Heuristic Approach Uncovering Biological Significance of Gene-Lifestyle Interactions in Cardiometabolic Traits

Abstract

Background: Gene-lifestyle interaction studies using genome-wide association studies (GWAS) data contribute to a better understanding of individual responses to environmental exposures. Objectives: Herein, we aimed at assessing the biological significance of overlapping genes reported in gene-lifestyle interaction studies in cardiometabolic health. Method: A heuristic analysis of genes reporting significant interactions related to cardiometabolic traits was performed to determine the biological pathways common to the different traits. Results: A total of 873 genes were analyzed. Fine and condensed phenotypic solutions were obtained from overlapping genes common to more than one trait. Conclusions: This study revealed significant metabolic pathways associated with the impact of gene-environment interactions on cardiometabolic risk. Graphical Abstract: Publicly available data in cloud-based repositories were used to perform enrichment analyses of genes previously described in GWAS studies that showed interaction with lifestyles. From the enriched pathways, cluster analysis was performed to group enriched metabolic disorders.

Keywords

• gene-lifestyle interaction
• genome-wide interaction study
• precision nutrition
• cardiometabolic health
• heuristic analysis