Breath of Fresh Air: Toward Unraveling the Molecular Underpinnings of Sleep Apnea

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a significant risk factor for multiple diseases. 425 million adults aged 30–69 are estimated to have severe OSA, including 65 million in the most affected country, China. Genome-wide association analyses (GWAS) are one means of identifying novel molecular processes underlying OSA and potential targets for future interventions in an unbiased manner. A small but growing number of significant associations with OSA and related quantitative traits have been discovered in the last half-decade, primarily based on European- and admixed-American-ancestry participants. To date, no strong associations have been identified in East Asians.