Phenotypic and genetic characterization of lower LDL cholesterol and increased type 2 diabetes risk in the UK biobank

Yann C. Klimentidis, Amit Arora, Michelle Newell, Jin Zhou, Jose M. Ordovas, Benjamin J. Renquist, Alexis C. Wood

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

26 Scopus citations

Abstract

Although hyperlipidemia is traditionally considered a risk factor for type 2 diabetes (T2D), evidence has emerged from statin trials and candidate gene investigations sug-gesting that lower LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) increases T2D risk. We thus sought to more comprehensively examine the phenotypic and genotypic relationships of LDL-C with T2D. Using data from the UK Biobank, we found that levels of circulating LDL-C were negatively associated with T2D prevalence (odds ratio 0.41 [95% CI 0.39, 0.43] per mmol/L unit of LDL-C), despite positive associations of circulating LDL-C with HbA1c and BMI. We then performed the first genome-wide exploration of variants simultaneously associated with lower circulating LDL-C and increased T2D risk, using data on LDL-C from the UK Biobank (n = 431,167) and the Global Lipids Genetics Consortium (n = 188,577), and data on T2D from the Diabetes Genetics Replication and Meta-Analysis consortium (n = 898,130). We identified 31 loci associated with lower circulating LDL-C and increased T2D, capturing several potential mechanisms. Seven of these loci have previously been identified for this dual phenotype, and nine have previously been implicated in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. These findings extend our current understanding of the higher T2D risk among individuals with low circulating LDL-C and of the underlying mechanisms, including those responsible for the diabetogenic effect of LDL-C–lowering medications.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2194-2205
Number of pages12
JournalDiabetes
Volume69
Issue number10
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 2020

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Internal Medicine
  • Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Phenotypic and genetic characterization of lower LDL cholesterol and increased type 2 diabetes risk in the UK biobank'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this