Subcutaneous adipose tissue stores excess lipids and maintains energy balance. We performed expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) analyses by using abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue of 770 extensively phenotyped participants of the METSIM study. We identified cis-eQTLs for 12,400 genes at a 1% false-discovery rate. Among an approximately 680 known genome-wide association study (GWAS) loci for cardio-metabolic traits, we identified 140 coincident cis-eQTLs at 109 GWAS loci, including 93 eQTLs not previously described. At 49 of these 140 eQTLs, gene expression was nominally associated (p < 0.05) with levels of the GWAS trait. The size of our dataset enabled identification of five loci associated (p < 5 × 10^-8) with at least five genes located >5 Mb away. These trans-eQTL signals confirmed and extended the previously reported KLF14-mediated network to 55 target genes, validated the CIITA regulation of class II MHC genes, and identified ZNF800 as a candidate master regulator. Finally, we observed similar expression-clinical trait correlations of genes associated with GWAS loci in both humans and a panel of genetically diverse mice. These results provide candidate genes for further investigation of their potential roles in adipose biology and in regulating cardio-metabolic traits.

In the original version of this Article, Supplementary Table 10 contained incorrect primer sequences for the mobility shift assay for SNP rs4776984. These errors have now been fixed and the corrected version of the Supplementary Information PDF is available to download from the HTML version of the Article.

Increased adiposity is a hallmark of obesity and overweight, which affect 2.2 billion people world-wide. Understanding the genetic and molecular mechanisms that underlie obesity-related phenotypes can help to improve treatment options and drug development. Here we perform promoter Capture Hi-C in human adipocytes to investigate interactions between gene promoters and distal elements as a transcription-regulating mechanism contributing to these phenotypes. We find that promoter-interacting elements in human adipocytes are enriched for adipose-related transcription factor motifs, such as PPARG and CEBPB, and contribute to heritability of cis-regulated gene expression. We further intersect these data with published genome-wide association studies for BMI and BMI-related metabolic traits to identify the genes that are under genetic cis regulation in human adipocytes via chromosomal interactions. This integrative genomics approach identifies four cis-eQTL-eGene relationships associated with BMI or obesity-related traits, including rs4776984 and MAP2K5, which we further confirm by EMSA, and highlights 38 additional candidate genes.

Circulating levels of adiponectin, an adipocyte-secreted protein associated with cardiovascular and metabolic risk, are highly heritable. To gain insights into the biology that regulates adiponectin levels, we performed an exome array meta-analysis of 265,780 genetic variants in 67,739 individuals of European, Hispanic, African American, and East Asian ancestry. We identified 20 loci associated with adiponectin, including 11 that had been reported previously (p < 2 × 10^-7). Comparison of exome array variants to regional linkage disequilibrium (LD) patterns and prior genome-wide association study (GWAS) results detected candidate variants (r² > .60) spanning as much as 900 kb. To identify potential genes and mechanisms through which the previously unreported association signals act to affect adiponectin levels, we assessed cross-trait associations, expression quantitative trait loci in subcutaneous adipose, and biological pathways of nearby genes. Eight of the nine loci were also associated (p < 1 × 10^-4) with at least one obesity or lipid trait. Candidate genes include PRKAR2A, PTH1R, and HDAC9, which have been suggested to play roles in adipocyte differentiation or bone marrow adipose tissue. Taken together, these findings provide further insights into the processes that influence circulating adiponectin levels.

Body-fat distribution is a risk factor for adverse cardiovascular health consequences. We analyzed the association of body-fat distribution, assessed by waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index, with 228,985 predicted coding and splice site variants available on exome arrays in up to 344,369 individuals from five major ancestries (discovery) and 132,177 European-ancestry individuals (validation). We identified 15 common (minor allele frequency, MAF ≥5%) and nine low-frequency or rare (MAF <5%) coding novel variants. Pathway/gene set enrichment analyses identified lipid particle, adiponectin, abnormal white adipose tissue physiology and bone development and morphology as important contributors to fat distribution, while cross-trait associations highlight cardiometabolic traits. In functional follow-up analyses, specifically in Drosophila RNAi-knockdowns, we observed a significant increase in the total body triglyceride levels for two genes (DNAH10 and PLXND1). We implicate novel genes in fat distribution, stressing the importance of interrogating low-frequency and protein-coding variants.