Genome-Wide Association Study of Susceptibility to Pseudomonas aeruginosa Infection in Cystic Fibrosis.

Abstract

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Pa) is a common pathogen that contributes to progressive lung disease in Cystic Fibrosis (CF). Genetic factors other than CF-causing CFTR variations contribute approximately 85% of the variation in chronic Pa infection age in CF according to twin studies, but the susceptibility loci remain unknown. Our objective is to advance understanding of the genetic basis of host susceptibility to Pa infection. We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of chronic Pa infection age in 1037 Canadians with CF. We subsequently assessed the genetic correlation between chronic Pa infection age and lung function through polygenic risk score (PRS) analysis and inferred their causal relationship through bi-directional Mendelian Randomization analysis. Two novel genome-wide significant loci with lead SNPs rs62369766 (chr5p12; p-value= 1.98 ×10-8) and rs927553 (chr13q12.12; p-value= 1.91 × 10-8) were associated with chronic Pa infection age. The rs62369766 locus was validated using an independent French cohort (N=501). Furthermore, PRS constructed from CF lung function-associated SNPs was significantly associated with chronic Pa infection age (p-value=0.002). Finally, our analysis presented evidence for a causal effect of lung function on the chronic Pa infection age (Beta=0.782 years, p-value= 4.24 × 10-4). In the reverse direction, we observed a moderate effect (Beta=0.002, p-value=0.012). We identified two novel loci that are associated with chronic Pa infection age in individuals with CF. Additionally, we provided evidence of common genetic contributors and a potential causal relationship between Pa infection susceptibility and lung function in CF. Therapeutics targeting these genetic factors may delay the onset of chronic infections which accounts for significant remaining morbidity in CF.