Andrea Iorio

Genetic variability of glutathione S-transferase enzymes in human populations: Functional inter-ethnic differences in detoxification systems

Glutathione S-Transferase enzymes (GSTs) constitute the principal Phase II superfamily which plays a key role in cellular detoxification and in other biological processes. Studies of GSTs have revealed that genetic polymorphisms are present in these enzymes and that some of these are Loss-of-Function (LoF) variants, which affect enzymatic functions and are related to different aspects of human health. The aim of this study was to analyze functional genetic differences in GST enzymes among human populations. Attention was focused on LoF polymorphisms of GSTA1, GSTM1, GSTO1, GSTO2, GSTP1 and GSTT1 genes. These LoF variants were analyzed in 668 individuals belonging to six human groups with different ethnic backgrounds: Amhara and Oromo from Ethiopia; Colorado and Cayapa Amerindians and African Ecuadorians from Ecuador; and one sample from central Italy. The HapMap database was used to compare our data with reference populations and to analyze the haplotype and Linkage Disequilibrium diversity in different ethnic groups. Our results highlighted that ethnicity strongly affects the genetic variability of GST enzymes. In particular, GST haplotypes/variants with functional impact showed significant differences in human populations, according to their ethnic background. These data underline that human populations have different structures in detoxification genes, suggesting that these ethnic differences influence disease risk or response to drugs and therefore have implications for genetic association studies involving GST enzymes. In conclusion, our investigation provides data about the distribution of important LoF variants in GST genes in human populations. This information may be useful for designing and interpreting genetic association studies.

GSTA1*‐69C/T and GSTO2*N142D as asthma‐ and allergy‐related risk factors in Italian adult patients

Asthma and allergies are characterized by variable and subjective symptoms influenced by many genes, molecular mechanisms and environmental factors. The presence of inflammation and oxidative stress in the airways are important biochemical features of asthma and respiratory allergies. Glutathione S‐transferase (GSTs) enzymes play an important role in cellular protection against inflammation, and functional genetic polymorphisms in GST genes show a significant association with asthma and allergy risk. Specifically, our previous study on asthmatic children highlighted GSTA1 and GSTO2 as novel susceptibility loci for asthma. In the present study we focused our attention on GSTA1*‐69C/T (rs3957357) and GSTO2*N142D (rs156697) polymorphisms to confirm our previous results in an independent adult study population and to clarify whether GSTA1 and GSTO2 gene polymorphisms are involved in a non‐discriminative pathway towards asthma and respiratory allergy. To accomplish this, we recruited 103 patients with respiratory allergies, 199 patients with asthma and 200 healthy controls. Genomic DNA extracted from buccal cells was screened for GSTA1*‐69C/T and GSTO2*N142D single nucleotide polymorphisms. The GSTA1*‐69T and GSTO2*D142 variants are both associated with a significantly increased risk of asthma, whereas only GSTA1*‐69C/T is significantly associated with allergies. These outcomes confirm the involvement of GSTO2 loci in asthma and suggest that GSTA1 is a common risk factor for asthma and allergies.

Human pharmacogenomic variation of antihypertensive drugs: from population genetics to personalized medicine

AIM To investigate the human pharmacogenetic variation related to antihypertensive drugs, providing a survey of functional interpopulation differences in hypertension pharmacogenes. MATERIALS & METHODS The study was divided into two stages. In the first stage, we analyzed 1249 variants located in 57 hypertension pharmacogenes. This first-stage analysis confirmed that geographic origin strongly affects hypertension pharmacogenomic variation and that 31 pharmacogenes are geographically differentiated. In the second stage, we focused our attention on the ethnic-differentiated pharmacogenes, investigating 55,521 genetic variants. In silico analyses were performed to predict the effect of genetic variation. RESULTS Our analyses indicated functional interpopulation differences, suggesting insight into the mechanisms of antihypertensive drug response. Moreover, our data suggested that rare variants mainly determine the functionality of genes related to antihypertensive drugs. CONCLUSION Our study provided important knowledge about the genetics of the antihypertensive drug response, suggesting that next-generation sequencing technologies may develop reliable pharmacogenetic tests for antihypertensive drugs.

Functional variability of glutathione S-transferases in basque populations

Glutathione S‐transferases (GSTs) are enzymes involved in Phase II reactions. They play a key role in cellular detoxification. Various studies have shown that genes coding for the GST are highly polymorphic and some of these variants are directly associated with a decrease of enzyme activity making individuals more susceptible to different clinical phenotypes. The aim of this study is to investigate the genetic variability of GST genes among human populations. We have focused our attention on the polymorphic variants of the GSTA1, GSTM1, GSTO1, GSTO2, GSTP1, GSTT1, and GSTT2B genes.

Genetic response to an environmental pathogenic agent: HLA-DQ and onchocerciasis in northwestern Ecuador

The aim of this study is to explore human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DQ variability in two populations (Cayapas Amerindians and Afro-Ecuadorians) who live near one another along the Cayapa River and who are exposed to the same environmental stresses, such as infection by Onchocerca volvulus. HLA-DQA1 and HLA-DQB1 of 149 unrelated individuals (74 Cayapas and 75 Afro-Ecuadorians) have been analyzed. HLA high-resolution molecular typing was performed by sequence-based typing, sequence-specific oligonucleotides hybridization and sequence-specific primer (SSP) amplification. The comparison between affected (cases) and unaffected people (controls) in both populations shows the key role of several HLA-DQA1 alleles in susceptibility and protection against onchocerciasis. In both populations, there is strong evidence related to the protective role of DQA1*0401 against onchocerciasis. Alleles HLA-DQA1*0102 and *0103 seem to represent risk factors in Afro-Ecuadorians, while HLA-DQA1*0301 is only a suggestive susceptibility allele in Cayapas. These findings represent new positive/negative associations with onchocerciasis in South America, whereas previous findings pertained only to African populations.

Haplotype differences for copy number variants in the 22q11.23 region among human populations: a pigmentation-based model for selective pressure

Two gene clusters are tightly linked in a narrow region of chromosome 22q11.23: the macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) gene family and the glutathione S-transferase theta class. Within 120 kb in this region, two 30-kb deletions reach high frequencies in human populations. This gives rise to four haplotypic arrangements, which modulate the number of genes in both families. The variable patterns of linkage disequilibrium (LD) between these copy number variants (CNVs) in diverse human populations remain poorly understood. We analyzed 2469 individuals belonging to 27 human populations with different ethnic origins. Then we correlated the genetic variability of 22q11.23 CNVs with environmental variables. We confirmed an increasing strength of LD from Africa to Asia and to Europe. Further, we highlighted strongly significant correlations between the frequency of one of the haplotypes and pigmentation-related variables: skin color (R2=0.675, P<0.001), distance from the equator (R2=0.454, P<0.001), UVA radiation (R2=0.439, P<0.001), and UVB radiation (R2=0.313, P=0.002). The fact that all MIF-related genes are retained on this haplotype and the evidences gleaned from experimental systems seem to agree with the role of MIF-related genes in melanogenesis. As such, we propose a model that explains the geographic and ethnic distribution of 22q11.23 CNVs among human populations, assuming that MIF-related gene dosage could be associated with adaptation to low UV radiation.

Deletion polymorphism of GSTT1 gene as protective marker for allergic rhinitis.

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is one of the most common respiratory diseases among human populations. Strong evidence suggests that genetic predisposition and environmental factors could contribute to the development of this complex disease. Glutathione S‐transferases (GSTs) are biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress. These phase II enzymes play a significant role in detoxifying xenobiotic compounds.

Most recent common ancestor of TTR Val30Met mutation in Italian population and its potential role in genotype-phenotype correlation

Abstract Introduction: Transthyretin (TTR)-related amyloidosis is characterized by autosomal transmission of amyloidogenic mutated TTR. Val30Met is one of the most common amyloidogenic TTR mutations, showing a worldwide distribution with phenotypic heterogeneity among human populations. Multiple founder mutations for Val30Met foci have been hypothesized and the different origins may explain the phenotypic variability. The aim of our study is to determine the origin of Italian Val30Met and to analyze the genetic relationship of other Val30Met foci. Methods: We analyzed the origin of Italian Val30Met through 11 microsatellite markers around the TTR gene in 29 patients and 34 healthy controls. Results: Our genetic analysis showed an estimated age of origin of 34–36 generations ago for the Italian Val30Met. Comparing Italian Val30Met haplotypes with those from Sweden and Portugal highlights relevant differences that seem to be consistent with an independent origin of Italian Val30Met mutation. This genetic evidence agrees with the disease phenotypic variation in these populations. Discussion and conclusions: Italian Val30Met mutation should have originated before the Portuguese and Swedish Val30Met ones (which arose through independent mutational events). This indicates a genetic diversity in the surrounding regions of three different Val30Met mutations, supporting the hypothesis that TTR non-coding regions may contribute to phenotypic heterogeneity.

Phenotype versus Genotype Methods for Copy Number Variant Analysis of Glutathione S‐Transferases M1

Several variants have been identified for genes encoding Glutathione S‐transferase (GST) enzymes; some are associated with significant alteration of protein function. One of the most extensively studied is a copy number variant (CNV) in the GSTM1 gene. In this study, we compared phenotype (positive, null) and genotype (1/1, 1/0, 0/0) methods in order to assess dissimilarities obtained using these two different approaches to evaluate possible methodology‐related bias. We analyzed a sample of 1947 individuals belonging to 18 human populations with different ethnic origins. We also evaluated whether the presence of missense substitutions in the GSTM1 gene might influence the association of the CNV with phenotype distribution.

Non-coding variants contribute to the clinical heterogeneity of TTR amyloidosis

Coding mutations in TTR gene cause a rare hereditary form of systemic amyloidosis, which has a complex genotype–phenotype correlation. We investigated the role of non-coding variants in regulating TTR gene expression and consequently amyloidosis symptoms. We evaluated the genotype–phenotype correlation considering the clinical information of 129 Italian patients with TTR amyloidosis. Then, we conducted a re-sequencing of TTR gene to investigate how non-coding variants affect TTR expression and, consequently, phenotypic presentation in carriers of amyloidogenic mutations. Polygenic scores for genetically determined TTR expression were constructed using data from our re-sequencing analysis and the GTEx (Genotype-Tissue Expression) project. We confirmed a strong phenotypic heterogeneity across coding mutations causing TTR amyloidosis. Considering the effects of non-coding variants on TTR expression, we identified three patient clusters with specific expression patterns associated with certain phenotypic presentations, including late onset, autonomic neurological involvement, and gastrointestinal symptoms. This study provides novel data regarding the role of non-coding variation and the gene expression profiles in patients affected by TTR amyloidosis, also putting forth an approach that could be used to investigate the mechanisms at the basis of the genotype–phenotype correlation of the disease.