A replication study of novel fetal hemoglobin-associated genetic variants in sickle cell disease-only cohorts

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is the most common monogenic disease in the world and is caused by mutations in the β-globin gene (HBB). Notably, SCD is characterized by extreme clinical heterogeneity. Inter-individual variation in fetal hemoglobin (HbF) levels strongly contributes to this patient-to-patient variability, with high HbF levels associated with decreased morbidity and mortality. Genetic association studies have identified and replicated HbF levels-associated variants at three loci: BCL11A, HBS1L-MYB, and HBB. In SCD patients, genetic variation at these three loci accounts for ~ 50% of HbF heritability. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in non-anemic and SCD patients of multiple ancestries have identified 20 new HbF-associated variants. However, these genetic associations have yet to be replicated in independent SCD cohorts. Here, we validated the association between HbF levels and variants at five of these new loci (ASB3, BACH2, PFAS, ZBTB7A, and KLF1) in up to 3740 SCD patients. By combining CRISPR inhibition and single-cell transcriptomics, we also showed that sequences near non-coding genetic variants at BACH2 (rs4707609) and KLF1 (rs2242514, rs10404876) can control the production of the β-globin genes in erythroid HUDEP-2 cells. Finally, we analyzed whole-exome sequence data from 1354 SCD patients but could not identify rare genetic variants of large effect on HbF levels. Together, our results confirm five new HbF-associated loci that can be functionally studied to develop new strategies to induce HbF expression in SCD patients.