ESC Journals
Left atrial (LA) volume and function impose significant impact on cardiovascular pathogenesis if compromised. We aimed at investigating the genetic architecture of LA volume and function using cardiac magnetic resonance imaging data.
We used the UK Biobank, which is a large prospective population study with available phenotypic and genetic data. On a subset of 35 658 European individuals, we performed genome-wide association studies on five volumetric and functional LA variables, generated using a machine learning algorithm. In total, we identified 18 novel genetic loci, mapped to genes with known roles in cardiomyopathy (e.g.
We report on 18 genetic loci associated with LA volume and function and show evidence for several plausible candidate genes important for LA structure.