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Genome-wide meta-analysis revealed several genetic loci associated with serum uric acid levels in Korean population: an analysis of Korea Biobank data

Journal of Human Genetics volume 67, pages 231–237 (2022)Cite this article

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Abstract

The serum uric acid (SUA) level is an important determinant of gout, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease. Although previous genome-wide studies have identified multiple genetic variants associated with SUA, most genetic analyses have focused on individuals with European ancestry; thus, understanding of the genetic architecture of SUA is currently limited for Asian populations. We conducted a genome-wide meta-analysis based on Korea Biobank data consistent with three cohorts; namely, the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study (KoGES) Ansan and Ansung, KoGES Health Examinee, and KoGES Cardiovascular Disease Association studies. In total, 60,585 participants aged ≥40 years were included in the analysis of the three cohorts. We used logistic regression analyses to perform genome-wide association study (GWAS) adjustments for confounding variables. Subsequently, a meta-analysis was conducted by combining the analyses of the three GWASs. We identified 8,105 variants at 22 genetic loci with a P value < 5 × 10−8. Among these, six novel genetic loci associated with SUA in the Korean population were identified (rs4715517 in HCRTR2, rs145099458 in 3.2 kb 3′ of MLXIPL, rs1137642 in B4GALT1, rs659107 in LOC105378410, rs7919329 in LOC107984274, and rs2240751 in MFSD12). Our meta-analysis provides insights into the genetic architecture of SUA in the Korean population. Further studies are warranted to replicate the study results and elucidate the specific role of these variants in SUA homeostasis.

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Acknowledgements

This study was conducted with bioresources from the National Biobank of Korea, the Center for Disease and Prevention, Republic of Korea (KBN-2020-003).

Funding

This research was funded by a National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korean government (MEST) (No. 2019R1G1A1099627).

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Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: Jin sung Park, Yunkyung Kim.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Kosin University Gospel Hospital, Kosin University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea

    Jin sung Park

  2. Division of Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Kosin University Gospel Hospital, Kosin University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea

    Yunkyung Kim

  3. Department of Family Medicine, Kosin University Gospel Hospital, Kosin University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea

    Jihun Kang

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  1. Jin sung Park
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Contributions

J Park: Writing—Original draft, Methodology, Software, Formal analysis, Data curation; Y Kim: Original draft, Methodology, Software, Formal analysis, Data curation, Visualization; J Kang: Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Writing—review & editing, Supervision, Project administration. All authors: Investigation and Validation. All authors discussed the results and approved the final version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Jihun Kang.

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Park, J.s., Kim, Y. & Kang, J. Genome-wide meta-analysis revealed several genetic loci associated with serum uric acid levels in Korean population: an analysis of Korea Biobank data. J Hum Genet 67, 231–237 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s10038-021-00991-1

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