Beyond factor H: The impact of genetic-risk variants for age-related macular degeneration on circulating factor-H-like 1 and factor-H-related protein concentrations

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a leading cause of vision loss; there is strong genetic susceptibility at the complement factor H (CFH) locus. This locus encodes a series of complement regulators: factor H (FH), a splice variant factor-H-like 1 (FHL-1), and five factorH-related proteins (FHR-1 to FHR-5), all involved in the regulation of complement factor C3b turnover. Little is known about how AMDassociated variants at this locus might influence FHL-1 and FHR protein concentrations. We have used a bespoke targeted mass-spectrometry assay to measure the circulating concentrations of all seven complement regulators and demonstrated elevated concentrations in 352 advanced AMD-affected individuals for all FHR proteins (FHR-1, p = 2.4 x 10(-10); FHR-2, p = 6.0 x 10(-10); FHR-3, p = 1.5 x 10(-5); FHR-4, p = 1.3 x 10(-3); FHR-5, p = 1.9 3 10(-4)) and FHL-1 (p = 4.9 3 10(-4)) when these individuals were compared to 252 controls, whereas no difference was seen for FH (p = 0.94). Genome-wide association analyses in controls revealed genome-wide-significant signals at the CFH locus for all five FHR proteins, and univariate Mendelian-randomization analyses strongly supported the association of FHR-1, FHR-2, FHR-4, and FHR-5 with AMD susceptibility. These findings provide a strong biochemical explanation for how genetically driven alterations in circulating FHR proteins could be major drivers of AMD and highlight the need for research into FHR protein modulation as a viable therapeutic avenue for AMD.

Automated summary

The study revealed that mutations at the complement factor H (CFH) locus may lead to elevated concentrations of circulating FHR proteins, which could be major drivers of AMD. These findings support the need for research into FHR protein modulation as a potential therapeutic avenue for AMD.