Relationship among genetic variants, obesity traits and asthma in the Taiwan Biobank

Ying-Jhen Huang; Yi-Chi Chu; Chia-Wei Chen; Hsin-Chou Yang; Hung-Ling Huang; Jing-Shiang Hwang; Chun-Houh Chen; Ta-Chien Chan

doi:10.1136/bmjresp-2022-001355

Relationship among genetic variants, obesity traits and asthma in the Taiwan Biobank

BMJ Open Respir Res. 2022 Dec;9(1):e001355. doi: 10.1136/bmjresp-2022-001355.

Authors

Ying-Jhen Huang¹, Yi-Chi Chu¹, Chia-Wei Chen², Hsin-Chou Yang², Hung-Ling Huang^{3

4

5}, Jing-Shiang Hwang², Chun-Houh Chen², Ta-Chien Chan^{6

7}

Affiliations

¹ Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei City, Taiwan.
² Institute of Statistical Science, Academia Sinica, Taipei City, Taiwan.
³ Department of Internal Medicine, Kaohsiung Municipal Ta-Tung Hospital, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
⁴ Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
⁵ Graduate Institute of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
⁶ Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei City, Taiwan tachien@sinica.edu.tw.
⁷ Institute of Public Health, School of Medicine, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei City, Taiwan.

Abstract

Background and objective: Obesity and asthma impose a heavy health and economic burden on millions of people around the world. The complex interaction between genetic traits and phenotypes caused the mechanism between obesity and asthma is still vague. This study investigates the relationship among obesity-related polygenic risk score (PRS), obesity phenotypes and the risk of having asthma.

Methods: This is a matched case-control study, with 4 controls (8288 non-asthmatic) for each case (2072 asthmatic). Data were obtained from the 2008-2015 Taiwan Biobank Database and linked to the 2000-2016 National Health Insurance Research Database. All participants were ≥30 years old with no history of cancer and had a complete questionnaire, as well as physical examination, genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms and clinical diagnosis data. Environmental exposure, PM_2.5, was also considered. Multivariate adjusted ORs and 95% CIs were calculated using conditional logistic regression stratified by age and sex. Mediation analysis was also assessed, using a generalised linear model.

Results: We found that the obese phenotype was associated with significantly increased odds of asthma by approximately 26%. Four obesity-related PRS, including body mass index (OR=1.07 (1.01-1.13)), waist circumference (OR=1.10 (1.04-1.17)), central obesity as defined by waist-to-height ratio (OR=1.09 (1.03-1.15)) and general-central obesity (OR=1.06 (1.00-1.12)), were associated with increased odds of asthma. Additional independent risk factors for asthma included lower educational level, family history of asthma, certain chronic diseases and increased PM_2.5 exposure. Obesity-related PRS is an indirect risk factor for asthma, the link being fully mediated by the trait of obesity.

Conclusions: Obese phenotypes and obesity-related PRS are independent risk factors for having asthma in adults in the Taiwan Biobank. Overall, genetic risk for obesity increases the risk of asthma by affecting the obese phenotype.

Keywords: Asthma; Asthma Epidemiology; Asthma Genetics; Clinical Epidemiology.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Asthma* / complications
Asthma* / epidemiology
Asthma* / genetics
Biological Specimen Banks
Case-Control Studies
Humans
Obesity / complications
Obesity / epidemiology
Obesity / genetics
Obesity, Abdominal* / complications
Particulate Matter
Phenotype
Taiwan / epidemiology

Substances

Particulate Matter