# Quantitative Methods for Genetic Epidemiology

> **NIH NIH R01** · MAYO CLINIC ROCHESTER · 2020 · $357,750

## Abstract

Detecting and understanding the genetic basis of multivariate traits related to human health are critical
to the future of personalized medicine. An important aspect is understanding pleiotropy (when a single gene
influences more than one trait), which can improve the biological understanding of a gene in multiple ways, and
ultimately advance prevention and treatment of complex diseases. However, the statistical methods to
evaluate the simultaneous impact of a gene on multiple traits have mainly relied on standard multivariate
analyses that do not directly address biological questions. We recently developed novel statistical methods to
evaluate the association of a single-nucleotide polymorphism with multiple quantitative traits, overcoming the
limitation of standard multivariate analysis in order to improve biological understanding of how a gene
influences multiple correlated traits. We propose to build on our experience in order to develop new statistical
methods that allow for different types of traits (e.g., binary, ordinal) in order to facilitate human genetic
research, such as use of the rich medical diagnostic information from electronic medical records. We also plan
to develop statistical methods that decipher the genetic basis of multivariate traits in the context of genetic
pathway analyses. To enhance understanding of how genes influence multivariate traits, we plan to develop
and evaluate causal mediation models in order to provide guidance on the most likely sets of models that
“explain” the association of genes with traits, thereby providing much needed guidance to epidemiologists and
laboratory scientists on follow-up studies.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10005436
- **Project number:** 5R01GM065450-16
- **Recipient organization:** MAYO CLINIC ROCHESTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Daniel J. Schaid
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $357,750
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2002-04-01 → 2021-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10005436

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10005436, Quantitative Methods for Genetic Epidemiology (5R01GM065450-16). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-10 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10005436. Licensed CC0.

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