Biology subjects

Baccarelli, A.

Publications and source records attributed to Baccarelli, A..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Epigenome-wide association study meta-analysis of wellbeing

Wellbeing is associated with both behavioral phenotypes as well as several key life outcomes, such as health, employment, and coping with stressful events. These phenotypes associated with wellbeing could be potential indicators of differential epigenetic patterns between individuals that differ in their levels of wellbeing. We performed the largest epigenome-wide (EWAS) meta-analysis of wellbeing to date by combining whole blood DNA methylation data (Illumina 450k array) from 13 cohorts from Europe, Australia, and the USA (N = 10,757 participants). After correcting for smoking and BMI, no epigenome-wide significant methylation sites were identified. We tested whether a weighted methylation score (MS) based on leave-one-cohort-out EWAS meta-analysis summary statistics predicted wellbeing in an independent cohort, and whether prediction was significant over and above the polygenic score (PGS) for wellbeing. The MS was associated with wellbeing (variance explained=0.22%, p=0.03) and was no longer significant after adding the polygenic score (PGS; variance explained=0.43%, p=0.0046, MS; variance explained=0.07%, p=0.2842). We further compared DNA methylation levels in 16 pairs of monozygotic twins discordant for wellbeing. These analyses revealed no significant within-pair DNA methylation differences at the top-sites from the meta-analysis or in MS. Our results suggest that larger EWAS meta-analyses with uniform phenotype assessment are required to identify methylation sites associated with wellbeing.

genomics↗

bioRxiv2022

Environment-wide and epigenome-wide association study of adiposity in "Children of 1997" birth cohort

BackgroundIncreasing childhood adiposity is a global issue requiring potentially local solutions to ensure it does not continue into adulthood. We systematically identified potentially modifiable targets of adiposity at the onset and end of puberty in Hong Kong the most economically developed major Chinese city. MethodsWe conducted an environment-wide association study (EWAS) and an epigenome-wide association study of adiposity to systematically assess associations with body mass index (BMI) and waist-hip ratio (WHR) in Hong Kongs population-representative "Children of 1997" birth cohort. Univariable linear regression was used to select exposures related to adiposity at ~11.5 years (BMI n[≤]7,119, WHR n=5,691) and ~17.6 years (n = 3,618) at Bonferroni-corrected significance, and multivariable linear regression to adjust for potential confounders followed by replication (n=308) and CpG by CpG analysis (n=286) at ~23 years. Findings were compared with evidence from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and Mendelian randomization (MR) studies. ResultsAt ~11.5 and ~17.6 years the EWAS identified 14 and 37 exposures associated with BMI, as well as seven and 12 associated with WHR respectively. Most exposures had directionally consistent associations at ~23 years. Maternal second-hand smoking, maternal weight, and birth weight were consistently associated with adiposity. Diet (including dairy intake and artificially sweetened beverages), physical activity, snoring, binge eating, and earlier puberty were positively associated with BMI at ~17.6 years, while eating before sleep was inversely associated with BMI at ~17.6 years. Findings for birth weight, dairy intake, binge eating, and possibly earlier puberty are consistent with available evidence from RCTs or MR studies We found 21 CpGs related to BMI and 18 to WHR. ConclusionsThese novel insights into potentially modifiable factors associated with adiposity at the outset and the end of puberty could, if causal, inform future interventions to improve population health in Hong Kong and similar Chinese settings. FundingThis study was supported by the Health and Medical Research Fund Research Fellowship, Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong SAR Government (#04180097). The DNA extraction was supported by CFS-HKU1.

genetics↗

bioRxiv2019

Methylome-Wide Association Study Of Central Adiposity Implicates Genes Involved In Immune And Endocrine Systems

We conducted a methylome-wide association study to examine associations between DNA methylation in whole blood and central adiposity and body fat distribution, measured as waist circumference, waist- to-hip ratio, and waist-to-height ratio adjusted for body mass index, in 2684 African American adults in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study. We validated significantly associated Cytosine-phosphate-Guanine methylation sites (CpGs) among adults using the Womens Health Initiative and Framingham Heart Study participants (combined N=5743) and generalized associations in adolescents from The Raine Study (N=820). We identified 11 CpGs that were robustly associated with one or more central adiposity trait in adults and 2 in adolescents, including CpG site associations near TXNIP, ADCY7, SREBF1, and RAP1GAP2 that had not previously been associated with obesity-related traits.

genomics↗

bioRxiv2018

Novel DNA methylation sites of glucose and insulin homeostasis: an integrative cross-omics analysis

Despite existing reports on differential DNA methylation in type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity, our understanding of the functional relevance of the phenomenon remains limited. Because obesity is the main risk factor for T2D and a driver of methylation from previous study, we aimed to explore the effect of DNA methylation in the early phases of T2D pathology while accounting for body mass index (BMI). We performed a blood-based epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) of fasting glucose and insulin among 4,808 non-diabetic European individuals and replicated the findings in an independent sample consisting of 11,750 non-diabetic subjects. We integrated blood-based in silico cross-omics databases comprising genomics, epigenomics and transcriptomics collected by BIOS project of the Biobanking and BioMolecular resources Research Infrastructure of the Netherlands (BBMRI-NL), the Meta-Analyses of Glucose and Insulin-related traits Consortium (MAGIC), the DIAbetes Genetics Replication And Meta-analysis (DIAGRAM) consortium, and the tissue-specific Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) project. We identified and replicated nine novel differentially methylated sites in whole blood (P-value < 1.27 x 10-7): sites in LETM1, RBM20, IRS2, MAN2A2 genes and 1q25.3 region were associated with fasting insulin; sites in FCRL6, SLAMF1, APOBEC3H genes and 15q26.1 region were associated with fasting glucose. The association between SLAMF1, APOBEC3H and 15q26.1 methylation sites and glucose emerged only when accounted for BMI. Follow-up in silico cross-omics analyses indicate that the cis-acting meQTLs near SLAMF1 and SLAMF1 expression are involved in glucose level regulation. Moreover, our data suggest that differential methylation in FCRL6 may affect glucose level and the risk of T2D by regulating FCLR6 expression in the liver. In conclusion, the present study provided nine new DNA methylation sites associated with glycemia homeostasis and also provided new insights of glycemia related loci into the genetics, epigenetics and transcriptomics pathways based on the integration of cross-omics data in silico.

genomics↗