Abstract
Genome-wide association study loci likely influence disease risk through cis-regulation of nearby genes. We present a protocol for measuring the cis-regulatory activity of risk variants on specific gene promoters in human primary astrocytes using luciferase reporter assays. We describe steps for transfection, conducting the assay, and data analysis. The transfection could be adapted to enable validation of putative risk variants in any cell type. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Littleton et al.1.