Projects
About me
I am a statistical geneticist, with expertise in the modelling of repeated measures (longitudinal) data. There are two main strands to my research: gene mapping of common, complex disease and extending statistical methodology to identify and characterize associations between genetic variants and disease.
One key element of my research is using mixed models to model growth trajectories. I have worked with several large cohorts to estimate trajectories of childhood body mass index (BMI) and utilised these trajectories to explore the genetic associations with rate of change in BMI. I have also investigated various properties of these models using simulated data to detemine their feasibility for genome-wide association studies.
Publications
Association of a body mass index genetic risk score with growth throughout childhood and adolescence. Warrington NM, Howe LD, Wu YY, Timpson NJ, Tilling K, Pennell CE, Newnham J, Davey-Smith G, Palmer LJ, Beilin LJ, Lye SJ, Lawlor DA, Briollais L. PLoS One. 2013 Nov 11;8(11):e79547. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0079547. eCollection 2013.
Genetic influences on trajectories of systolic blood pressure across childhood and adolescence. Howe LD, Parmar PG, Paternoster L, Warrington NM, Kemp JP, Briollais L, Newnham JP, Timpson NJ, Smith GD, Ring SM, Evans DM, Tilling K, Pennell CE, Beilin LJ, Palmer LJ, Lawlor DA. Circ Cardiovasc Genet. 2013 Dec;6(6):608-14.
Modelling BMI trajectories in children for genetic association studies. Warrington NM, Wu YY, Pennell CE, Marsh JA, Beilin LJ, Palmer LJ, Lye SJ, Briollais L. PLoS One. 2013;8(1):e53897.
The impact of breastfeeding on FTO-related BMI growth trajectories: an application to the Raine pregnancy cohort study. Abarin T, Yan Wu Y, Warrington N, Lye S, Pennell C, Briollais L. Int J Epidemiol. 2012 Dec;41(6):1650-60.
A genome-wide association meta-analysis identifies new childhood obesity loci. Bradfield JP, Taal HR, Timpson NJ, Scherag A, Lecoeur C, Warrington NM, Hypponen E, Holst C, Valcarcel B, Thiering E, Salem RM, Schumacher FR, Cousminer DL, Sleiman PM, Zhao J, Berkowitz RI, Vimaleswaran KS, Jarick I, Pennell CE, Evans DM, St Pourcain B, Berry DJ, Mook-Kanamori DO, Hofman A, Rivadeneira F, Uitterlinden AG, van Duijn CM, van der Valk RJ, de Jongste JC, Postma DS, Boomsma DI, Gauderman WJ, Hassanein MT, Lindgren CM, Mägi R, Boreham CA, Neville CE, Moreno LA, Elliott P, Pouta A, Hartikainen AL, Li M, Raitakari O, Lehtimäki T, Eriksson JG, Palotie A, Dallongeville J, Das S, Deloukas P, McMahon G, Ring SM, Kemp JP, Buxton JL, Blakemore AI, Bustamante M, Guxens M, Hirschhorn JN, Gillman MW, Kreiner-Møller E, Bisgaard H, Gilliland FD, Heinrich J, Wheeler E, Barroso I, O'Rahilly S, Meirhaeghe A, Sørensen TI, Power C, Palmer LJ, Hinney A, Widen E, Farooqi IS, McCarthy MI, Froguel P, Meyre D, Hebebrand J, Jarvelin MR, Jaddoe VW, Smith GD, Hakonarson H, Grant SF; Early Growth Genetics Consortium. Nat Genet. 2012 May;44(5):526-31.
Genome-wide association study to identify common variants associated with brachial circumference: a meta-analysis of 14 cohorts. Boraska V, Day-Williams A, Franklin CS, Elliott KS, Panoutsopoulou K, Tachmazidou I, Albrecht E, Bandinelli S, Beilin LJ, Bochud M, Cadby G, Ernst F, Evans DM, Hayward C, Hicks AA, Huffman J, Huth C, James AL, Klopp N, Kolcic I, Kutalik Z, Lawlor DA, Musk AW, Pehlic M, Pennell CE, Perry JR, Peters A, Polasek O, St Pourcain B, Ring SM, Salvi E, Schipf S, Staessen JA, Teumer A, Timpson N, Vitart V, Warrington NM, Yaghootkar H, Zemunik T, Zgaga L, An P, Anttila V, Borecki IB, Holmen J, Ntalla I, Palotie A, Pietiläinen KH, Wedenoja J, Winsvold BS, Dedoussis GV, Kaprio J, Province MA, Zwart JA, Burnier M, Campbell H, Cusi D, Smith GD, Frayling TM, Gieger C, Palmer LJ, Pramstaller PP, Rudan I, Völzke H, Wichmann HE, Wright AF, Zeggini E. PLoS One. 2012;7(3):e31369.
Gene-environment interactions define the relationship between the FTO gene, fetal growth and childhood obesity. Julie A Marsh, Craig E Pennell, Nicole M Warrington, Dennis Mook-Kanamori, Laurent Briollais, Stephen J Lye, Lawrie J Beilin, Eric Steegers, Albert Hofman, Vincent WV Jaddoe, John P Newnham, Lyle J Palmer. Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease. Published online: 26 October 2011. doi:10.1017/S2040174411000638
Loci Affecting Gamma-Glutamyl Transferase in Adults and Adolescence Show Age x SNP Interaction and Cardiometabolic Disease Associations. Middelberg RP, Benyamin B, de Moor MH, Warrington NM, Gordon S, Henders AK, Medland SE, Nyholt DR, de Geus EJ, Hottenga JJ, Willemsen G, Beilin LJ, Mori TA, Wright MJ, Heath AC, Madden PA, Boomsma DI, Pennell CE, Montgomery GW, Martin NG, Whitfield JB. Hum Mol Genet. 2012 Jan 15;21(2):446-55.
Association between Common Variation at the FTO Locus and Changes in Body Mass Index from Infancy to Late Childhood: The Complex Nature of Genetic Association through Growth and Development. Sovio U, Mook-Kanamori DO, Warrington NM, Lawrence R, Briollais L, Palmer CN, Cecil J, Sandling JK, Syvänen AC, Kaakinen M, Beilin LJ, Millwood IY, Bennett AJ, Laitinen J, Pouta A, Molitor J, Davey Smith G, Ben-Shlomo Y, Jaddoe VW, Palmer LJ, Pennell CE, Cole TJ, McCarthy MI, Järvelin MR, Timpson NJ; Early Growth Genetics Consortium. PLoS Genet. 2011 Feb;7(2):e1001307.
