Biology subjects

Kähönen, M.

Publications and source records attributed to Kähönen, M..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2022

Methylation status of VTRNA2-1/nc886 is stable across human populations, monozygotic twin pairs and in majority of somatic tissues

Aims and methodsOur aim was to characterise the methylation level of a polymorphically imprinted gene, VTRNA2-1/nc886, in human populations and somatic tissues. We utilised 48 datasets, consisting of >30 different tissues and >30 000 individuals. ResultsWe show that the nc886 methylation status is associated with twin status and ethnic background, but the variation between populations is limited. Monozygotic twin pairs present concordant methylation, while [~]30% of dizygotic twin pairs present discordant methylation in the nc886 locus. The methylation levels of nc886 are uniform across somatic tissues, except in cerebellum and skeletal muscle. ConclusionWe hypothesize that the nc886 imprint is established in the oocyte and that after implantation, the methylation status is stable, excluding a few specific tissues.

molecular biology↗

bioRxiv2019

Multivariate genome-wide association analysis of a cytokine network reveals variants with widespread immune, haematological and cardiometabolic pleiotropy

Cytokines are essential regulatory components of the immune system and their aberrant levels have been linked to many disease states. Despite increasing evidence that cytokines operate in concert, many of the physiological interactions between cytokines, and the shared genetic architecture that underlie them, remain unknown. Here we aimed to identify and characterise genetic variants with pleiotropic effects on cytokines - to do this we performed a multivariate genome-wide association study on a correlation network of 11 circulating cytokines measured in 9,263 individuals. Meta-analysis identified a total of 8 loci significantly associated with the cytokine network, of which two (PDGFRB and ABO) had not been detected previously. Bayesian colocalisation analysis revealed shared causal variants between the eight cytokine loci and other traits; in particular, cytokine network variants at the ABO, SERPINE2, and ZFPM2 loci showed pleiotropic effects on the production of immune-related proteins; on metabolic traits such as lipoprotein and lipid levels; on blood-cell related traits such as platelet count; and on disease traits such as coronary artery disease and type 2 diabetes.

genomics↗

bioRxiv2018

Genetic and environmental perturbations lead to regulatory decoherence

Correlation among traits is a fundamental feature of biological systems. From morphological characters, to transcriptional or metabolic networks, the correlations we routinely observe between traits reflect a shared regulation that remains poorly understood and difficult to study. To address this problem, we developed a new and flexible approach that allows us to identify factors associated with variation in correlation between individuals. Here, we use data from three large human cohorts to study the effects of genetic variation and environmental perturbation on correlations among mRNA transcripts and among NMR metabolites. We first show that environmental exposures (namely, infection and disease) lead to a systematic loss of correlation, which we define as decoherence. Using longitudinal data, we show that decoherent metabolites are better predictors of whether someone will develop metabolic syndrome than metabolites commonly used as biomarkers of this disease. Finally, we show that correlation itself is a trait under genetic control: specifically, we mapped and replicated hundreds of correlation QTLs, which often involve transcription factors or their known target genes. Together, this work furthers our understanding of how and why coordinated biological processes break down, and highlights the role of decoherence in disease emergence.

genomics↗