A note on the use of the generalized odds ratio in meta-analysis of association studies involving bi- and tri-allelic polymorphisms
2011

Generalized Odds Ratio in Meta-Analysis of Genetic Studies

Sample size: 311915 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Tiago V. Pereira, Regina C. Mingroni-Netto

Primary Institution: Centro de Estudos do Genoma Humano, Universidade de São Paulo

Hypothesis

The generalized odds ratio (GOR) can serve as a model-free measure for association studies involving bi- and tri-allelic polymorphisms.

Conclusion

The GOR may be slightly more powerful for tri-allelic variants, especially when susceptibility alleles are less common.

Supporting Evidence

  • The GOR performs similarly to standard models for bi-allelic polymorphisms.
  • The GOR may enhance power for tri-allelic variants with low-frequency alleles.
  • Bias in effect size estimates increases with the minor allele frequency.

Takeaway

This study looks at a new way to analyze genetic data that might help find important genetic links to diseases like Alzheimer's.

Methodology

Monte Carlo simulations were used to investigate type-I error rates, power, and bias in meta-analyses using the GOR.

Potential Biases

The GOR may overestimate the true underlying increase in effect size for common variants.

Limitations

The GOR may provide inflated effects for bi-allelic variants following a multiplicative model of action.

Participant Demographics

The study involved 1411 participants, including 961 cases and 560 controls.

Statistical Information

P-Value

2.14 × 10-32

Confidence Interval

95% CI for odds ratios ranged from 0.31 to 5.57.

Statistical Significance

p<0.05

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1186/1756-0500-4-172

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