malformation and associated disorders. Several guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEF) have been linked to neurodevelopmental disorders. In line with this, ARHGEF17 has been recently linked as a risk gene to intracranial aneurysms.

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Background: Skeletal dysplasia is a heterogeneous group of disorders. Spondyloepiphyseal dysplasias comprise one subgroup. Deficiency of carbohydrate sulfotransferase 3 has been reported in a small number of patients with recessively inherited spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia with joint dislocation, short stature and scoliosis.

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Human faces capture attention, provide information about group belonging, and elicit automatic prepared responses. Early experiences with other-race faces play a critical role in acquiring face expertise, but the exact mechanism through which early experience exerts its influence is still to be elucidated. Genetic factors and a multi-ethnic context are likely involved, but their specific influences have not been explored.

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Human social interactions ensure recognition and approval from others, both in offline and online environments. This study applies a model from behavioral genetics on Instagram sociability to explore the impact of individual development on behavior on social networks. We hypothesize that sociable attitudes on Instagram resulted from an interaction between serotonin transporter gene alleles and the individual's social relationship with caregivers.

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SignificanceWith obesity on the rise, there is a growing appreciation for intracellular lipid droplet (LD) regulation. Here, we show how saturated fatty acids (SFAs) reduce fat storage-inducing transmembrane protein 2 (FIT2)-facilitated, pancreatic β cell LD biogenesis, which in turn induces β cell dysfunction and death, leading to diabetes. This mechanism involves direct acylation of FIT2 cysteine residues, which then marks the FIT2 protein for endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-associated degradation.

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Oxytocin is a primary neuropeptide which coordinates affiliative behavior. Previous researchers pointed to the association between genetic vulnerability on () and environmental factors (e.g.

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  • Parkinson's disease (PD) involves genetic factors, with some genes linked to the disease, yet these explain only part of the familial risk.
  • Research into the RIC3 gene has suggested it might be connected to PD in Indian populations, but findings have been inconsistent across studies.
  • In a large analysis of European cohorts and additional data from Latin American and East Asian populations, no significant association between RIC3 and PD was found, highlighting the need for further investigation in diverse populations, particularly South Asians.
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Social networking sites have determined radical changes in human life, demanding investigations on online socialization mechanisms. The knowledge acquired on in-person sociability could guide researchers to consider both environmental and genetic features as candidates of online socialization. Here, we explored the impact of the quality of adult attachment and the genetic properties of the Serotonin Transporter Gene () on Instagram social behavior.

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