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Identification of putative causal loci in whole-genome sequencing data via knockoff statistics.

Zihuai HeLinxi LiuChen WangYann Le GuenJustin LeeStephanie M GogartenFred LuStephen B MontgomeryHua TangEdwin K SilvermanMichael H ChoMichael GreiciusIuliana Ionita-Laza
Published in: Nature communications (2021)
The analysis of whole-genome sequencing studies is challenging due to the large number of rare variants in noncoding regions and the lack of natural units for testing. We propose a statistical method to detect and localize rare and common risk variants in whole-genome sequencing studies based on a recently developed knockoff framework. It can (1) prioritize causal variants over associations due to linkage disequilibrium thereby improving interpretability; (2) help distinguish the signal due to rare variants from shadow effects of significant common variants nearby; (3) integrate multiple knockoffs for improved power, stability, and reproducibility; and (4) flexibly incorporate state-of-the-art and future association tests to achieve the benefits proposed here. In applications to whole-genome sequencing data from the Alzheimer's Disease Sequencing Project (ADSP) and COPDGene samples from NHLBI Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) Program we show that our method compared with conventional association tests can lead to substantially more discoveries.
Keyphrases
  • copy number
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  • antiretroviral therapy