Molecular Neurodegeneration (Aug 2024)

Whole-genome sequencing analysis reveals new susceptibility loci and structural variants associated with progressive supranuclear palsy

  • Hui Wang,
  • Timothy S. Chang,
  • Beth A. Dombroski,
  • Po-Liang Cheng,
  • Vishakha Patil,
  • Leopoldo Valiente-Banuet,
  • Kurt Farrell,
  • Catriona Mclean,
  • Laura Molina-Porcel,
  • Alex Rajput,
  • Peter Paul De Deyn,
  • Nathalie Le Bastard,
  • Marla Gearing,
  • Laura Donker Kaat,
  • John C. Van Swieten,
  • Elise Dopper,
  • Bernardino F. Ghetti,
  • Kathy L. Newell,
  • Claire Troakes,
  • Justo G. de Yébenes,
  • Alberto Rábano-Gutierrez,
  • Tina Meller,
  • Wolfgang H. Oertel,
  • Gesine Respondek,
  • Maria Stamelou,
  • Thomas Arzberger,
  • Sigrun Roeber,
  • Ulrich Müller,
  • Franziska Hopfner,
  • Pau Pastor,
  • Alexis Brice,
  • Alexandra Durr,
  • Isabelle Le Ber,
  • Thomas G. Beach,
  • Geidy E. Serrano,
  • Lili-Naz Hazrati,
  • Irene Litvan,
  • Rosa Rademakers,
  • Owen A. Ross,
  • Douglas Galasko,
  • Adam L. Boxer,
  • Bruce L. Miller,
  • Willian W. Seeley,
  • Vivanna M. Van Deerlin,
  • Edward B. Lee,
  • Charles L. White,
  • Huw Morris,
  • Rohan de Silva,
  • John F. Crary,
  • Alison M. Goate,
  • Jeffrey S. Friedman,
  • Yuk Yee Leung,
  • Giovanni Coppola,
  • Adam C. Naj,
  • Li-San Wang,
  • P. S. P. genetics study group,
  • Clifton Dalgard,
  • Dennis W. Dickson,
  • Günter U. Höglinger,
  • Gerard D. Schellenberg,
  • Daniel H. Geschwind,
  • Wan-Ping Lee

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13024-024-00747-3
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 19, no. 1
pp. 1 – 16

Abstract

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Abstract Background Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a rare neurodegenerative disease characterized by the accumulation of aggregated tau proteins in astrocytes, neurons, and oligodendrocytes. Previous genome-wide association studies for PSP were based on genotype array, therefore, were inadequate for the analysis of rare variants as well as larger mutations, such as small insertions/deletions (indels) and structural variants (SVs). Method In this study, we performed whole genome sequencing (WGS) and conducted association analysis for single nucleotide variants (SNVs), indels, and SVs, in a cohort of 1,718 cases and 2,944 controls of European ancestry. Of the 1,718 PSP individuals, 1,441 were autopsy-confirmed and 277 were clinically diagnosed. Results Our analysis of common SNVs and indels confirmed known genetic loci at MAPT, MOBP, STX6, SLCO1A2, DUSP10, and SP1, and further uncovered novel signals in APOE, FCHO1/MAP1S, KIF13A, TRIM24, TNXB, and ELOVL1. Notably, in contrast to Alzheimer’s disease (AD), we observed the APOE ε2 allele to be the risk allele in PSP. Analysis of rare SNVs and indels identified significant association in ZNF592 and further gene network analysis identified a module of neuronal genes dysregulated in PSP. Moreover, seven common SVs associated with PSP were observed in the H1/H2 haplotype region (17q21.31) and other loci, including IGH, PCMT1, CYP2A13, and SMCP. In the H1/H2 haplotype region, there is a burden of rare deletions and duplications (P = 6.73 × 10–3) in PSP. Conclusions Through WGS, we significantly enhanced our understanding of the genetic basis of PSP, providing new targets for exploring disease mechanisms and therapeutic interventions.

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