Twenty-Nine Novel Loci Identified for Acne Susceptibility

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 9, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Twenty-nine novel significant loci for acne have been identified, according to a study published online Feb. 7 in Nature Communications.

Brittany L. Mitchell, Ph.D., from the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Brisbane, Australia, and colleagues performed the largest meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies to date, which included 20,165 individuals with acne from nine cohorts.

The researchers identified 29 novel genome-wide significant loci and replicated 14 of 17 previously identified risk loci. At several acne susceptibility loci, which have previously been implicated in Mendelian hair and skin disorders such as pustular psoriasis, putative causal genes were identified. Shared genetic etiology was identified between acne, hormone levels, hormone-sensitive cancers, and psychiatric traits. In an independent cohort, up to 5.6 percent of the variance in acne liability was explained by a polygenic risk score calculated from these results.

"Our results highlight the substantial influence on genetic risk harbored by other, as yet undiscovered loci and motivate future studies to both identify additional risk loci and establish the biological processes through which genetic risk is mediated," the authors write.

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