Dr Ang Zhou

Adjunct Research Fellow UniSA Clinical & Health Sciences

email Ang.Zhou@unisa.edu.au

Research Degree Supervisor

About me

Ang has training in medical sciences (PhD, 2012) and Biostatistics (Masters, 2015). He is working as a research associate in the nutritional and genetic epidemiology group at the Australian Centre for Precision Health. Ang applies methodologies in genetic epidemiology to understand causal associations between modifiable lifestyle factors and health outcomes related to cognitive and cardiometabolic functions. His research also involves understanding gene-environment interplay on health outcomes.

UniSA Clinical & Health Sciences

UniSA Clinical & Health Sciences is addressing society’s most critical and emerging health needs through quality teaching, learning and research excellence.

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Orcid
Scopus

Research

Research focus

Clinical Sciences
Medical and Health Sciences
Public Health and Health Services
Nutrition and Dietetics
Biological Sciences

Research

Outputs

Research outputs for the last seven years are shown below. Some long-standing staff members may have older outputs included. To see earlier years visit ORCID or Scopus

Open access indicates that an output is open access.

Chapters

Year	Output
2024	Hyppönen, E, Zhou, A & Vimaleswaran, KS 2024, 'Genetic determinants of 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations', in M Hewison et al. (eds), Feldman and Pike's Vitamin D: Volume Two: Disease and Therapeutics, 5th, Academic Press, UK, vol. 2, ch. 60, pp. 185-199.

Journal Articles

Year	Output
2025	Hyppönen, E, Mulugeta, A & Zhou, A 2025, 'Reanalysis of the vitamin D and dementia association using the doubly-ranked nonlinear Mendelian randomization approach', American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 122, no. 3, pp. 894-897.
2025	Pham, K, Kassaw, NA, Mulugeta, A, Zhou, A & Hyppӧnen, E 2025, 'Coffee and health outcomes: a systematic review of Mendelian randomisation studies', Nutrition Research Reviews, online. Open access
2025	Sutherland, JP, Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2025, 'Vitamin D, C-reactive protein, and increased fall risk: a genetic epidemiological study', Nutrients, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 1-16. Open access
2025	Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2025, 'A reanalysis of the bidirectional association between vitamin D and C-reactive protein using the doubly-ranked non-linear Mendelian randomization approach', International Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 54, no. 5, article no. dyaf166, pp. 1-5. Open access 1
2024	Burgess, S & Zhou, A 2024, 'Genetic predictors of traits in elderly subjects: risk of survival bias and reverse causation', European Heart Journal, vol. 45, no. 24, pp. 2155-2157. 2 2
2024	Burgess, S, Sun, YQ, Zhou, A, Buck, C, Mason, AM & Mai, XM 2024, 'Body mass index and all-cause mortality in HUNT and UK biobank studies: revised non-linear Mendelian randomisation analyses', BMJ Open, vol. 14, no. 5, pp. 1-11. Open access 7 7
2024	Hypponen, E, Sutherland, JP & Zhou, A 2024, 'Vitamin D deficiency increases mortality risk in the UK Biobank', Annals of Internal Medicine, vol. 177, no. 12, pp. 1743-1746.
2024	Kassaw, NA, Zhou, A, Mulugeta, A, Lee, SH, Burgess, S & Hyppönen, E 2024, 'Alcohol consumption and the risk of all-cause and cause-specific mortality-a linear and nonlinear Mendelian randomization study', International Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 53, no. 2, pp. 1-8. Open access 11 12 54
2023	Dickson, C, Zhou, A, MacIntyre, E & Hyppönen, E 2023, 'Do chronic low back pain and chronic widespread pain differ in their association with depression symptoms in the 1958 British cohort?', Pain Medicine, vol. 24, no. 6, pp. 644-651. Open access 6 7 4
2023	Sutherland, JP, Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2023, 'Muscle traits, sarcopenia, and sarcopenic obesity: a vitamin D Mendelian randomization study', Nutrients, vol. 15, no. 12, pp. 1-13. Open access 15 12 8
2023	Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2023, 'Vitamin D deficiency and C-reactive protein: a bidirectional Mendelian randomization study', International Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 52, no. 1, pp. 260-271. Open access 77 79 760
2022	Hyppönen, E, Vimaleswaran, KS & Zhou, A 2022, 'Genetic determinants of 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations and their relevance to public health', Nutrients, vol. 14, no. 20, article no. 4408, p. 1-14. Open access 31 29 15
2022	Jami, ES, Hammerschlag, AR, Ip, HF, Allegrini, AG, Benyamin, B, Zhou, A, Hypponen, E & Middeldorp, CM and 86 other authors 2022, 'Genome-wide association meta-analysis of childhood and adolescent internalizing symptoms', Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, vol. 61, no. 7, pp. 934-945. Open access 36 32 119
2022	Navale, SS, Mulugeta, A, Zhou, A, Llewellyn, DJ & Hyppönen, E 2022, 'Vitamin D and brain health: an observational and Mendelian randomization study', American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 116, no. 2 , pp. 531-540. Open access 68 63 1331
2022	Neumann, A, Nolte, IM, Pappa, I, Ahluwalia, TS, Benyamin, B, Zhou, A, Hyppönen, E & Tiemeier, H 2022, 'A genome-wide association study of total child psychiatric problems scores', PLoS One, vol. 17, no. 8, article no. e0273116, pp. 1-23. Open access 18 16 13
2022	Pham, K, Mulugeta, A, Zhou, A, O'Brien, JT, Llewellyn, DJ & Hyppönen, E 2022, 'High coffee consumption, brain volume and risk of dementia and stroke', Nutritional Neuroscience, vol. 25, no. 10, pp. 2111-2122. Open access 25 27 1258
2022	Sutherland, JP, Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2022, 'Vitamin D deficiency increases mortality risk in the UK biobank: a nonlinear Mendelian Randomization Study', Annals of Internal Medicine, vol. 175, no. 11, pp. 1552-1559. 94 91 1208
2021	Bejar, CA, Goyal, S, Afzal, S, Mangino, M, Zhou, A, Hyppönen, E & Sanghera, DK 2021, 'A Bidirectional Mendelian Randomization Study to evaluate the causal role of reduced blood vitamin D levels with type 2 diabetes risk in South Asians and Europeans', Nutrition Journal, vol. 20, pp 1-11. Open access 15 15 19
2021	Hyppönen, E & Zhou, A 2021, 'Cardiovascular symptoms affect the patterns of habitual coffee consumption', American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 114, no. 1, pp. 214-219. Open access 14 11 720
2021	Madakkatel, I, Zhou, A, McDonnell, MD & Hyppönen, E 2021, 'Combining machine learning and conventional statistical approaches for risk factor discovery in a large cohort study', Scientific Reports, vol. 11, issue 1, article no. 22997, pp. 1-11. Open access 42 39
2021	Najjar, L, Sutherland, J, Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2021, 'Vitamin D and type 1 diabetes risk: a systematic review and meta-analysis of genetic evidence', Nutrients, vol. 13, no. 12, article no. 4260, pp. 1-15. Open access 12 13 14
2021	Sutherland, JP, Zhou, A, Leach, MJ & Hypponen, E 2021, 'Differences and determinants of vitamin D deficiency among UK biobank participants: a cross-ethnic and socioeconomic study', Clinical Nutrition, vol. 40, no. 5, pp. 3436-3447. 41 37 210
2021	Vimaleswaran, KS, Zhou, A, Cavadino, A & Hyppönen, E 2021, 'Evidence for a causal association between milk intake and cardiometabolic disease outcomes using a two-sample Mendelian Randomization analysis in up to 1,904,220 individuals', International Journal of Obesity, vol. 45, pp. 1751-1762. Open access 22 22 527
2021	Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2021, 'Habitual coffee intake and plasma lipid profile: evidence from UK Biobank', Clinical Nutrition, vol. 40, no. 6, pp. 4404-4413. Open access 25 21 392
2021	Zhou, A, Selvanayagam, JB & Hyppönen, E 2021, 'Non-linear Mendelian randomization analyses support a role for vitamin D deficiency in cardiovascular disease risk', European Heart Journal, vol. 43, no. 18, pp. 1731-1739. Open access 151 147 538
2020	King, C, Mulugeta, A, Nabi, F, Walton, R, Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2020, 'Mendelian randomization case-control PheWAS in UK Biobank shows evidence of causality for smoking intensity in 28 distinct clinical conditions', EClinicalMedicine, vol. 26, article no. 100488, pp. 1-7. Open access 19 18 100
2020	Lumsden, AL, Mulugeta, A, Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2020, 'Apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype-associated disease risks: a phenome-wide, registry-based, case-control study utilising the UK Biobank', EBioMedicine, vol. 59, article no. 102954, pp. 1-11. Open access 195 183 82
2020	Mulugeta, A, Zhou, A, King, C & Hyppönen, E 2020, 'Association between major depressive disorder and multiple disease outcomes: a phenome-wide Mendelian randomisation study in the UK Biobank', Molecular Psychiatry, vol. 25, no. 7, pp. 1469-1476. Open access 68 68 147
2020	Nicolopoulos, K, Gebremichael, A, Zhou, A & Hypponen, E 2020, 'Association between habitual coffee consumption and multiple disease outcomes: a Mendelian randomisation phenome-wide association study in the UK Biobank', Clinical Nutrition, vol. 39, no. 11, pp. 3467-3476. Open access 35 32 180
2020	Stasinopoulos, L, Zhou, A & Hypponen, E 2020, 'Association of supplemental calcium and dairy milk intake with all-cause and cause-specific mortality in the UK Biobank: a prospective cohort study', The British Journal of Nutrition: An International Journal of Nutritional Science, vol. 123, no. 5, pp. 574-582. Open access 9 8 1
2020	Zheng, Y, Huang, T, Wang, T, Mei, Z, Zhou, A, Hypponen, E & Qi, L and 111 other authors 2020, 'Mendelian randomization analysis does not support causal associations of birth weight with hypertension risk and blood pressure in adulthood', European Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 35, pp. 685-697. Open access 10 11 40
2019	Folley, S, Zhou, A, Llewellyn, DJ & Hyppenen, E 2019, 'Physical activity, APOE genotype, and cognitive decline: exploring gene-environment interactions in the UK Biobank', Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 71, no. 3, pp. 741-750. 16 18 21
2019	Gill, D, Benyamin, B, Moore, LS, Monori, G, Zhou, A, Koskeridis, F, Evangelou, E, Laffan, M, Walker, AP, Tsilidis, KK, Dehghan, A, Elliot, P, Hypponen, E, Tzoulaki, I & Rahimi, K 2019, 'Associations of genetically determined iron status across the phenome: a mendelian randomization study', PLoS Medicine, vol. 16, no. 6, article no. e1002833, pp. 1-16. Open access 51 46 122
2019	Huang, T, Wang, T, Zheng, Y, Ellervik, C, Zhou, A, Hyppönen, E & Qi, L and 127 other authors 2019, 'Association of birth weight with type 2 diabetes and glycemic traits: a mendelian randomization study', JAMA network open, vol. 2, no. 9, article no. e1910915, pp. 1-18. Open access 47 45 7
2019	Hypponen, E, Mulugeta, A, Zhou, A & Santhanakrishnan, VK 2019, 'A data-driven approach for studying the role of body mass in multiple diseases: a phenome-wide registry-based case-control study in the UK Biobank', The Lancet Digital Health, vol. 1, no. 3, pp. e116-e126. Open access 55 55 145
2019	Mulugeta, A, Zhou, A, Vimaleswaran, KS, Dickson, C & Hypponen, E 2019, 'Depression increases the genetic susceptibility to high body mass index: evidence from UK Biobank', Depression and Anxiety, vol. 36, no. 12, pp. 1154-1162. Open access 36 34 3
2019	Skaaby, T, Kilpeläinen, TO, Taylor, AE, Mahendran, Y, Zhou, A, Hyppönen, E & Linneberg, A and 40 other authors 2019, 'Association of alcohol consumption with allergic disease and asthma: a multi-centre Mendelian randomization analysis', Addiction, vol. 114, no. 2, pp. 216-225. Open access 23 20 2
2019	Tyrrell, J, Gebremichael, A, Wood, AR, Zhou, A, Beaumont, RN, Tuke, MA, Jones, SE, Ruth, KS, Yaghootkar, H, Sharp, S, Thompson, WD, Ji, Y, Harrison, J, Freathy, RM, Murray, A, Weedon, MN, Lewis, C, Frayling, TM & Hyppӧnen, E and 1 consortium 2019, 'Using genetics to understand the causal influence of higher BMI on depression', International Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 48, no. 3, pp. 834-848. Open access 162 146 216
2019	Zhou, A & Hyppönen, E 2019, 'Long-term coffee consumption, caffeine metabolism genetics, and risk of cardiovascular disease: a prospective analysis of up to 347,077 individuals and 8368 cases', American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 109, no. 3, pp. 509-516. Open access 81 72 711
2019	Zhou, A, Morris, H & Hyppönen, E 2019, 'Health effects associated with serum calcium concentrations: evidence from MR-PheWAS analysis in UK Biobank', Osteoporosis International, vol. 30, no. 11, pp. 2343-2348. 21 21 1
2018	Jiang, X, O'Reilly, PF, Aschard, H, Hsu, Y-H, Zhou, A, Hypponen, E & Kiel, DP and 97 other authors 2018, 'Genome-wide association study in 79,366 European-ancestry individuals informs the genetic architecture of 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels', Nature Communications, vol. 9, no. 1, article no. 260, pp. 1-12. Open access 330 322 61
2018	Kuźma, E, Hannon, E, Zhou, A, Lourida, I, Bethel, A, Levine, DA, Lunnon, K, Thompson-Coon, J, Hyppönen, E & Llewellyn, DJ 2018, 'Which risk factors causally influence Dementia? A systematic review of Mendelian randomization studies', Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 64, no. 1, pp. 181-193. Open access 42 42 28
2018	Mulugeta, A, Zhou, A, Power, C & Hyppönen, E 2018, 'Obesity and depressive symptoms in mid-life: a population-based cohort study', BMC Psychiatry, vol. 18, article no. 297. Open access 49 48 16
2018	Zhou, A, Taylor, AE, Karhunen, V, Zhan, Y & Hypponen, E and 23 other authors 2018, 'Habitual coffee consumption and cognitive function: a Mendelian randomization meta-analysis in up to 415,530 participants', Scientific Reports, vol. 8, article no. 7526, pp. 1-9. Open access 45 43 138
2017	Dale, CE, Fatemifar, G, Palmer, TM, White, J, Hyppönen, E, Zhou, A & Casas, JP and 37 other authors 2017, 'Causal associations of adiposity and body fat distribution with coronary heart disease, stroke subtypes, and type 2 diabetes mellitus: a Mendelian randomization analysis', Circulation, vol. 135, no. 24, pp. 2373-2388. Open access 288 276 127
2017	Maddock, J, Zhou, A, Cavadino, A, Kuźma, E & Hyppönen, E and 44 other authors 2017, 'Vitamin D and cognitive function: A Mendelian randomisation study', Scientific Reports, vol. 7, no. 1, article no. 13230, pp. 1-8. Open access 55 49 21
2017	Skaaby, T, Taylor, AE, Jacobsen, RK, Paternoster, L, Zhou, A, Hyppönen, E & Linneberg, A and 47 other authors 2017, 'Investigating the causal effect of smoking on hay fever and asthma: A Mendelian randomization meta-analysis in the CARTA consortium', Scientific Reports, vol. 7, article no. 2224, pp. 1-9. Open access 41 38 5
2013	Sykes, S, Pringle, K, Zhou, A, Dekker, G, Roberts, C & Lumbers, E and 1 consortium 2013, 'Fetal sex and the circulating renin- angiotensin system during early gestation in women who later develop preeclampsia or gestational hypertension', Journal of Human Hypertension, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 133-139. 37 26
2013	Zhou, A, Dekker, GA, Lumbers, ER, Leemaqz, SY, Thompson, SD, Heinemann, G, McCowan, LM & Roberts, C 2013, 'The association of maternal ACE A11860G with small for gestational age babies is modulated by the environment and by fetal sex: Amulticentrex prospective case-control study', Molecular Human Reproduction, vol. 19, no. 9, pp. 618-627. Open access 11 9
2012	Zhou, A, Dekker, G, Lumbers, E, Lee, S, Thompson, S, McCowan, L & Roberts, C 2012, 'The association of AGTR2 polymorphisms with preeclampsia and uterine artery bilateral notching is modulated by maternal BMI', Placenta, vol. 34, no. 1, pp. 75-81. Open access 28 27

External engagement & recognition

Collaborations

External engagement & recognition

Collaborations

Organisation	Country
Amtssygehuset i Gentofte	DENMARK
Bispebjerg Hospital	DENMARK
Erasmus University Medical Centre	NETHERLANDS
Free University of Amsterdam	NETHERLANDS
Fudan University	CHINA
Harvard School of Public Health	UNITED STATES
Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health	UNITED STATES
Harvard University	UNITED STATES
Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine	UNITED KINGDOM
Karolinska Institute	SWEDEN
King's College London	UNITED KINGDOM
MRC Biostatistics Unit	UNITED KINGDOM
Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet	NORWAY
Norwegian University of Science and Technology	NORWAY
Peking University	CHINA
Peking University Health Science Centre	CHINA
Queen Mary University of London	UNITED KINGDOM
Research Centre for Prevention and Health	DENMARK
Shanghai Jiao Tong University	CHINA
South Australian Health and Medical Institute	AUSTRALIA
Southern Cross University	AUSTRALIA
Tulane University	UNITED STATES
University College London	UNITED KINGDOM
University of Adelaide	AUSTRALIA
University of Auckland	NEW ZEALAND
University of Bristol	UNITED KINGDOM
University of Cambridge	UNITED KINGDOM
University of Copenhagen	DENMARK
University of Exeter	UNITED KINGDOM
University of Groningen	NETHERLANDS
University of Ioannina	GREECE
University of Michigan	UNITED STATES
University of Newcastle	AUSTRALIA
University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center	UNITED STATES
University of Oulu	FINLAND
University of Oxford	UNITED KINGDOM
University of Reading	UNITED KINGDOM
University of South Australia	AUSTRALIA

External engagement & recognition

Engagement/recognition	Year
Member Australian and New Zealand Placental Research Association (ANZPRA)	2017
Member Society for Reproductive Biology (SRB)	2017
Member Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR)	2017
Member Society for Reproductive Biology (SRB)	2016
Member Australian and New Zealand Placental Research Association (ANZPRA)	2016
Member Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR)	2016
Member Society for Reproductive Biology (SRB)	2015
Member Australian and New Zealand Placental Research Association (ANZPRA)	2015
Member Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR)	2015
Member Society for Reproductive Biology (SRB)	2014
Member Australian and New Zealand Placental Research Association (ANZPRA)	2014
Member Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR)	2014
Member Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR)	2013
Member Society for Reproductive Biology (SRB)	2013
Member Australian and New Zealand Placental Research Association (ANZPRA)	2013
Member Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR)	2012
Member Society for Reproductive Biology (SRB)	2012
Member Australian and New Zealand Placental Research Association (ANZPRA)	2012
Member Australian and New Zealand Placental Research Association (ANZPRA)	2011
Member Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR)	2011
Member Society for Reproductive Biology (SRB)	2011
Member Society for Reproductive Biology (SRB)	2010
Member Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR)	2010
Member Australian and New Zealand Placental Research Association (ANZPRA)	2010

Teaching & student supervision

Research degree supervision

Supervisions from 2010 shown

Thesis title	Student status
Alcohol consumption and its health consequences: a large-scale study exploring links with diseases and mortality using data from the UK Biobank.	Completed
Pain and depression: exploring gene-environment interactions and the role of stress	Completed
Physical activity, APOE genotype and cognitive function: exploring gene-environment interactions in the UK Biobank	Completed
Relationship between obesity and depression: evidence from observational and genetic studies	Completed
Vitamin D and degenerative health: a large-scale study exploring deficiency, muscle traits, mortality, and fall risk using data sourced from the UK Biobank	Completed

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Dr Ang Zhou

About me

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UniSA Clinical & Health Sciences

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Research

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Outputs

Chapters

Journal Articles

External engagement & recognition

Collaborations

Collaborations

External engagement & recognition

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