Cárcel-Márquez J, Muiño E, Gallego-Fabrega C et al. Stroke. 2024 Oct;55(10):2462-2471. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.124.047833. Epub 2024 Sep 24 .PMID: 39315829.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39315829/
Background: Ischemic stroke (IS) represents a significant health burden globally, necessitating a better understanding of its genetic underpinnings to improve prevention and treatment strategies. Despite advances in IS genetics, studies focusing on the Spanish population and sex-stratified analyses are lacking.
Methods: A case-control genome-wide association study was conducted with 9081 individuals (3493 IS cases and 5588 healthy controls). IS subtypes using Trial of ORG 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment criteria were explored in a sex-stratified approach. Replication efforts involved the MEGASTROKE, GIGASTROKE, and the UK Biobank international cohorts. Post-genome-wide association study analysis included: in silico proteomic analysis, gene-based analysis, quantitative trait loci annotation, transcriptome-wide association analysis, and bioinformatic analysis using chromatin accessibility data.
Results: Identified as associated with IS and its subtypes were 4 significant and independent loci. Replication confirmed 5p15.2 as a new locus associated with small-vessel occlusion stroke, with rs59970332-T as the lead variant (beta [SE], 0.13 [0.02]; P=4.34×10−8). Functional analyses revealed CTNND2 given proximity and its implication in pathways involved in vascular integrity and angiogenesis. Integration of Hi-C data identified additional potentially modulated genes, and in silico proteomic analysis suggested a distinctive blood proteome profile associated with the lead variant. Gene-set enrichment analyses highlighted pathways consistent with small-vessel disease pathogenesis. Gene-based associations with known stroke-related genes such as F2 and FGG were also observed, reinforcing the relevance of our findings.
Conclusions: We found CTNND2 as a potential key molecule in small-vessel occlusion stroke risk, and predominantly in males. This study sheds light on the genetic architecture of IS in the Spanish population, providing novel insights into sex-specific associations and potential molecular mechanisms. Further research, including replication in larger cohorts, is essential for a comprehensive understanding of these findings and for their translation to clinical practice.
Funding: This study has been funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III (grant numbers PI18/01338, PI20/00925, PMP21/00165, and PI21/01088), Network of European Funding for Neuroscience Research (AC19/00106), RICORS-ICTUS: Red de Investigación Cooperativa Orientada a Resultados en Salud – Enfermedades Vasculares Cerebrales (RD21/0006/0006), Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red en Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CB22/05/00067), Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional, NextGeneration EU, Centres de Recerca de Catalunya Programme/Generalitat de Catalunya, Marató de 3cat grant numbers: 202306-30, 202310-30 and National Institutes of Health RO1 grant Genetic Architecture of Cerebral Edema after Stroke.