PHF3-PTP4A1 region was enriched with 30 replicable risk SNPs for alcohol dependence in two kinds of genetically distinct populations, i.e., AAs and EAs. Twenty-six of these replicable risk SNPs were found to be functional by expression data obtained across multiple HapMap populations. All risk SNPs were in one LD block around the association peak SNP (i.e., rs9294269 in PHF3 in AAs). This risk LD block overlapped extensively across AAs, EAs, Australians and three HapMap populations, and the association or functional peak SNPs in each of these populations were in high LD with each other. In a word, the association and functional signals in this LD block were highly consistent across six samples.
