Using postgenome-wide association study analysis; Vars2-Pic3ca-AKT is novel putative interactive pathway associated with conotruncal heart defects

Background: Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified 43-associated variants with conotruncal heart defects (CTD) at P <= 5E-7, P <= 5E-6, and P <= 5E-5 till January 2018. Despite the GWASs still provide a growing number of associated genetic variants, the identification of their pathogenic mechanisms remains a major challenge in human genetics requiring data mining efforts and predictive models for accurate interpretation of noncoding variants especially. Hence, I applied a post-GWAS analysis approach to identify the possible mechanism of action of noncoding variants associated with CTD according to the latest update of the GWAS catalog. Method: I aimed in this study to conduct a post-GWAS analysis of the most associated noncoding variants with CTD to elucidate its probable pathogenic mechanisms. Through three GWAS traits belong to CTDs, it was used in a variety of integrated and computational algorithms to collect the available information about the selected noncoding variants and its associated partners. Results: It was found differential histone modification, motif binding, and gene expression among the CTD-associated single nucleotide polymorphisms. Through intensive analysis, it was also found that both the linked rs2517582 and rs17189763 haplotype might lead to alteration in the Pic3ca-AKT signal pathway due to a change of CTCF-binding affinity and upregulation of VARS2 gene. Conclusion: It was concluded that the indirect effect of the upregulation VARS2 gene might associates with CTD. Consequently, phosphoinositide 3-kinases/AKT (pic3ca/AKT) pathway has a pivotal role in the signal system of heart morphogenesis.