PRBB Computational Genomics Seminars Peter Visscher

20/11/202512:00R_473.10_AULAPRBB Computational Genomics SeminarsPeter VisscherUniversity of Oxford"Between-population genetic and phenotypic differences in complex traits"Abstract:Human populations differ in disease prevalences and in average values of phenotypes, but the extent to which differences are caused by genetic or environmental factors is unknown for most complex traits. Comparing phenotypic means across populations is confounded by environmental differences and comparisons based on polygenic predictors can lead to biased inference. Family-based analyses of genetically admixed individuals offer a powerful framework for disentangling the direct and associated effects of genetic ancestry on phenotypes. We leveraged genetic data from admixed adults in the Mexico City Prospective Study (MCPS) to estimate within and between-family ancestry effects and found consistent estimates for height and risk of type 2 diabetes but not for other traits. The study provides an experimental design to study between-ancestry genetic effects for complex traits and reports significant ancestry differences for height, diabetes, and metabolic-related traits in a genetically diverse population from Mexico City.