Meta-analysis of 375,000 individuals identifies 38 susceptibility loci for migraine.
Gormley P., Anttila V., Winsvold BS., Palta P., Esko T., Pers TH., Farh K-H., Cuenca-Leon E., Muona M., Furlotte NA., Kurth T., Ingason A., McMahon G., Ligthart L., Terwindt GM., Kallela M., Freilinger TM., Ran C., Gordon SG., Stam AH., Steinberg S., Borck G., Koiranen M., Quaye L., Adams HHH., Lehtimäki T., Sarin A-P., Wedenoja J., Hinds DA., Buring JE., Schürks M., Ridker PM., Hrafnsdottir MG., Stefansson H., Ring SM., Hottenga J-J., Penninx BWJH., Färkkilä M., Artto V., Kaunisto M., Vepsäläinen S., Malik R., Heath AC., Madden PAF., Martin NG., Montgomery GW., Kurki MI., Kals M., Mägi R., Pärn K., Hämäläinen E., Huang H., Byrnes AE., Franke L., Huang J., Stergiakouli E., Lee PH., Sandor C., Webber C., Cader Z., Muller-Myhsok B., Schreiber S., Meitinger T., Eriksson JG., Salomaa V., Heikkilä K., Loehrer E., Uitterlinden AG., Hofman A., van Duijn CM., Cherkas L., Pedersen LM., Stubhaug A., Nielsen CS., Männikkö M., Mihailov E., Milani L., Göbel H., Esserlind A-L., Christensen AF., Hansen TF., Werge T., International Headache Genetics Consortium None., Kaprio J., Aromaa AJ., Raitakari O., Ikram MA., Spector T., Järvelin M-R., Metspalu A., Kubisch C., Strachan DP., Ferrari MD., Belin AC., Dichgans M., Wessman M., van den Maagdenberg AMJM., Zwart J-A., Boomsma DI., Smith GD., Stefansson K., Eriksson N., Daly MJ., Neale BM., Olesen J., Chasman DI., Nyholt DR., Palotie A.
Migraine is a debilitating neurological disorder affecting around one in seven people worldwide, but its molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. There is some debate about whether migraine is a disease of vascular dysfunction or a result of neuronal dysfunction with secondary vascular changes. Genome-wide association (GWA) studies have thus far identified 13 independent loci associated with migraine. To identify new susceptibility loci, we carried out a genetic study of migraine on 59,674 affected subjects and 316,078 controls from 22 GWA studies. We identified 44 independent single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) significantly associated with migraine risk (P < 5 × 10(-8)) that mapped to 38 distinct genomic loci, including 28 loci not previously reported and a locus that to our knowledge is the first to be identified on chromosome X. In subsequent computational analyses, the identified loci showed enrichment for genes expressed in vascular and smooth muscle tissues, consistent with a predominant theory of migraine that highlights vascular etiologies.