A genome-wide cross-trait analysis from UK Biobank highlights the shared genetic architecture of asthma and allergic diseases

Abstract

Clinical and epidemiological data suggest that asthma and allergic diseases are associated and may share a common genetic etiology. We analyzed genome-wide SNP data for asthma and allergic diseases in 33,593 cases and 76,768 controls of European ancestry from UK Biobank. Two publicly available independent genome-wide association studies were used for replication. We have found a strong genome-wide genetic correlation between asthma and allergic diseases (r_g = 0.75, P = 6.84 × 10⁻⁶²). Cross-trait analysis identified 38 genome-wide significant loci, including 7 novel shared loci. Computational analysis showed that shared genetic loci are enriched in immune/inflammatory systems and tissues with epithelium cells. Our work identifies common genetic architectures shared between asthma and allergy and will help to advance understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying co-morbid asthma and allergic diseases.