Mapping polygenic risk scores to brain cells: insights for neurodegenerative diseases
Simmonds E, McKeever A, Yaman Ü, Leonenko G, Kimatova K, Taylor P, Chandran S, Ryten M et al.. medRxiv, 2026-10-11
Topic: Genetics and APOE
Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) are driven by multiple related yet distinct pathological processes that evolve over decades, resulting in substantial clinical and neuropathological heterogeneity. Postmortem examinations of older individuals frequently reveal multiple coexisting neuropathologies, however, the underlying pathological processes cannot be easily assessed directly in living individuals. To quantify pathology-specific genetic signatures, we analysed a spectrum of NDDs using polygenic risk scores (PRSs) in the UK Biobank, restricting analyses to genes reported to be expressed in major brain cell-types, including microglia, astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and neurons. We found substantial overlap among purportedly cell-type specific gene sets (21-29%), with APOE or neighbouring genes from the APOE locus represented in all gene sets, indicating that current cell-type specific annotations capture considerable shared genetic variation across cell-types. Jointly, cell-type specific PRSs explained a large proportion (60-93%) of the genetic liability for NDDs in which dementia is a major clinical manifestation. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) showed associations across all cell-types, with oligodendrocyte- and astrocyte-based PRSs demonstrating strong effects independent of APOE . AD PRS and APOE status independently differentiated Parkinson’s disease (PD) with dementia from PD without dementia. PD without dementia and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) exhibited distinct genetic profiles, with limited overlap with other NDDs. Collectively, these findings reveal both shared and disease-specific genetic contributions across neurodegenerative disorders and demonstrate that currently available cell-type specific gene sets capture substantial overlapping genetic risk. The imperfect alignment between clinical phenotypes and underlying pathology, coupled with the extensive overlap of gene expression across these cell types, underscores the persistent challenges in resolving the genetic architecture of neurodegenerative diseases and elucidating their underlying biological mechanisms.
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APA 7th
Simmonds, E., McKeever, A., Ü, Y., Leonenko, G., Kimatova, K., Taylor, P., et al. (2026). Mapping polygenic risk scores to brain cells: insights for neurodegenerative diseases. medRxiv. https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.10.08.26365054
Vancouver
Simmonds E, McKeever A, Ü Y, Leonenko G, Kimatova K, Taylor P, et al. Mapping polygenic risk scores to brain cells: insights for neurodegenerative diseases. medRxiv. 2026. doi:10.64898/2026.10.08.26365054.
BibTeX
@article{simmonds2026-b706ae9d,
author = {Simmonds, E. and McKeever, A. and Ü, Yaman and Leonenko, G. and Kimatova, K. and Taylor, P. and Chandran, S. and Ryten, M. and others},
title = {{Mapping polygenic risk scores to brain cells: insights for neurodegenerative diseases}},
journal = {medRxiv},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.64898/2026.10.08.26365054},
url = {https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.10.08.26365054}
}
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Key findings
- We found substantial overlap among purportedly cell-type specific gene sets (21-29%), with APOE or neighbouring genes from the APOE locus represented in all gene sets, indicating that current cell-type specific annotations capture considerable shared genetic variation across cell-types.
- Collectively, these findings reveal both shared and disease-specific genetic contributions across neurodegenerative disorders and demonstrate that currently available cell-type specific gene sets capture substantial overlapping genetic risk.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 16/100
Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. It scored 21 on the same rubric, but non-peer-reviewed sources are capped at 16, so it shows as 16. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 13 of the 62 points we could judge it on, which is 21 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 2 / 10 | Tier 4 — not a peer-reviewed journal (medRxiv) |
| Journal's citation record | 0 / 4 | Not a journal article, so the journal's record does not count |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 4 / 10 | Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. Hosted on a preprint server. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 1 / 2 | Not in PubMed, but has a DOI |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 13 / 62 | Scored on 12 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 13 of the 62 points we could judge it on is 21 out of 100. |
| Total | 21 / 100 | Capped to 16 because this is not a peer-reviewed article. |
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