Numerous cis-associations are also likely to be of interest. We scanned the GWAS association database for overlap between our study and established disease associations at p<10−5. Of 1,628 entries, 10 involve cis associations observed in our dataset that explain between 15 and 55% of the transcript variance (Supplementary Table 4 online). Five of the associations are with disease conditions (rheumatoid arthritis, celiac disease, T1D, ulcerative colitis, and SLE) and five are with endophenotypes (PAFAH1B2 and ICAM-1 protein levels, triglycerides, LDL cholesterol, and hip bone mineral density). The two serum protein associations34,35 are with the same SNPs as we detect and hence suggest that protein abundance is largely regulated at the transcriptional level.
