Search Results - EGA European Genome-Phenome Archive

Genomewide Association Study of Alcohol Use and Alcohol Use Disorder in Australian Twin-Families (OZ-ALC GWAS)

The Australian twin-family study of alcohol use disorder (OZALC study) derives from telephone diagnostic interview studies of two general population volunteer cohorts of Australian twins (cohort 1, mostly born 1940-1964; cohort 2, born 1964-71) and the spouses of the former cohort - a total of over 11,000 families. Three coordinated studies, using a shared assessment protocol and with a shared goal of gene-discovery, were conducted - one funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the others by the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse - by investigators associated with the Midwest Alcoholism Research Center at Washington University in St. Louis, and investigators at Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Brisbane, Australia (led by Professor Nicholas Martin), using informative families identified from these cohorts. The first of these (NIDA Nicotine Addiction Genetics [NAG] project, PI Pamela Madden) identified index cases from the 3 cohorts with a history of heavy smoking (smoked 20 or more cigarettes daily, or 40 or more cigarettes on 1 or more occasions) and with additional available full siblings who were smokers, and interviewed and obtained blood samples from twins, and cooperative full siblings and parents, in order to identify families that would be informative for linkage analysis of a quantitative heaviness of smoking trait. The second identified additional families with an index case who either reported a history of alcohol dependence (DSM-IV), or scored above the 85th percentile on a quantitative measure of heaviness of alcohol use (alcohol factor score), derived from measures of frequency of heavy drinking, frequency of drinking to intoxication, and typical weekly consumption in standard drinks (all referenced to the respondent's heaviest drinking period) and of lifetime maximum 1-day alcohol consumption and maximum tolerance to alcohol (drinks before getting drunk or before feeling effects of alcohol). Interview and DNA were obtained from index cases and siblings, and DNA only from available parents. The goal of this second study (NIAAA OZ-ALCOHOL EDAC study, PI Andrew Heath) was to identify sibships including pairs who were either extreme concordant for the quantitative consumption measure (both scoring above the 85th percentile) or extreme discordant (one scoring above the 85th percentile and one scoring below the 30th percentile) that would be informative for linkage analysis. The third identified additional sibships solely on the basis of large sibship size, regardless of alcohol or tobacco use phenotypes (NIAAA OZ-BIGSIB study, PIs the late Richard Todd, Andrew Heath). From these coordinated studies a case-control series of alcohol dependent individuals and unaffected controls were constructed for a family-based Genomewide Association Study (OZALC-GWAS) of heaviness of alcohol use and alcohol dependence, funded by the National Institute of Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse. These data are made available here for all investigators studying outcomes related to alcohol or tobacco use (including major depressive disorder).

Study phs000181

Maintenance of Brain Tumor Profile on Organotypic Brain Slice Culture (OBSC)

We used uncultured tumor resection tissue from an NF2 mutation-driven grade II meningioma (MG-II) to investigate whether tumors engrafted onto organotypic brain slice cultures (OBSCs) maintained the genetic profile of the parent tumor. We prepared three groups of samples for whole exome sequencing (WES) from the same pool of dissociated MG-II tissue. Group HT is the original uncultured human tumor tissue (n = 3). Group CL is the parent tumor tissue expanded in standard in vitro cell culture until the minimum number of cells required for WES had grown. Because of initial cell loss and subsequent clonal expansion, this required six passages over the span of approximately one month (n = 3). Group BSHT is the uncultured tumor resection tissue engrafted onto OBSCs and subsequently dissected from the OBSCs at the conclusion of our standardized assay length (4 days; n = 4). WES analysis showed that tumor tissue engrafted onto OBSCs maintained a significant genetic resemblance to the parent tumor, while tumor tissue expanded in vitro displayed a distinctly different profile. Furthermore, the mutational profiles of all four BSHT biological replicates were markedly similar, indicating that each OBSC-engrafted tumor indeed contained a representative sample of the original patient tumor. A closer look at the hallmark NF2 mutations existing within all samples revealed that while all samples from the original tumor (HT1-3) and the OBSC-engrafted tumor (BSHT1-4) maintain the frame shift deletion at V24, this mutation was lost in all samples expanded in vitro (CL1-3) and replaced by mutations in other areas. Together, this data suggests that the rapid assay design and tumor-accommodating niche of our OBSC platform enables effective maintenance of the original patient tumor profile. The BBsplit algorithm from the BBtools suite was run on all samples to eliminate rat DNA contamination in the BSHT samples as well as to account for any biases that may result as a part of that process. Only the reads that were binned to the human reference were used for subsequent analysis. Reads were then mapped to the GRCh38 version of the human genome with BWA v0.7.17 and realigned together with ABRA2 v.23. Quality control was implemented using the GATK/Picard v4.1.7.0 toolkit. Somatic variants were called for each sample using the MuTect2 algorithm v4.1.7.0. Variants were merged into a single cohort variant call file and then converted to MAF via vcf2maf v1.6.21 tool. Variants were annotated using VEP v87. To identify mutations with potentially high biological impact, multiple filtering steps were applied to somatic mutation calling. First, we selected only the somatic variants that passed all filters from the MuTect2 FilterMutectCalls algorithm and second, only high/moderate impact (change coding) variants as defined by the VEP annotation were further analyzed. Over 1900 single nucleotide variants (SNVs) were detected across all samples. Figures that summarized the results were generated using maftools.

Study phs003268

Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium Pragmatic Trial of Airway Management in out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest (ROC PART-BioLINCC)

Data Access NOTE: Please refer to the “Authorized Access” section below for information about how access to the data from this accession differs from many other dbGaP accessions.Objectives: To determine the effect of an initial airway management strategy using laryngeal tube (LT) insertion, compared with endotracheal intubation (ETI), on survival among adults with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).Background: Out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary arrest (OHCA) affects more than 350,000 adults in the United States each year, with only a low percentage of patients surviving to hospital discharge. Emergency medical services (EMS) paramedics commonly perform ETI or insertion of supraglottic airways (SGAs), such as the LT, on patients with OHCA to facilitate oxygenation and protect the lungs from aspiration of vomitus. Because SGA insertion is rapid, simple, and requires less training compared to ETI, many EMS agencies have incorporated this as the primary method of ventilation during OHCA resuscitation. However, the optimal method for OHCA advanced airway management is unknown.Participants: A total of 3004 patients were included; 1505 assigned to initial LT and 1499 assigned to initial ETI.Design: PART was a multicenter cluster-crossover randomized trial. The trial included 27 EMS agencies associated with US sites of the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium (ROC). The EMS agencies were grouped into 13 randomization clusters. Each cluster selected a crossover interval of 3 or 5 months. Within each cluster, treatment assignments for consecutive intervals were computer-randomized in blocks of 2 to ensure balanced exposure to both airway groups. Crossovers between study groups could occur more than once. Treatment assignments were initial LT insertion or initial ETI. Neuromuscular blocking agents or video laryngoscopy was permitted for initial intubation efforts. The trial did not limit the number of initial LT insertion or ETI attempts. If the initial insertion efforts were unsuccessful, EMS personnel performed rescue airway management using any available airway technique. EMS personnel followed local protocols for confirmation of airway placement and management of OHCA, including field termination of resuscitation efforts. Patients receiving bag-valve mask (BVM) ventilation only were retained in their assigned treatment group per intention-to-treat principles. The trial did not prescribe clinical care at the receiving hospitals, including use of EMS airway, targeted temperature management, percutaneous coronary intervention, or the timing of withdrawal of life-sustaining therapy.The primary outcome was 72-hour survival. Secondary outcomes included return of spontaneous circulation, survival to hospital discharge, and favorable neurological status at hospital discharge (Modified Rankin Scale score ≤3). Conclusions: Among adults with OHCA, a strategy of initial LT insertion was associated with significantly greater 72-hour survival compared with a strategy of initial ETI. These findings suggest that LT insertion may be considered as an initial airway management strategy in patients with OHCA, but limitations of the pragmatic design, practice setting, and ETI performance characteristics suggest that further research is warranted.

Study phs003902

Immunophenotyping in a COVID-19 Cohort (IMPACC) Transcriptomics and Genotyping Assays

IMPACC (IMmunoPhenotyping Assessment in a COVID-19 Cohort) is a prospective longitudinal cohort study (NCT04378777) launched in May 2020 in response to the worldwide pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It was funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institute of Health (NIH). Patient enrollment and sample analysis involved 20 hospitals associated with 15 U.S. biomedical research centers and 11 centralized Core immunoassay laboratories.The study aimed to enable the identification of potential biomarkers and inform future therapeutic interventions using a longitudinal approach encompassing the whole disease course for a comprehensive understanding of the contributions of the pathogen and host immune response in modulating the manifestations, severity, and post-acute sequelae of the infection. IMPACC enrolled close to 1200 adult symptomatic, molecularly confirmed hospitalized COVID-19 patients in the study within 48 hours of their hospital admission. Clinical data and biological samples (blood, mid-turbinate nasal swabs, and esophageal aspirant) were collected according to minimal risk guidelines at enrollment and on days 4, 7, 14, 21, and 28. Biological samples were collected at 3-month intervals up to 12 months after hospital discharge to assess functional and immunologic recovery measures. Sample collection, processing, and storage procedures were standardized across sites, and samples were transported to centralized assay-specific core laboratories (Core Labs) in batches for testing and analysis. The description of outcome severity was not limited to survival versus death but encompassed a clinical trajectory approach using 5 groups leveraging longitudinal data based on time in the hospital, disease severity by ordinal scale based on the degree of respiratory illness, and presence or absence of limitations at discharge. Disease severity was assessed based on the degree of respiratory illness using a 7-point ordinal scale adapted from the World Health Organization COVID-19 and NIAID disease ordinal severity scales. DNA for genetic analyses was collected from whole blood at a single time point. To identify any genomic determinants of severe COVID-19 disease, single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping and exome sequencing were conducted to assess genetic variants associated with individual susceptibility to severe disease. In addition, IMPACC included bulk transcriptomic analysis of upper airway (nasal swaps) samples, lower airway (esophageal aspirant) samples, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) to evaluate dynamic changes in cellular composition and cellular response during the course of the disease. Reads were aligned to the GRCh38 human reference genome. Additional information for the IMPACC study has been submitted to The Immunology Database and Analysis Portal (ImmPort) under study accession SDY1760. Further information and requests for resources and reagents should be directed to and will be fulfilled by the Lead Contact, Dr. Steven Kleinstein (steven.kleinstein@yale.edu).

Study phs002686

Submitter Portal API

Submitter Portal API The metadata submission process can be difficult and time-consuming. For this reason, the EGA has developed the Submitter Portal, a tool that was created to offer a simplified and user-friendly method of registering metadata. Our portal provides features that are intended to make the input of metadata easier, ensuring that your data is registered correctly and effectively. Our page is divided into logical sections and includes a helpful video instruction to further assist you as you complete the submission process. With the Submitter Portal, you can rest assured that the submission of your data is in good hands. For those that want a more flexible and automated approach, we also provide a programmatic approach using the Submitter Portal AP in addition to the user interface of the Submitter Portal. With the help of our API, you can quickly include the submission of metadata into your own workflow for a more effective and individualised experience. Previous steps Create your EGA account To submit data you first need to create your EGA user. Then, once your account has been verified, you will have to request a submitter role and sign the EGA Data Processing Agreement (DPA). When the DPA is signed, you must send it to EGA Helpdesk for further validation. Please, note that if you already have an EGA account, or you have an ega-box (submission account), you can skip this step. Upload your files Please note that all your files must be encrypted using the Crypt4GH tool before upload them.As soon as you are assigned with a submitter role, you will be able to connect to the EGA inbox and upload your files. Understand the EGA metadata schema It's crucial to comprehend the EGA metadata schema, a set of rules that specify how data is organised, described, and shared inside the EGA, in order to get the most out of this resource. Learn all about EGA metadata schema! Register your DAC and policy There are two objects in the EGA metadata schema that are registered in a separate portal. All DACs and policy objects are registered using the DAC Portal, a tool developed by EGA to help data controllers manage their data stored at the EGA. You can find the relevant information in the DAC Portal Guide. Programmatic submission All the calls to the API need to be Authenticated. We use the OpenID Connect protocol. API Usage Flow: Click here to check the API usage flow schema Obtain Access and Refresh Token: The first step to using the API is to obtain an access and refresh token. These tokens are required for authentication and authorisation of API requests. To obtain these tokens, you need to log in using your EGA credentials. Example: curl "https://idp.ega-archive.org/realms/EGA/protocol/openid-connect/token" \ -d "grant_type=password" \ -d "client_id=sp-api" \ -d "username=your-username" \ --data-urlencode "password=your-password" Use Access Token in API Calls: Once you have obtained the access token, you must use it in all the calls to the API. The access token is valid for a limited time period. When it expires, you will need to use the refresh token to obtain a new access token. Create Submission Object: After authentication, you can start creating a submission object. This object will be used to store all the metadata objects and files related to the submission. Example: curl "https://submission.ega-archive.org/api/submissions" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer your-access-token" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d "{ \"title\":\"My submission title\", \"description\":\"My submission description\" }" Create EGA Metadata Objects: Within the submission object, you can create other metadata objects required for the submission. These objects may include information about the submitter, study, sample, experiment, and run. Example of study creation: curl "https://submission.ega-archive.org/api/submissions/{submisison-id}/studies" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer your-access-token" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d "{ \"title\":\"My study title\", \"description\":\"My study description\", \"study_type\":\"Metagenomics\" }" If you would like to reuse already registered objects in new submissions, bear in mind that they must have an accession which you must use to reference them. You cannot reuse objects that have not been finalised and accepted yet.For example, when creating a new run which is reusing a previously submitted experiment, instead of using experiment_provisional_id, you must use experiment_accession_id. Enums There are some fields that only accept specific values, i.e. study_type. The API provides several enumerations to list these values. You can list all the enumerations, or a specific one, for example, study_types. Obtain IDs of files You can list the files available in your inbox and filter by a prefix by adding the prefix param, i.e. &prefix=/my_folder/abc Example: curl "https://submission.ega-archive.org/api/files?status=inbox&prefix=/my_folder/abc" \ -H "Authorization: Bearer your-access-token" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" To improve performance and manageability, we have limited the number of files that the Submitter Portal API can return in a response. If a given call exceeds this limit, user will be asked to narrow down the search by using the query parameters already available in this endpoint. Finalise Submission: Once all the metadata objects are created and linked to the submission, you can finalise the submission. Finalising the submission sends it to the Helpdesk team for review. Please, note that all files linked to the submission must be ingested, and all objects created in a submission must be linked before you can finalise the submission. API Reference: For a full API reference, please check our specification documentation.

Documentation submission/metadata/submission/sequencing-phenotype/submitter-portal-api

Providing access to COVID-19 data: one year later

response efforts On 11 March 2020 the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a global pandemic. Four months later, the European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA) released its first COVID-19 dataset. This dataset – single cell RNA and VDJ sequencing of B cells from 60 COVID-19 patients – showed that neutralizing antibodies could be identified by high-throughput sequencing in response to SARS-CoV-2 infection. That was one year ago. Today, the EGA provides access to fifteen COVID-19 datasets from researchers across seven countries in Asia, Europe, and North America. These studies represent almost 17,000 individuals and have resulted in at least sixteen publications and preprints. Researchers deposit controlled access COVID-19 data at EGA The global research community has come together rapidly to investigate the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus and better understand the related disease, COVID-19. These research efforts generate valuable genetic and phenotypic data from patients and research participants that can be shared with approved researchers. The EGA enables sharing of this research data by providing a service for archiving and controlled distribution of sensitive data. Over the past year, the EGA has worked with researchers to archive and distribute COVID-19 data from high-throughput sequencing experiments, genotyping studies, and phenotypic information. These datasets investigate the immune system, blood, and cells and tissues of the lung, which are relevant for studying a contagious respiratory illness caused by a viral infection. *Study Spotlight. In January 2021, Ancestry.com demonstrated the utility of deep phenotyping based on self-reported outcomes from a large population of mild and asymptomatic COVID-19 cases. They identified genetic associations with eight COVID-19 phenotypes and showed distinct patterns of association, most notably related to the chr3/SLC6A20/LZTFL1 and chr9/ABO regions. The supporting data is available at the EGA to approved researchers and includes both genotype and phenotype data for 15,000 individuals. EGA collaborates with global COVID-19 community Since the coronavirus outbreak, the EGA has collaborated with other life science resources to support discovery and access to COVID-19 datasets. COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative. With the NHGRI’s Genomic Data Science Analysis, Visualization, and Informatics Lab-space (AnVIL) platform, the EGA enables sharing of individual-level genetic and phenotypic data from the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative (HGI). This initiative aims to generate, share, and analyze data from COVID-19 host genetics research projects to better understand the genetic determinants of COVID-19 susceptibility, severity, and outcomes. In response to COVID-19, the EGA actively supports COVID-19 data submissions and integration of data access and flow into the COVID-19-HGI analysis platform. *Study Spotlight. The COVID-19 HGI has combined individual-level data for 13,868 COVID-19 positive patients (N=7,167 hospitalized) from 17 cohorts in nine countries. The data were used to assess the association of the major common COVID-19 genetic risk factor (chromosome 3 locus tagged by rs10490770) with mortality, COVID-19-related complications, and laboratory values. The genotype and phenotype data for 10 of these cohorts is available at the EGA to approved researchers under accession EGAS00001005304. Fig 1: EGA COVID-19 studies are searchable in the European COVID-19 Data Portal alongside other COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 public datasets. European COVID-19 Data Portal. EGA-archived COVID-19 data are discoverable via the European COVID-19 Data Portal (Fig. 1), which brings together public and controlled access data to accelerate coronavirus research for the international community. By indexing all COVID-19-related data in one place, researchers can more easily discover relevant datasets of interest, thus increasing the “FAIRness” (Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, Reusability) of this valuable data. Fig 2: SARS-CoV-2 viral sequences are imported from ENA and analysed in Galaxy to detect variants. Results are accessible to researchers through the COVID-19 Viral Beacon. COVID-19 Viral Beacon. The COVID-19 Viral Beacon tool was developed in collaboration with the European Nucleotide Archive and Galaxy to enable near real-time browsing of SARS-CoV-2 variability at genomic, amino acid, and motif levels (Fig. 2). The COVID-19 Viral Beacon allows researchers to (i) perform detailed searches about genomic variants, (ii) filter queries and find unique cases, (iii) filter data based on strain-specific variants, and (iv) explore associated metadata. It uses the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health (GA4GH) Beacon standard including new Beacon v2 features. With this tool, researchers can study intra-host mutations on genomic regions of interest, or trace any variant frequency over time using raw read data. More than 200,000 SARS-CoV-2 analysed genomic data files are now available to researchers for further exploration. Ongoing COVID-19 efforts at EGA Addressing the COVID-19 pandemic is a global effort. Federated resources are necessary to support transnational deposition, access, and analysis of sensitive COVID-19 host genetics and other related data. At the same time, many countries now have emerging personalized medicine programmes which are generating data from national or regional healthcare initiatives. These data are subject to more stringent information governance than research data and often must comply with national data protection legislation. To address this need, the Federated EGA was established to serve as the primary global resource for discovery and access of sensitive human omics and associated data consented for secondary use. The Federated EGA will comprise a network of national human data repositories and will implement community standards and common interfaces. Launching Federated EGA promises to accelerate not only global research efforts to understand, diagnose, and treat COVID-19, but also to foster data reuse, enable reproducibility, and accelerate biomedical and disease research to ultimately improve human health.

Blog providing-access-to-covid-19

The Haemgen RBC study

Anaemia is a major determinant of global ill-health. To refine our understanding of the genetic factors influencing red blood cell formation and function, we carried out a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for six red blood cell traits: haemoglobin (HB), mean cell haemoglobin (MCH), mean cell haemoglobin concentration (MCHC), mean cell volume (MCV), packed cell volume (PCV) and red blood cell count (RBC). We provide genome-wide association results for 62,553 people of European ancestry using up to 2,644,161 autosomal SNPs. Participants with extreme measurements (>+/-3SD from mean) were excluded on a per phenotype basis. Imputation was done using haplotypes from HapMap Phase 2. SNP associations with each phenotype were tested by linear regression using an additive genetic model. Associations were tested separately in each cohort, with principal components and other study specific factors as covariates to account of population substructure. We then carried out meta-analysis of results from the individual cohorts using z-scores weighted by square root of sample size. SNPs with MAF<1% (weighted average across cohorts) were removed, as were SNPs with weight <50% of phenotype sample size. Anaemia is a major determinant of global ill-health. To refine our understanding of the genetic factors influencing red blood cell formation and function, we carried out a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for six red blood cell traits: haemoglobin (HB), mean cell haemoglobin (MCH), mean cell haemoglobin concentration (MCHC), mean cell volume (MCV), packed cell volume (PCV) and red blood cell count (RBC). We provide genome-wide association results for 62,553 people of European ancestry using up to 2,644,161 autosomal SNPs. Participants with extreme measurements (>+/-3SD from mean) were excluded on a per phenotype basis. Imputation was done using haplotypes from HapMap Phase 2. SNP associations with each phenotype were tested by linear regression using an additive genetic model. Associations were tested separately in each cohort, with principal components and other study specific factors as covariates to account of population substructure. We then carried out meta-analysis of results from the individual cohorts using z-scores weighted by square root of sample size. SNPs with MAF<1% (weighted average across cohorts) were removed, as were SNPs with weight <50% of phenotype sample size.

Study EGAS00000000132

National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) GO-ESP: Heart Cohorts Component of the Exome Sequencing Project (ARIC)

The NHLBI "Grand Opportunity" Exome Sequencing Project (GO-ESP), a signature project of the NHLBI Recovery Act investment, was designed to identify genetic variants in coding regions (exons) of the human genome (the "exome") that are associated with heart, lung and blood diseases. These and related diseases that are of high impact to public health and individuals from diverse racial and ethnic groups will be studied. These data may help researchers understand the causes of disease, contributing to better ways to prevent, diagnose, and treat diseases, as well as determine whether to tailor prevention and treatments to specific populations. This could lead to more effective treatments and reduce the likelihood of side effects. GO-ESP is comprised of five collaborative components: 3 cohort consortia - HeartGO, LungGO, and WHISP - and 2 sequencing centers - BroadGO and SeattleGO. HeartGO is a consortium of six well-phenotyped NHLBI cohorts: Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study, the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study, the Cardiovascular Health Study, the Framingham Heart Study, the Jackson Heart Study, and the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis. Together, these cohorts have provided DNA and phenotype datasets from a diverse cohort of individuals of African-American, Caucasian, Asian, and Hispanic ancestry to be made available for use by qualified investigators in dbGaP. HeartGO investigators will conduct genotype-phenotype analyses for phenotypes related not only to heart disease but with other variables that will be contributed to dbGaP. The HeartGO dataset provides investigators with genotype-phenotype analytic opportunities for traits not only related to heart disease but also associated with ancillary variables that will be contributed to dbGaP, including disease endpoints, risk factors, biomarkers, and subclinical disease measures. The phenotypes planned for investigation as part of the GO-ESP HeartGO project include early-onset myocardial infarction (EOMI), low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, body mass index/type 2 diabetes (BMI/T2D), blood pressure and ischemic stroke. Results of the proposed analyses as well as relevant replication/follow-up analyses will be reported in peer-reviewed journals. This study phs000398 contains the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) subset of GO-ESP/Heart-GO. Additional GO-ESP data is also available via dbGaP.

Study phs000398

Foregut Microbiome in Development of Esophageal Adenocarcinoma

The distal esophagus is an important anatomical area where gastric acid reflux can cause reflux esophagitis (RE), Barrett's esophagus (BE) (intestinal metaplasia), and esophageal adenocarcinoma (EA). The incidence of EA has increased 6-fold in the U.S. since the 1970s, parallel to a significant increase in the prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux diseases (GERD). Although specific host factors might predispose one to disease risk, such a rapid increase in incidence must be predominantly environmental. The cause remains unknown. Our hypothesis is that changes in the foregut microbiome are associated with EA and its precursors, RE and BE in the GERD sequence. We will conduct a case control study to characterize the microbiome in every stage of the GERD sequence as well as analyze the trend in changes in the microbiome along disease progression toward EA. Specific Aim 1. To conduct a comprehensive population survey of the foregut microbiome and demonstrate its association with GERD sequence, by a 16S rRNA gene survey. We will analyze samples of the foregut microbiome at three anatomic loci: mouth, distal esophagus, and gastric corpus. Changes of the microbiota in the distal esophagus will be correlated with the phenotypes. Spatial relationship between the esophageal microbiota and upstream (mouth) and downstream (stomach) foregut microbiotas as well as temporal stability of the microbiome-disease association will also be examined. Specific Aim 2. To define distal esophageal metagenome and demonstrate its association with GERD sequence, by shotgun metagenomic analysis. We will first classify samples of the metagenome into metagenotypes by between-sample k-mer distance and correlate the metagenotypes with the four phenotypes. Subsequent detailed analyses will include pathway-disease and gene-disease associations. DNA viruses and fungi, if identified, also will be correlated with the phenotypes. A significant association between the foregut microbiome composition and GERD sequence, if demonstrated, will be the first step for eventually testing the causal hypothesis that an abnormal microbiome is required for the development of the sequence of phenotypic changes toward EA. If EA and its precursors represent a microbial ecological disease, treating the cause of GERD might become possible, for example, by normalizing the microbiome through use of antibiotics, probiotics, or prebiotics. Causative therapy for GERD could prevent its progression and reverse the current trend of increasing incidence of EA.

Study phs000260

(Epi)genetic Risk Architectures of Opioid-Dependent Brain

With nearly 20,000 overdose deaths in 2014 alone, opioid addiction (OA) has emerged as one of the most pressing public health crises in recent US history. One-fifth of individuals who try heroin develop an addiction to opioids. Genetics is a major contributor to OA with an estimated 60% heritability, only somewhat less than schizophrenia (80%) which has recently seen substantial gains in identified underlying genetics. Yet, studies to date have failed to uncover most of the genes that predispose individuals to OA, leaving the overwhelming fraction of OA heritability unexplained. The proposed study takes a novel, integrated "omics-based" strategy to investigate the molecular basis of OA and uncover both genetic and epigenetic factors associated with opioid addiction. The premise for our approach is founded on studies from our labs, and others, implicating regulatory variation in common traits and diseases, including those associated with complex brain phenotypes like addiction. We have collected the largest known cohort of postmortem brains from addicts who overdosed on opioids, along with matched control brains from non-users. From both cases and control specimens, we will isolate cells from 2 regions of the brain closely implicated in the addiction phenotype: the Prefrontal Cortex (PFC) and the Nucleus Accumbens (NAc). In Aim 1, we propose ChIP-seq studies to identify regulatory elements that distinguish cases from controls and define the opioid addiction phenotype. The regulatory differences will be connected to their gene targets through high resolution in situ Hi-C. In Aim 2, we propose QTL-based approaches to identify genetic variants that underlie the regulatory differences (hmQTLs). We also propose eQTL analyses to identify genetic variants that underlie differences in transcript levels between cases and controls. Aim 3 leverages the largest heroin addiction GWAS meta-analysis to date to test the hypothesis that SNPs in regions associated with chromatin and expression differences between cases and controls define novel loci for predisposition to OA. Each Aim has the potential for discovery independent of the others (differential HM, RNAexp, QTLs, and variant-phenotype associations) but their synergy is the most powerful component of the proposed study: identifying regulatory pathways that generate, not only phenotype associations, but hypothesized mechanisms for those associations which can be the focus of new opioid addiction prevention and treatment development.

Study phs002724

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