Follow-up study identifies two novel susceptibility loci PRKCB and 8p11.21 for systemic lupus erythematosus

We have performed a large-scale replication study based on our previous genome-wide association study (GWAS) of SLE in the Chinese Han population to further explore additional genetic variants affecting susceptibility to SLE. Thirty-eight single nucleotide polymorphisms from our GWAS were genotyped in two additional Chinese Han cohorts (total 3152 cases and 7050 controls) using the Sequenom Massarray system. Association analyses were performed using logistic regression with gender or sample cohorts as a covariate. Association evidence for rs16972959 (PRKCB at 16p11.2) and rs12676482 (8p11.21) with SLE was replicated independently in both replication cohorts (P