Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28158590›Full record

SynthesisHuman molecular genetics2016

A whole-blood transcriptome meta-analysis identifies gene expression signatures of cigarette smoking.

Tianxiao Huan, Roby Joehanes, Claudia Schurmann, Katharina Schramm, Luke C Pilling, Marjolein J Peters, Reedik Mägi, Dawn DeMeo, George T O'Connor, Luigi Ferrucci and 23 more

Open access · bronzeAbstract readMeta-Analysis
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Human molecular genetics, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 75 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
75citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
5.0field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

75 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 100 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  3. Pooled it
  4. Article
  5. Molecular heterogeneity in human stroke - What can we learn from the peripheral blood transcriptome?Journal of cerebral blood flow and metabolism : official journal of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism · 2026
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15 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

33 authors at 17 institutions in 6 countries.

Tianxiao HuanBoston University’s Framingham Heart Study, Framingham, MA, USA.
Roby JoehanesBoston University’s Framingham Heart Study, Framingham, MA, USA.
Claudia SchurmannThe Charles Bronfman Institute for Personalized Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA.
Katharina SchrammInstitute of Human Genetics, Helmholz Zentrum München - German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.
Luke C PillingEpidemiology and Public Health Group, Institute of Biomedical and Clinical Science, University of Exeter Medical School, Exeter, UK.
Marjolein J PetersDepartment of Internal Medicine, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Reedik MägiThe Netherlands Genomics Initiative-sponsored Netherlands Consortium for Healthy Aging (NGI-NCHA), Leiden/Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Dawn DeMeoHarvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
George T O'ConnorBoston University School of Medicine and School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
Luigi FerrucciDepartment of Internal Medicine, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Alexander TeumerInstitute for Community Medicine, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
Georg HomuthInterfaculty Institute of Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
Reiner BiffarDepartment of Prosthetic Dentistry, Gerostomatology and Dental Materials, Center of Oral Health, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
Uwe VölkerInterfaculty Institute of Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
Christian HerderInterfaculty Institute of Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
Melanie WaldenbergerResearch Unit of Molecular Epidemiology, Helmholz Zentrum München - German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.
Annette PetersResearch Unit of Molecular Epidemiology, Helmholz Zentrum München - German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.
Sonja ZeilingerInstitute of Epidemiology II, Helmholz Zentrum München - German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.
Andres MetspaluThe Netherlands Genomics Initiative-sponsored Netherlands Consortium for Healthy Aging (NGI-NCHA), Leiden/Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Albert HofmanThe Netherlands Genomics Initiative-sponsored Netherlands Consortium for Healthy Aging (NGI-NCHA), Leiden/Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
André G UitterlindenDepartment of Internal Medicine, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Dena G HernandezLaboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Andrew B SingletonLaboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Stefania BandinelliGeriatric Unit, Azienda Sanitaria di Firenze, Florence, Italy.
Peter J MunsonMathematical and Statistical Computing Laboratory, Center for Information Technology, National Institutes of Health, MD, USA.
Honghuang LinBoston University School of Medicine and School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
Emelia J BenjaminBoston University’s Framingham Heart Study, Framingham, MA, USA.
Tõnu EskoThe Netherlands Genomics Initiative-sponsored Netherlands Consortium for Healthy Aging (NGI-NCHA), Leiden/Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Hans J GrabeDepartment of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
Holger ProkischInstitute of Human Genetics, Helmholz Zentrum München - German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg, Germany.
Joyce B J van MeursDepartment of Internal Medicine, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
David MelzerEpidemiology and Public Health Group, Institute of Biomedical and Clinical Science, University of Exeter Medical School, Exeter, UK.
Daniel LevyBoston University’s Framingham Heart Study, Framingham, MA, USA.
Helmholtz Zentrum München · DENetherlands Consortium for Healthy Ageing · NLUniversitätsmedizin Greifswald · DENational Institutes of Health · USBoston University · USErasmus University Rotterdam · NLUniversity of Exeter · GBAzienda Sanitaria di Firenze · ITErasmus MC · NLFramingham Heart Study · USGerman Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases · DEHarvard University · USHeinrich Heine University Düsseldorf · DEIcahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai · USNational Heart Lung and Blood Institute · USNaval Research Laboratory Information Technology DivisionUniversity of Tartu · EE

Funding

THE FRAMINGHAM HEART STUDYN01HC25195 · NHLBI · BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS · PI RAMACHANDRAN, VASAN S · 2007 to 2014
$83.8M
Research Training and Education Core (Core D) P50HL120163 · NHLBI · AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION · PI BHATNAGAR, ARUNI, ROBERTSON, ROSE MARIE · 2013 to 2017
$20.1M
Characterization of Normal Genomic VariabilityZIAAG000932 · NIA · NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGING · PI SINGLETON, ANDREW · 2009 to 2024
$11.3M
Framingham: Inflammation, Genes &Cardiovascular DiseaseR01HL076784 · NHLBI · BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS · PI BENJAMIN, EMELIA J. · 2004 to 2008
$3.9M
VASOACTIVE PEPTIDES WHICH STIMULATE SMOOTH MUSCLESR01HL036473 · NHLBI · UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO · PI ERDOS, ERVIN G, SKIDGEL, RANDAL A · 1985 to 2010
$3.4M
HISPANIC SECONDARY STROKE PREVENTION INITIATIVER01MD009164 · NIMHD · UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · PI CARRASQUILLO, OLVEEN · 2014 to 2018
$1.9M
Aging and Inflammation: Longitudinal Markers and Genetics in the Framingham StudyR01AG028321 · NIA · BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS · PI BENJAMIN, EMELIA J. · 2006 to 2010
$1.8M
NHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201500001CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201500001INHLBI NIH HHS N01HC25195NHLBI NIH HHS P50 HL120163NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL036473NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL076784NIA NIH HHS R01 AG028321NIMHD NIH HHS R01 MD009164
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Cigarette smoking is a leading modifiable cause of death worldwide. We hypothesized that cigarette smoking induces extensive transcriptomic changes that lead to target-organ damage and smoking-related diseases. We performed a meta-analysis of transcriptome-wide gene expression using whole blood-derived RNA from 10,233 participants of European ancestry in six cohorts (including 1421 current and 3955 former smokers) to identify associations between smoking and altered gene expression levels. At a false discovery rate (FDR) <0.1, we identified 1270 differentially expressed genes in current vs. never smokers, and 39 genes in former vs. never smokers. Expression levels of 12 genes remained elevated up to 30 years after smoking cessation, suggesting that the molecular consequence of smoking may persist for decades. Gene ontology analysis revealed enrichment of smoking-related genes for activation of platelets and lymphocytes, immune response, and apoptosis. Many of the top smoking-related differentially expressed genes, including LRRN3 and GPR15, have DNA methylation loci in promoter regions that were recently reported to be hypomethylated among smokers. By linking differential gene expression with smoking-related disease phenotypes, we demonstrated that stroke and pulmonary function show enrichment for smoking-related gene expression signatures. Mediation analysis revealed the expression of several genes (e.g. ALAS2) to be putative mediators of the associations between smoking and inflammatory biomarkers (IL6 and C-reactive protein levels). Our transcriptomic study provides potential insights into the effects of cigarette smoking on gene expression in whole blood and their relations to smoking-related diseases. The results of such analyses may highlight attractive targets for treating or preventing smoking-related health effects.

Indexed as

AdultAgedCigarette SmokingCohort StudiesCpG IslandsDNA MethylationFemaleGene ExpressionGene Expression ProfilingGene Expression RegulationHumansLeukocytesMaleMiddle AgedSmokingTranscriptome

Identifiers

PMID28158590
PMCPMC5975607
OpenAlexW2513841576

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.