BackgroundPotassium voltage-gated channel, KQT-like subfamily, member 1 (KCNQ1) is thought to be an important candidate gene of diabetes. Several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in a 40-kb linkage disequilibrium (LD) block in its intron 15 have been identified to be associated with diabetes in East Asian populations in recent genome-wide association studies. The aim of this study was to investigate whether KCNQ1 polymorphisms influence the levels of the metabolic phenotypes in general Chinese populations.Methodology/Principal FindingsWe investigated the associations of two SNPs (rs2237892 and rs2237895) in the aforementioned 40-kb LD block, a missense variant rs12720449 (P448R) in exon 10, and a synonymous variant rs1057128 (S546S) in exon 13 with metabolic phenotypes in a Uyghur population (n = 478) and replicated these associations in a Han population (n = 2,485). We found that rs2237892-T allele was significantly associated with decreased triglyceride levels (pcombined = 0.001). The minor G allele of the rs12720449, with sharp difference of the allelic frequency between European and East Asian populations (0.2% versus 14%, respectively), was associated with a lower triglyceride levels than G allele in Uyghur subjects (p = 0.004), in Han subjects (p = 0.052), and in subjects of meta-analysis (pcombined = 0.001). Moreover, the minor A allele of the rs1057128 was also associated with decreased triglyceride levels in meta-analysis (pcombined = 0.010).ConclusionsTo the best of our knowledge, this is the first report associating a missense mutation of KCNQ1, rs12720449, with triglyceride levels. Rs2237892, representing the 40-kb LD block, is also associated with triglyceride levels in Han population. Further studies are required to replicate these findings in other East Asian populations.

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: Chlorogenic acid (CGA) is a kind of traditional Chinese medicine, abundant in honeysuckle and eucommia, has a wide range of biological activities, and pharmacological effects. Previous studies have shown that CGA can regulate learning, memory, cognitive ability, coupled with improvement to anxiety, depression, and other post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-like symptoms. This article explores the protective effects of CGA on neurons, through its anti-apoptotic effect, inhibition of neuroinflammation and oxidative stress, which may be the mechanisms of its improvement of PTSD-like symptoms. It may provide a new therapeutic strategy for the treatment of PTSD and its comorbidities.