More than 600 scientists jointly published an article: Children are not as tall as their parents? The reason has been found

Being short is a lingering internal injury for most people. (Don’t ask…)

As we all know, there are many factors that affect height, including genetics, nutrition, exercise, sleep, etc.

However, people who are short often blame their parents and explain it from a genetic perspective, believing that "if parents are tall, their children will not be short." However, there are many exceptions. For example, parents are 1.85 meters tall, but their children are less than 1.6 meters tall, which is a waste of their parents' genes. Of course, there are also many cases where parents are 1.65 meters tall and their children are 1.85 meters tall, which breaks the preset of parents' genes.

Why is this?

(Source: Queen Mary University of London)

The largest genome-wide association study (GWAS) to date has provided the answer, filling a gap in our understanding of how genetic differences lead to differences in height .

A research team from the University of Queensland, Boston Children's Hospital, Queen Mary University of London and their collaborators (more than 600 people in total) combined 281 whole-genome association studies, analyzed data from 5.4 million people, and discovered 12,111 genetic variants that affect height (covering more than 20% of the genome).

It is worth noting that the largest sample size of the previous whole-genome association study on height was only 700,000, while the sample size of this study was expanded by nearly 7 times .

Moreover, compared with previous studies, this study involved a diverse population, including more than 1 million people of non-European (African, East Asian, Hispanic, South Asian) descent, and the research sample was more representative. However, in terms of quantity, the sample of this study was still mainly of European descent, which has certain limitations.

The related research paper, titled "A saturated map of common genetic variants associated with human height", was recently published in the scientific journal Nature.

(Source: Nature)

Genome-wide association studies refer to finding sequence variations, namely single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), in the entire human genome. By using genotyping methods to compare the DNA of large sample populations, disease-related SNPs can be screened out, thereby helping scientists identify genetic variations associated with trait differences .

According to the paper, the 12,111 variants are concentrated near genes related to bone growth, providing a strong genetic predictor for height, which can explain 40% of the height difference in people of European descent and 10%-20% of the height difference in people of non-European descent.

The research team said the study could help doctors identify people who are unable to reach their genetic height, helping to diagnose hidden diseases or conditions that may be hindering growth or affecting health .

At the same time, these findings can also be used in police investigations - predicting the height of suspects through DNA samples left at the scene.

The study also provides scientists with a blueprint for using whole-genome studies to determine the biology of disease and its genetic components.

"If we can clearly understand traits like height at the genomic level, we can develop models to better diagnose and treat genetically influenced diseases like heart disease or schizophrenia," said Eirini Marouli, PhD, co-first author of the paper from Queen Mary University of London.

(Source: Photo Network)

In response, Karoline Kuchenbaecker, professor of genetic epidemiology at University College London, said in a commentary that height is a relatively stable trait that can be easily and reliably measured. In contrast, "it is difficult to measure the effectiveness of treatment for complex diseases such as major depression."

In addition, "it is difficult to generate sufficiently large sample sizes for low-prevalence diseases, and some diseases may be affected by more genes."

Kuchenbaecker also points out that the research lacks geographic diversity . For example, of the studies that provided data from participants of African descent, only one was from the continent (0.4%), and the rest were from overseas, while the genetic and linguistic diversity in Africa is huge.

It is well known that genomic research is revolutionary and may hold the key to solving many global health challenges.

If humans can map specific parts of the genome to certain traits, it will open the door to a wide range of targeted, personalized treatments that can benefit people around the world.

References:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05275-y

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-03029-4

https://www.qmul.ac.uk/media/news/2022/smd/study-of-over-5-million-peoples-dna-reveals-genetic-links-to-height.html

https://www.uq.edu.au/news/article/2022/10/reaching-new-heights-largest-ever-genome-study