Genome-wide association and longitudinal analyses reveal genetic loci linking pubertal height growth, pubertal timing and childhood adiposity

The pubertal height growth spurt is a distinctive feature of childhood growth reflecting both the central onset of puberty and local growth factors. While little is known about the underlying genetics, growth variability during puberty correlates with adult risks for hormone-dependent cancer and adverse cardiometabolic health. The only gene so far associated with pubertal height growth, LIN28B, pleiotropically influences childhood growth, puberty, and cancer progression, pointing to shared underlying mechanisms.To discover genetic loci influencing pubertal height and growth and place them in context of overall growth and maturation, we performed genome-wide association (GWA) meta-analyses in up to 18,737 European samples utilizing longitudinally collected height measurements. We found significant associations (P