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Meta-Analysis
. 2018 Nov 21;39(44):3961-3969.
doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehy474.

A comprehensive evaluation of the genetic architecture of sudden cardiac arrest

Foram N Ashar  1 Rebecca N Mitchell  1 Christine M Albert  2 Christopher Newton-Cheh  3 Jennifer A Brody  4 Martina Müller-Nurasyid  5   6   7   8 Anna Moes  1 Thomas Meitinger  8   9   10 Angel Mak  11 Heikki Huikuri  12 M Juhani Junttila  12 Philippe Goyette  13 Sara L Pulit  14 Raha Pazoki  15 Michael W Tanck  16 Marieke T Blom  17 XiaoQing Zhao  18 Aki S Havulinna  19 Reza Jabbari  20 Charlotte Glinge  20 Vinicius Tragante  21 Stefan A Escher  22 Aravinda Chakravarti  1 Georg Ehret  1 Josef Coresh  23 Man Li  23 Ronald J Prineas  24 Oscar H Franco  25   26 Pui-Yan Kwok  11 Thomas Lumley  27 Florence Dumas  28 Barbara McKnight  4   29 Jerome I Rotter  30 Rozenn N Lemaitre  4 Susan R Heckbert  31 Christopher J O'Donnell  32   33 Shih-Jen Hwang  33 Jean-Claude Tardif  13 Martin VanDenburgh  2 André G Uitterlinden  34 Albert Hofman  26 Bruno H C Stricker  26 Paul I W de Bakker  35   36 Paul W Franks  22 Jan-Hakan Jansson  37 Folkert W Asselbergs  21   38   39 Marc K Halushka  40 Joseph J Maleszewski  41 Jacob Tfelt-Hansen  20   42 Thomas Engstrøm  20   43 Veikko Salomaa  19 Renu Virmani  18 Frank Kolodgie  18 Arthur A M Wilde  44 Hanno L Tan  44 Connie R Bezzina  44 Mark Eijgelsheim  45 John D Rioux  13 Xavier Jouven  28 Stefan Kääb  7   8 Bruce M Psaty  46 David S Siscovick  47 Dan E Arking  1 Nona Sotoodehnia  48
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

A comprehensive evaluation of the genetic architecture of sudden cardiac arrest

Foram N Ashar et al. Eur Heart J. .

Abstract

Aims: Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) accounts for 10% of adult mortality in Western populations. We aim to identify potential loci associated with SCA and to identify risk factors causally associated with SCA.

Methods and results: We carried out a large genome-wide association study (GWAS) for SCA (n = 3939 cases, 25 989 non-cases) to examine common variation genome-wide and in candidate arrhythmia genes. We also exploited Mendelian randomization (MR) methods using cross-trait multi-variant genetic risk score associations (GRSA) to assess causal relationships of 18 risk factors with SCA. No variants were associated with SCA at genome-wide significance, nor were common variants in candidate arrhythmia genes associated with SCA at nominal significance. Using cross-trait GRSA, we established genetic correlation between SCA and (i) coronary artery disease (CAD) and traditional CAD risk factors (blood pressure, lipids, and diabetes), (ii) height and BMI, and (iii) electrical instability traits (QT and atrial fibrillation), suggesting aetiologic roles for these traits in SCA risk.

Conclusions: Our findings show that a comprehensive approach to the genetic architecture of SCA can shed light on the determinants of a complex life-threatening condition with multiple influencing factors in the general population. The results of this genetic analysis, both positive and negative findings, have implications for evaluating the genetic architecture of patients with a family history of SCA, and for efforts to prevent SCA in high-risk populations and the general community.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Genetic Risk Score Association (GRSA) estimation. The plot (A) illustrates the process by which the QT-SCA Genetic Risk Score Association is calculated using SNPs associated with QT at P <5×10−8. The points represent the effect of each SNP on QT (in units of standard deviation of QT) on the x-axis and the log odds effect on sudden cardiac arrest risk (corresponding 95% confidence intervals in grey) on the y-axis. The estimate of the genetic risk score association is the slope of the zero-intercept weighted regression line (solid red line). For the Genetic Risk Score Association used in our analyses, the model contains a genome-wide LD-pruned SNP set (details in Methods section). The top directed acyclic graph (B) represents a scenario in which the trait of interest has a causal effect on the outcome. If the Genetic Risk Score Association, comprised of trait-associated variants (e.g. QT), has a significant effect on the outcome (e.g. sudden cardiac arrest), it supports a causal role for the trait on the outcome. The bottom directed acyl graph (C) presents the case where an association is observed between the trait and outcome, but the Genetic Risk Score Association comprised of trait-associated variants is not significantly associated with the outcome, suggesting that the observational association is likely being mediated by a confounding variable and the trait does not have a causal impact on the outcome.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Genetic Risk Scores Association (GRSA) estimates for sudden cardiac arrest. These data points represent the exponentiated Genetic Risk Score Association estimates of 18 traits on sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and corresponding 95% confidence interval values. The Genetic Risk Score Association estimates in the top panel for the binary traits are in log odds units. Values in bottom panel are in SD units of the quantitative traits. Genetic Risk Score Association estimates and significance are derived from SNPs associated with each trait at P <5×10−8. The significance of the GRSAGWS estimates (false discovery rate adjusted PGWS) are represented as ‘*’ for P <0.05, ‘**’ for P <0.01, and ‘***’ for P <0.001. The significance of the secondary analysis using GRSAmax estimates (false discovery rate adjusted permuted Pmax) are represented as ‘+’ for P <0.05, ‘++’ for P <0.01 and ‘+++’ for P <0.001. For details on values of Genetic Risk Score Association estimates and P-values, see Supplementary material online, Tables S8 and S9. AF, atrial fibrillation; BMI, body mass index; CAD, coronary artery disease; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; FGadjBMI, fasting glucose adjusted for BMI; FIadjBMI, fasting insulin adjusted for BMI; HDL, high-density lipoproteins; HR, heart rate; LDL, low-density lipoproteins; QRS, QRS interval; QT, QT interval; SBP, systolic blood pressure; TCH, total cholesterol; TG, triglycerides; T2D, type 2 diabetes; WCadjBMI, waist circumference adjusted for BMI; WHRadBMI, waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Comparison of Genetic Risk Score Association for sudden cardiac arrest and coronary artery disease. These data represent exponentiated Genetic Risk Score Associations of all 17 traits. Genetic Risk Score Association estimates for sudden cardiac arrest and coronary artery disease, are plotted in orange and teal, respectively. Bars around the estimates represent the 95% confidence interval. The Genetic Risk Score Association estimates in the top panel for the binary traits are in log odds units. Values in bottom panel are in SD units of the quantitative traits. The level of significance for 1 degree of freedom Wald test of difference in GRSAGWS estimates between sudden cardiac arrest and coronary artery disease is represented ‘*’ for P <0.05, ‘**’ for P <0.01, and ‘***’ for P <0.001. AF, atrial fibrillation; BMI, body mass index; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; FGadjBMI, fasting glucose adjusted for BMI; FIadjBMI, fasting insulin adjusted for BMI; HDL, high-density lipoproteins; HR, heart rate; LDL, low-density lipoproteins; QRS, QRS interval; QT, QT interval; SBP, systolic blood pressure; TCH, total cholesterol; TG, triglycerides; T2D, type 2 diabetes; WCadjBMI, waist circumference adjusted for BMI; WHRadBMI, waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI.

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