The Role of X Chromosome in Alzheimer’s Disease Genetics
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Importance
The X chromosome has remained enigmatic in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), yet it makes up 5% of the genome and carries a high proportion of genes expressed in the brain, making it particularly appealing as a potential source of unexplored genetic variation in AD.
Objectives
Perform the first large-scale X chromosome-wide association study (XWAS) of AD. Primary analyses are non-stratified, while secondary analyses evaluate sex-stratified effects.
Design
Meta-analysis of genetic association studies in case-control, family-based, population-based, and longitudinal AD-related cohorts from the US Alzheimer’s Disease Genetics Consortium (ADGC) and Alzheimer’s Disease Sequencing Project (ADSP), the UK Biobank (UKB), the Finnish health registry (FinnGen), and the US Million Veterans Program (MVP). Risk for AD evaluated through case-control logistic regression analyses. Data were analyzed between January 2023 and March 2024.
Setting
Genetic data available from high-density single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) microarrays and whole-genome sequencing (WGS). Summary statistics for multi-tissue expression and protein quantitative trait loci (QTL) available from published studies, enabling follow-up genetic colocalization analyses.
Participants
1,629,863 eligible participants were selected from referred and volunteer samples, of which 477,596 were excluded for analysis exclusion criteria. Number of participants who declined to participate in original studies was not available.
Main Outcome and Measures
Risk for AD (odds ratio; OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Associations were considered at X-chromosome-wide (P-value<1e-5) and genome-wide (P-value<5e-8) significance.
Results
Analyses included 1,152,284 non-Hispanic White European ancestry subjects (57.3% females), including 138,558 cases. 6 independent genetic loci passed X-chromosome-wide significance, with 4 showing support for causal links between the genetic signal for AD and expression of nearby genes in brain and non-brain tissues. One of these 4 loci passed conservative genome-wide significance, with its lead variant centered on an intron of SLC9A7 (OR=1.054, 95%-CI=[1.035, 1.075]) and colocalization analyses prioritizing both the SLC9A7 and nearby CHST7 genes.
Conclusion and Relevance
We performed the first large-scale XWAS of AD and identified the novel SLC9A7 locus. SLC9A7 regulates pH homeostasis in Golgi secretory compartments and is anticipated to have downstream effects on amyloid beta accumulation. Overall, this study significantly advances our knowledge of AD genetics and may provide novel biological drug targets.
Key points
Question
Does the X chromosome play a role in the genetics of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD)?
Findings
In a genetic meta-analysis across 1,152,284 individuals, several X chromosome loci were associated with AD. Four loci showed evidence of shared genetic associations between AD risk and regulation of nearby gene expression in brain tissue. The top association signal was intronic on SLC9A7 and linked to its expression.
Meaning
We performed the first large-scale X chromosome-wide association study of AD and prioritized SLC9A7 as a novel risk locus. This study significantly advances our knowledge of AD genetics and provides novel biological drug targets.
