Polygenic prediction of lipid traits in sub-Saharan Africans

Abstract Polygenic risk scores (PRS) can enhance risk stratification and are useful for precision medicine interventions. Here we show that African American Genome-wide Association Study (GWAS) derived PRS enhance prediction of lipid traits in Sub-Saharan Africans. Our PRS prediction varied greatly between South African Zulus (LDL-C, R2 = 8.49%) and Ugandans (LDL-C, R2= 0.043%), potentially attributable to environmental factors. Moreover, the PRS shown here had a higher discriminatory ability (AUC = 74.6%) than conventional risk factors (AUC= 67.8%) to identify extreme phenotypes. This work highlights the utility of PRS derived from relevant ethnic groups for identifying high-risk cases missed by conventional clinical factors.