Advanced age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in the elderly with limited therapeutic options. Here, we report on a study of >12 million variants including 163,714 directly genotyped, most rare, protein-altering variant. Analyzing 16,144 patients and 17,832 controls, we identify 52 independently associated common and rare variants (P < 5×10–8) distributed across 34 loci. While wet and dry AMD subtypes exhibit predominantly shared genetics, we identify the first signal specific to wet AMD, near MMP9 (difference-P = 4.1×10–10). Very rare coding variants (frequency < 0.1%) in CFH, CFI, and TIMP3 suggest causal roles for these genes, as does a splice variant in SLC16A8. Our results support the hypothesis that rare coding variants can pinpoint causal genes within known genetic loci and illustrate that applying the approach systematically to detect new loci requires extremely large sample sizes.

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Purpose To detect and quantify choroidal neovascularization (CNV) in age-related macular degeneration (AMD) patients using optical coherence tomography (OCT) angiography. Design Observational, cross-sectional study. Participants Five normal subjects and five neovascular AMD patients were included. Methods Five eyes with neovascular AMD and five normal age-matched controls were scanned by a high-speed (100,000 A-scans/sec) 1050 nm wavelength swept-source OCT. The macular angiography scan covered a 3×3 mm area and comprised 200×200×8 A-scans acquired in 3.5 sec. Flow was detected using the split-spectrum amplitude-decorrelation angiography (SSADA) algorithm. Motion artifacts were removed by three dimensional (3D) orthogonal registration and merging of 4 scans. The 3D angiography was segmented into 3 layers: inner retina (to show retinal vasculature), outer retina (to identify CNV), and choroid. En face maximum projection was used to obtain 2D angiograms from the 3 layers. CNV area and flow index were computed from the en face OCT angiogram of the outer retinal layer. Flow (decorrelation) and structural data were combined in composite color angiograms for both en face and cross-sectional views. Main Outcome Measurements CNV angiogram, CNV area, and CNV flow index. Results En face OCT angiograms of CNVs showed sizes and locations that were confirmed by fluorescein angiography. OCT angiography provided more distinct vascular network patterns that were less obscured by subretinal hemorrhage. The en face angiograms also showed areas of reduced choroidal flow adjacent to the CNV in all cases and significantly reduced retinal flow in one case. Cross-sectional angiograms were used to visualize CNV location relative to the retinal pigment epithelium and Bruch’s layer and classify type I and type II CNV. A feeder vessel could be identified in one case. Higher flow indexes were associated with larger CNV and type II CNV. Conclusions OCT angiography provides depth-resolved information and detailed images of CNV in neovascular AMD. Quantitative information regarding CNV flow and area can be obtained. Further studies are needed to assess the role of quantitative OCT angiography in the evaluation and treatment of neovascular AMD.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a common cause of blindness in older individuals. To accelerate understanding of AMD biology and help design new therapies, we executed a collaborative genomewide association study, examining >17,100 advanced AMD cases and >60,000 controls of European and Asian ancestry. We identified 19 genomic loci associated with AMD with p<5×10−8 and enriched for genes involved in regulation of complement activity, lipid metabolism, extracellular matrix remodeling and angiogenesis. Our results include 7 loci reaching p<5×10−8 for the first time, near the genes COL8A1/FILIP1L, IER3/DDR1, SLC16A8, TGFBR1, RAD51B, ADAMTS9/MIR548A2, and B3GALTL. A genetic risk score combining SNPs from all loci displayed similar good ability to distinguish cases and controls in all samples examined. Our findings provide new directions for biological, genetic and therapeutic studies of AMD.

Background Nephropathy and retinopathy remain important complications of type 1 diabetes. It is unclear whether early administration of drugs that block the renin-angiotensin system slows their progression. Methods The Renin Angiotensin System Study [RASS] was a multicenter controlled trial in 285 normoalbuminuric, normotensive type 1 diabetic patients who were randomized to losartan (100mg daily), enalapril (20mg daily) or placebo and followed for 5 years. The primary endpoint was change in glomerular mesangial fractional volume in kidney biopsies. The retinopathy endpoint was a 2-step or greater progression in retinopathy severity scale. Intention-to-treat data analyses used linear and logistic regression models. Results Ninety and 82% of patients had complete renal biopsy and retinopathy data, respectively. Change in mesangial fractional volume per glomerulus over 5 years in placebo (0.016 units) was not significantly different from enalapril (p=0.38) or losartan (p=0.26), nor were there significant changes in other biopsy assessed renal structural variables. Five-year cumulative microalbuminuria incidence was higher for losartan than placebo (14% vs. 4%; logrank p=0.015) but not for enalapril (6% vs. 4%; logrank p=0.96). Two-step or more retinopathy progression incidence was reduced by 65% in the enalapril (O.R. 0.35; 95% C.I., 0.14–0.85) and 70% in the losartan group (O.R. 0.30; 95% C.I., 0.12–0.73) independent of changes in blood pressure. There were three biopsy-related serious adverse events that completely resolved. Chronic cough occurred in 12 enalapril, 6 losartan and 4 placebo patients. Conclusions Early renin-angiotensin system blockade did not modify nephropathy progression in type 1 diabetic patients, but had important effects in slowing retinopathy.

We executed a genome-wide association scan for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in 2,157 cases and 1,150 controls. Our results validate AMD susceptibility loci near CFH (P < 10 −75), ARMS2 (P < 10 −59), C2/CFB (P < 10 −20), C3 (P < 10 −9 ), and CFI (P < 10 −6). We compared our top findings with the Tufts/Massachusetts General Hospital genome-wide association study of advanced AMD (821 cases, 1,709 controls) and genotyped 30 promising markers in additional individuals (up to 7,749 cases and 4,625 controls). With these data, we identified a susceptibility locus near TIMP3 (overall P = 1.1 × 10), a metalloproteinase involved in degradation of the extracellular matrix and previously implicated in early-onset maculopathy. In addition, our data revealed strong association signals with alleles at two loci (LIPC, P = 1.3 × 10 −7; CETP, P = 7.4 × 10 −7 ) that were previously associated with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) levels in blood. Consistent with the hypothesis that HDL metabolism is associated with AMD pathogenesis, we also observed association with AMD of HDL-c-associated alleles near LPL (P = 3.0 × 10 −3) and ABCA1 (P = 5.6 × 10 −4). Multilocus analysis including all susceptibility loci showed that 329 of 331 individuals (99%) with the highest-risk genotypes were cases, and 85% of these had advanced AMD. Our studies extend the catalog of AMD associated loci, help identify individuals at high risk of disease, and provide clues about underlying cellular pathways that should eventually lead to new therapies.genome-wide association study | single nucleotide polymorphism A ge-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease and a common cause of blindness in the elderly population, particularly in developed countries (1). The disease affects primarily the macular region of the retina, which is necessary for sharp central vision. An early hallmark of AMD is the appearance of drusen, which are extracellular deposits of proteins and lipids under the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). As the disease progresses, drusen grow in size and number. In advanced stages of AMD, atrophy of the RPE (geographic atrophy) and/or development of new blood vessels (neovascularization) result in death of photoreceptors and central vision loss.

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