Cited by 1,956Genetic Associations and EpidemiologyGenomics and Chromatin DynamicsMultiple Sclerosis Research Studies

Genetic and epigenetic fine mapping of causal autoimmune disease variants

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Farh, Kyle Kai-How, Marson, Alexander, Zhu, Jiang, Kleinewietfeld, Markus, Housley, William J., Beik, Samantha, Shoresh, Noam, Whitton, Holly +13 more·2015·Nature

Abstract

Genome-wide association studies have identified loci underlying human diseases, but the causal nucleotide changes and mechanisms remain largely unknown. Here we developed a fine-mapping algorithm to identify candidate causal variants for 21 autoimmune diseases from genotyping data. We integrated these predictions with transcription and cis-regulatory element annotations, derived by mapping RNA and chromatin in primary immune cells, including resting and stimulated CD4(+) T-cell subsets, regulatory T cells, CD8(+) T cells, B cells, and monocytes. We find that ∼90% of causal variants are non-coding, with ∼60% mapping to immune-cell enhancers, many of which gain histone acetylation and transcribe enhancer-associated RNA upon immune stimulation. Causal variants tend to occur near binding sites for master regulators of immune differentiation and stimulus-dependent gene activation, but only 10-20% directly alter recognizable transcription factor binding motifs. Rather, most non-coding risk variants, including those that alter gene expression, affect non-canonical sequence determinants not well-explained by current gene regulatory models.

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  • Functional and epigenomic annotation studies suggest that other elements of the immune system may be involved in MS.

    “While the T cell component plays an important role, functional and epigenomic annotation studies have begun to suggest that other elements of the immune system may be involved as well.(7, 8)”

    From Multiple sclerosis genomic map implicates peripheral immune cells and microglia in susceptibility (2019) · cites this paper as [7]

    The section “Causal Autoimmunity Variants Map to Immune Cell-Specific Enhancers” (page unavailable) reports enrichment of autoimmune-disease variants in both B-cell and T-cell enhancers, supporting a possible role beyond T cells. The passage reports that result for autoimmune diseases collectively, however, rather than establishing a B-cell or other non-T-cell contribution specifically to MS. (LLM, conf=0.82)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • In the authors' previous examination of ulcerative colitis, they observed enrichment of genetic variants mapping to colon tissue.

    “we observed enrichment of genetic variants mapping to colon tissue.(7)”

    From Multiple sclerosis genomic map implicates peripheral immune cells and microglia in susceptibility (2019) · cites this paper as [7]

    The ‘Cell-Type Specific Signatures of Complex Diseases’ section reports that ulcerative colitis variants mapped to gastrointestinal tract regulatory elements. That supports enrichment in a bowel-related tissue, but the passage does not identify colon tissue specifically. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • The majority of multiple sclerosis risk variants appear to localise to gene regulatory regions, rather than coding sequence, and specifically to enhancer elements active in stimulated immune cell subsets.

    “The second challenge is that the majority of MS risk variants appear to localise to gene regulatory regions, rather than coding sequence,55 and specifically to enhancer elements active in stimulated immune cell subsets.56”

    From Genome‐wide association studies of multiple sclerosis (2018) · cites this paper as [56]

  • A 6-hour activation time point maximizes expression of interferon-sensitive genes in dendritic cells and T cells.

    “a time point we previously found to maximize the expression of interferon-sensitive genes (ISGs) in dendritic cells (DCs) and T cells26, 27.”

    From Multiplexed droplet single-cell RNA-sequencing using natural genetic variation (2018) · cites this paper as [27]

    The Introduction’s discussion of immune-cell enhancers reports gene induction after T-cell stimulation, but not interferon-sensitive gene expression or its peak time. The Supplementary Methods describe an eight-hour T-cell stimulation; searches for a six-hour ISG maximum and for dendritic-cell results found no passage addressing the claim. (LLM, conf=0.74)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • For 709 genes, estimates of fold change in response to IFN-β in myeloid and CD4+ cells are consistent with estimates in monocyte derived dendritic cells and CD4+ T cells, and correlated with qPCR results of sorted CD4+ T cells.

    “For 709 genes, estimates of fold change in response to IFN-β stimulation in myeloid and CD4+ cells are consistent with estimates in monocyte derived dendritic cells28 and CD4+ T cells27, respectively (Supplementary Fig. 17) and correlated with qPCR results of sorted CD4+ T cells (Supplementary Fig. 18).”

    From Multiplexed droplet single-cell RNA-sequencing using natural genetic variation (2018) · cites this paper as [27]

    The Supplementary Methods (Cell Isolation and Culture; Analysis of ex vivo Stimulation-dependent Enhancers, pages not provided) describe CD4+ T-cell sorting and stimulation with PMA/ionomycin or anti-CD3/CD28, not IFN-β. Searches for “709 genes,” IFN-β fold changes, and the stated comparisons and qPCR correlation found no passage addressing the claim. (LLM, conf=0.76)

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Authors
Farh, K. K.-H., Marson, A., Zhu, J., Kleinewietfeld, M., Housley, W. J., Beik, S., Shoresh, N., Whitton, H., Ryan, R. J. H., Shishkin, A. A., Hatan, M., Carrasco-Alfonso, M. J., Mayer, D., Luckey, C. J., Patsopoulos, N. A., De Jager, P. L., Kuchroo, V. K., Epstein, C. B., Daly, M. J., Hafler, D. A., & Bernstein, B. E.
Affiliations
  • Broad Institute (US)
  • University of California, San Francisco (US)
  • Yale University (US)
  • Brigham and Women's Hospital (US)
Corresponding author
Marson, Alexander
Venue
Nature
Published
2014-10-29
Volume
518
Issue
7539
Pages
337-343
ISSN
  • 0028-0836 (ISSN-L)
  • 1476-4687
OpenAlex
W2056198580
Cited by
1,956
References
67
Citations by year
2026: 98 · 2025: 127 · 2024: 171 · 2023: 148 · 2022: 166 · 2021: 172 · 2020: 187 · 2019: 197 · 2018: 186 · 2017: 174 · 2016: 177 · 2015: 143 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 1
FWCI
107.93
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Nature (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
  • CaltechAUTHORS (California Institute of Technology) (submittedVersion)
  • Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute
  • National Multiple Sclerosis Society (CA 1061-A-18)
  • Brigham and Women's Hospital
  • Multiple Sclerosis Society
  • National Institutes of Health (5u54hg004570-04, AI039671, AI045757)
  • University of California, San Francisco
  • National Human Genome Research Institute (U54HG006991, U54-HG004570, HG004570)
  • National Institute of General Medical Sciences (GM093080, RC2GM093080, T32GM007748)
  • National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (U19AI070352, U19AI046130, P01AI045757, AI039671, AI070352, AI045757, AI046130, P01AI039671, T32AI007019)
  • National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (P30DK063720)
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NS067305, NS 24247, R37NS024247, R01NS024247, R01NS067305)
  • National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (U01ES017155, ES017155)
  • Common Fund
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Genetic Associations and Epidemiology
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Genomics and Chromatin Dynamics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pathology and Forensic Medicine › Multiple Sclerosis Research Studies
Keywords
autoimmune disease, non-coding variants, enhancers, histone acetylation, T cell stimulation, CD4+ T cells, regulatory T cells, CD8+ T cells, B cells, monocytes, transcription factor binding motifs, gene expression regulation, immune cells, epigenomics
MeSH terms
Autoimmune Diseases, Base Sequence, Chromatin, Enhancer Elements, Genetic, Humans, Organ Specificity, T-Lymphocytes, Transcription Factors, Consensus Sequence, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Epigenesis, Genetic, Genome-Wide Association Study, Epigenomics, Nucleotide Motifs

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