# A large-scale multi-ancestry genome-wide association study of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome in men

## TL;DR

A large genetic study finds eight new risk regions for chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and explores its genetic links with other prostate conditions.

## Contribution

A multi-ancestry GWAS identifies eight novel loci for chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and reveals complex genetic relationships with benign prostatic hyperplasia.

## Key findings

- Eight novel loci associated with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome risk were identified in a multi-ancestry analysis.
- Mendelian randomization suggests a bidirectional causal relationship between chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and benign prostatic hyperplasia.
- Genetic correlation between chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and prostate cancer was not significant.

## Abstract

Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome is common, and it impacts men’s health and quality of life. The genetic basis of this condition remains largely unknown. Here, we conduct a GWAS using data from the Million Veteran Program of over 590,000 men of European, African, and Hispanic ancestry, including 14,575 chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome cases. The multi-ancestry analysis identifies eight novel loci associated with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome risk, an increase from three significant genome-wide loci found in the European participants alone. We also estimate the genetic correlations between chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and 12 phenotypes. Notably, the genetic correlation between chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and prostate cancer is not significant. Further, Mendelian randomization shows a significant, potentially bidirectional causal relationship between chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and benign prostatic hyperplasia, but not between chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and prostate cancer, suggesting a complex interplay between chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome and benign prostatic hyperplasia. Results of bivariate causal mixture modeling indicate that some of the same genetic variants likely contribute to the development of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome, benign prostatic hyperplasia, and prostate cancer.

The genetic basis of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome remains poorly understood. Here, the authors present a multi-ancestry GWAS of this syndrome, identifying eight loci linked with higher risk.