Genome-wide association analysis suggests novel loci for Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

PURPOSE: Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) is the most common form of autoimmune thyroid diseases. Current knowledge of HT genetics is limited, and not a single genome-wide association study (GWAS) focusing exclusively on HT has been performed to date. In order to decipher genetic determinants of HT, we performed the first GWAS followed by replication in a total of 1443 individuals from Croatia. METHODS: We performed association analysis in a discovery cohort comprising 405 cases and 433 controls. We followed up 13 independent signals (P < 10-5) in 303 cases and 302 controls from two replication cohorts and then meta-analyzed results across discovery and replication datasets. RESULTS: We identified three variants suggestively associated with HT: rs12944194 located 206 kb from SDK2 (P = 1.8 × 10-6), rs75201096 inside GNA14 (P = 2.41 × 10-5) and rs791903 inside IP6K3 (P = 3.16 × 10-5). Genetic risk score (GRS), calculated using risk alleles of these loci, accounted for 4.82% of the total HT variance, and individuals from the top GRS quartile had 2.76 times higher odds for HT than individuals from the lowest GRS quartile. CONCLUSIONS: Although discovered loci are implicated with susceptibility to HT for the first time, genomic regions harboring these loci exhibit good biological candidacy due to involvement in the regulation of the thyroid function and autoimmunity. Additionally, we observe genetic overlap between HT and several related traits, such as hypothyroidism, Graves' disease and TPOAb. Our study adds a new knowledge of underlying HT genetics and sets a firm basis for further research.

Is it possible to determine the origin of cyst in empty thyroid bed in patient with lingual thyroid?

Some patients with ectopic thyroid gland or athyreotic patients have one or more cysts in empty thyroid bed. The origin of these cysts is uncertain. We present the patient with lingual thyroid gland and small cyst in empty thyroid bed featuring the diagnostic algorithm used and discussing the possible etiologic scenarios.

Association of established hypothyroidism-associated genetic variants with Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

PURPOSE: Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) as a chronic autoimmune disease of the thyroid gland is the most common cause of hypothyroidism. Since HT and hypothyroidism are closely related, the main aim of this study was to explore the association of established hypothyroidism single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with HT. METHODS: The case-control dataset included 200 HT cases and 304 controls. Diagnosis of HT cases was based on clinical examination, measurement of thyroid antibodies (TgAb, TPOAb), hormones (TSH and FT4) and ultrasound examination. We genotyped and analysed 11 known hypothyroidism-associated genetic variants. Case-control association analysis was performed in order to test each SNP for the association with HT using logistic regression model. Additionally, each SNP was tested for the association with thyroid-related quantitative traits (TPOAb levels, TgAb levels and thyroid volume) in HT cases only using linear regression. RESULTS: We identified two genetic variants nominally associated with HT rs3184504 in SH2B3 gene (P = 0.0135, OR = 0.74, 95% CI = 0.57-0.95) and rs4704397 in PDE8B gene (P = 0.0383, OR = 1.32, 95% CI = 1.01-1.74). The SH2B3 genetic variant also showed nominal association with TPOAb levels (P = 0.0163, ß = -0.46) and rs4979402 inside DFNB31 gene was nominally associated with TgAb levels (P = 0.0443, ß = 0.41). CONCLUSIONS: SH2B3 gene has previously been associated with susceptibility to several autoimmune diseases, whereas PDE8B has been associated with TSH levels and suggested to modulate thyroid physiology that may influence the manifestation of thyroid disease. Identified loci are novel and biologically plausible candidates for HT development and represent good basis for further exploration of HT susceptibility.