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The impact of sex on gene expression across human tissues

Oliva, Meritxell; Munoz-Aguirre, Manuel; Kim-Hellmuth, Sarah; Wucher, Valentin; Gewirtz, Ariel D. H.; Cotter, Daniel J.; Parsana, Princy; Kasela, Silva; Balliu, Brunilda; Vinuela, Ana; Castel, Stephane E.; Mohammadi, Pejman; Aguet, Francois; Zou, Yuxin; Kh

SCIENCE
2020
VL / 369 - BP / 1331 - EP / +
abstract
Many complex human phenotypes exhibit sex-differentiated characteristics. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these differences remain largely unknown. We generated a catalog of sex differences in gene expression and in the genetic regulation of gene expression across 44 human tissue sources surveyed by the Genotype-Tissue Expression project (GTEx, v8 release). We demonstrate that sex influences gene expression levels and cellular composition of tissue samples across the human body. A total of 37% of all genes exhibit sex-biased expression in at least one tissue. We identify cis expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) with sex-differentiated effects and characterize their cellular origin. By integrating sex-biased eQTLs with genome-wide association study data, we identify 58 gene-trait associations that are driven by genetic regulation of gene expression in a single sex. These findings provide an extensive characterization of sex differences in the human transcriptome and its genetic regulation.

AccesS level

Green submitted, Green accepted

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