A multi-ancestry genome-wide association study and evaluation of polygenic scores of LDL-C levels

The genetic determinants of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels in blood have been predominantly explored in European populations and remain poorly understood in Middle Eastern populations. We investigated the genetic architecture of LDL-C variation in Qatar by conducting a genome-wide association study (GWAS) on serum LDL-C levels using whole genome sequencing data of 13,701 individuals (discovery; n = 5,939, replication; n = 7,762) from the population-based Qatar Biobank (QBB) cohort. We replicated 168 previously reported loci from the largest LDL-C GWAS by the Global Lipids Genetics Consortium (GLGC), with high correlation in allele frequencies (R² = 0.77) and moderate correlation in effect sizes (Beta; R² = 0.53). We also performed a multi-ancestry meta-analysis with the GLGC study using MR-MEGA (Meta-Regression of Multi-Ethnic Genetic Association) and identified one novel LDL-C-associated locus; rs10939663 (SLC2A9; genomic control-corrected P = 1.25 × 10^-8). Lastly, we developed Qatari-specific polygenic score (PGS) panels and tested their performance against PGS derived from other ancestries. The multi-ancestry-derived PGS (PGS000888) performed best at predicting LDL-C levels, whilst the Qatari-derived PGS showed comparable performance. Overall, we report a novel gene associated with LDL-C levels, which may be explored further to decipher its potential role in the etiopathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases. Our findings also highlight the importance of population-based genetics in developing PGS for clinical utilization.