Interaction of &lt;em&gt;Alu&lt;/em&gt; Polymorphisms and Novel Measures of Discrimination in Association with Blood Pressure in African Americans Living in Tallahassee, Florida

Boulter, Alexis; Quinlan, Jacklyn; Miró-Herrans, Aida; Pearson, Laurel N.; Todd, Nubiana L.; Gravlee, Clarence C.; Mulligan, Connie J.

doi:10.13110/humanbiology.87.4.0295

Cited by 21 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…By definition, complex diseases are caused by multiple genetic and environmental factors. Our current and previous results [20, 29, 68] suggest that interactive effects between genetic and environmental factors may account for part of the missing heritability. Both types of data must be included in order to detect interactive effects.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 61%

“…There are several reasons why experiences with UT-Other and UT-Self may differ in their effect on blood pressure. As we previously described [29], UT-Self neglects social and cultural context and may be biased by participants’ reluctance to report personal experiences of unfair treatment. Denying that one has experienced discrimination could itself be a coping strategy to avoid stigma, and the physiological consequences of this strategy are unclear.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We dichotomized in two ways: No (0 affirmative responses to experiences of unfair treatment questionnaire) versus Yes (≥1 affirmative responses), as has been done in other studies [26]; and Low (0–2 affirmative responses to experiences of unfair treatment questionnaire) versus High (≥ 3) experience of unfair treatment. We based our cut-off for low versus high experience of unfair treatment on our previous work where a threshold effect of unfair treatment on blood pressure was seen at UT-Other ≥ 3 [29]. In order to reduce the effect of outlier values, we further filtered SNP genotypes and included only SNPs with a MAF > 10%.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most existing studies measure perceived discrimination only by reference to participants' personal exposure to unfair treatment. However, we have shown that unfair treatment experienced by individuals close to the study participant—family or friends—is an important stressor [29]. …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…If the covariance is not zero or if there are gene-environment interactions, then standard genetic association studies that do not include relevant environmental factors may miss important associations. With a few exceptions [20, 29, 35], research into the stressors associated with BP seldom includes both genetic and sociocultural data, such that few studies are able to evaluate interactions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Genetic Loci and Novel Discrimination Measures Associated with Blood Pressure Variation in African Americans Living in Tallahassee

et al. 2016

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Sequencing of the human genome and decades of genetic association and linkage studies have dramatically improved our understanding of the etiology of many diseases. However, the multiple causes of complex diseases are still not well understood, in part because genetic and sociocultural risk factors are not typically investigated concurrently. Hypertension is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease and afflicts more African Americans than any other racially defined group in the US. Few genetic loci for hypertension have been replicated across populations, which may reflect population-specific differences in genetic variants and/or inattention to relevant sociocultural factors. Discrimination is a salient sociocultural risk factor for poor health and has been associated with hypertension. Here we use a biocultural approach to study blood pressure (BP) variation in African Americans living in Tallahassee, Florida by genotyping over 30,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and capturing experiences of discrimination using novel measures of unfair treatment of self and others (n = 157). We perform a joint admixture and genetic association analysis for BP that prioritizes regions of the genome with African ancestry. We only report significant SNPs that were confirmed through our simulation analyses, which were performed to determine the false positive rate. We identify eight significant SNPs in five genes that were previously associated with cardiovascular diseases. When we include measures of unfair treatment and test for interactions between SNPs and unfair treatment, we identify a new class of genes involved in multiple phenotypes including psychosocial distress and mood disorders. Our results suggest that inclusion of culturally relevant stress measures, like unfair treatment in African Americans, may reveal new genes and biological pathways relevant to the etiology of hypertension, and may also improve our understanding of the complexity of gene-environment interactions that underlie complex diseases.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 61%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Genetic Loci and Novel Discrimination Measures Associated with Blood Pressure Variation in African Americans Living in Tallahassee

et al. 2016

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Shortened telomere length is associated with unfair treatment attributed to race in African Americans living in Tallahassee, Florida

Rej

Gravlee²,

Mulligan

2019

American J Hum Biol

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Objectives: Experiences of interpersonal discrimination are pervasive stressors in the lives of African Americans. Increased discrimination stress may cause premature aging. Telomere length (TL) is a plastic genetic trait that is an emerging indicator of cellular health and aging. Short TL is a risk factor for the earlier onset of disease. TL shortens with age, a process that may be accelerated by psychosocial stress. Our study explores the relationship between TL and experiences of discrimination in the form of self-reported unfair treatment (UT). Methods: Using a qPCR-based method, we measured TL in DNA from saliva samples provided by 135 African American adults from Tallahassee, FL. We developed discrimination measures using a modified survey that explores nine social domains of self-reported unfair treatment experienced both directly and indirectly.We used multiple regression to examine associations between UT and TL. Results: We found that racial discrimination in the form of self-reported unfair treatment attributed to race (UT-Race-Self) is inversely associated with TL. Conclusions: The significant association between increased UT-Race-Self and shorter telomeres supports the hypothesis that psychosocial stress stemming from racial discrimination may affect TL. The potential impact of discrimination on TL may contribute to premature biological aging and racial health inequalities seen in African Americans.

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Doing biocultural anthropology: Continuity and change

Hoke

Schell

2020

American J Hum Biol

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Biocultural anthropology has long represented an important approach in the study of human biology. However, despite demonstrated utility, its somewhat amorphous identity leaves some scholars questioning just what it means to be biocultural. In this article, rather than providing proscriptive doctrine, we contribute to these conversations about the nature of biocultural anthropology by considering what biocultural research does. We begin with a consideration of some of the foundational themes of biocultural work including recognition of the dialectical nature of sociocultural and biological forces, interest in inequality, and incorporation of both evolutionary and political economic perspectives. To emphasize the consistency of biocultural work over time, we also trace these themes from originating work to their appearance in current research. We then identify some of the key actions of the biocultural approach, noting that biocultural work can execute any number though rarely all of these actions simultaneously. We then offer brief introductions to the articles that make up this special issue, highlighting the ways in which each piece undertakes key biocultural actions. Following these introductions, we provide a discussion of some of the types of biocultural work that are not present in this special issue, recognizing the breadth of biocultural research across multiple subfields of anthropology. Finally, we point to some potentially fruitful directions for future biocultural research. In the end, we conclude that while biocultural anthropology may not have a cohesive or set agenda, it does have a clear and recognizable form of content and methodology illuminated by its actions.

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Interaction of <em>Alu</em> Polymorphisms and Novel Measures of Discrimination in Association with Blood Pressure in African Americans Living in Tallahassee, Florida

Cited by 21 publications

References 31 publications

Genetic Loci and Novel Discrimination Measures Associated with Blood Pressure Variation in African Americans Living in Tallahassee

Genetic Loci and Novel Discrimination Measures Associated with Blood Pressure Variation in African Americans Living in Tallahassee

Shortened telomere length is associated with unfair treatment attributed to race in African Americans living in Tallahassee, Florida

Doing biocultural anthropology: Continuity and change

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