We observed that STXBP4/COX11 rs6504950 polymorphism was significantly correlated with breast cancer risk when all studies were pooled into the meta-analysis (the allele contrast model: OR = 0.93, 95% CI = 0.87-0.99; the heterozygote codominant model: OR = 0.87, 95% CI = 0.83-0.90; the dominant model OR = 0.92, 95% CI = 0.88-0.96).
We identified 28 highly correlated common variants, in a 53 Kb region spanning two introns of the STXBP4 gene, that are strong candidates for driving breast cancer risk (lead SNP rs2787486 (OR = 0.92; CI 0.90-0.94; P = 8.96 × 10(-15))) and are correlated with two previously reported risk-associated variants at this locus, SNPs rs6504950 (OR = 0.94, P = 2.04 × 10(-09), r(2) = 0.73 with lead SNP) and rs1156287 (OR = 0.93, P = 3.41 × 10(-11), r(2) = 0.83 with lead SNP).
From the concordance analysis of ranking system of GWAVA, CADD, and FATHMM, eQTL and protein expression, we identified the deleterious SNPs localized in STXBP4 and ZNF404 genes which might play a role in BC development by dysregulating its gene expression.
We confirmed associations between rs13387042 (2q35), rs4973768 (SLC4A7), rs10941679 (5p12), rs2981582 (FGFR2), rs3817198 (LSP1), rs3803662 (TOX3), and rs6504950 (STXBP4) with breast cancer.