@article {1543, title = {Variation in the lysyl oxidase (LOX) gene is associated with keratoconus in family-based and case-control studies.}, journal = {Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci}, volume = {53}, year = {2012}, month = {2012 Jun 28}, pages = {4152-7}, abstract = {

PURPOSE: Keratoconus is a bilateral noninflammatory progressive corneal disorder with complex genetic inheritance and a common cause for cornea transplantation in young adults. A genomewide linkage scan in keratoconus families identified a locus at 5q23.2, overlapping the gene coding for the lysyl oxidase (LOX). LOX encodes an enzyme responsible for collagen cross-linking in a variety of tissues including the cornea. Corneal collagen cross-linking with long-wave ultraviolet light and riboflavin is a promising new treatment for keratoconus. To determine whether LOX is a genetic determinant of the pathogenesis of keratoconus, we analyzed association results of LOX polymorphisms in two independent case-control samples and in keratoconus families.

METHODS: Association results were analyzed of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the LOX gene from a Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS) investigation in two independent panels of patients with keratoconus and controls and in keratoconus families.

RESULTS: Evidence of association was found at SNPs rs10519694 and rs2956540 located in intron 4 of LOX in the GWAS discovery case-control panel with P values of 2.3{\texttimes}10(-3) and 7{\texttimes}10(-3), respectively. The same two SNPs were found to be associated with keratoconus by family-based association testing with P values of 2.7{\texttimes}10(-3) and 7.7{\texttimes}10(-4), respectively. Meta P values of 4.0{\texttimes}10(-5) and 4.0{\texttimes}10(-7) were calculated for SNPs rs10519694 and rs2956540 by analyzing case-control and family samples simultaneously. Sequencing of LOX exons in a subset of keratoconus patients identified two polymorphisms, rs1800449 and rs2288393, located in LOX transcripts I and II, associated with keratoconus in case-control and family samples with a meta P value of 0.02.

CONCLUSIONS: Results provided strong genetic evidence that LOX variants lead to increased susceptibility to developing of keratoconus.

}, keywords = {Case-Control Studies, Cornea, Corneal Topography, DNA, Family, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Genome-Wide Association Study, Genotype, Humans, Keratoconus, Polymorphism, Genetic, Protein-Lysine 6-Oxidase}, issn = {1552-5783}, doi = {10.1167/iovs.11-9268}, author = {Bykhovskaya, Yelena and Li, Xiaohui and Epifantseva, Irina and Haritunians, Talin and Siscovick, David and Aldave, Anthony and Szczotka-Flynn, Loretta and Iyengar, Sudha K and Taylor, Kent D and Rotter, Jerome I and Rabinowitz, Yaron S} }