Ding Xiaoling, Zhou Xuebing, Jin Xuerong, Wang Xue, Wu Banglong, Wu Chaomeng, Ma Xin, Yang Xia, Yang Jie, Wu Tong, Liang Qi, Yin Lijun
Department of Gastroenterology, People's Hospital of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, PR China.
Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, People's Hospital of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, PR China.
Medicine (Baltimore). 2025 Aug 29;104(35):e44049. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000044049.
This study aimed to explore the bidirectional causal relationship between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT) using Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. While both conditions are characterized by persistent inflammation and immune dysregulation, the direction of causality remains unclear. We performed a 2-sample bidirectional MR analysis using summary statistics from genome-wide association studies for IBD and HT. Genetic variants strongly associated with IBD and HT were selected as instrumental variables for forward and reverse MR analyses, respectively. Various MR methods, including inverse-variance weighted (IVW), MR-Egger regression, weighted median, and weighted mode, were employed to assess causal relationships. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to evaluate the reliability of results, including tests for pleiotropy and heterogeneity. Data were sourced from individuals of European descent to minimize population stratification bias. In the forward MR analysis, no strong evidence of a causal effect of IBD on HT was found, with the IVW method yielding an odds ratio (OR) of 0.9617 (95% CI: 0.7549-1.2251; P = .7519) Similarly, in the reverse MR analysis, no significant causal effect of HT on IBD was observed, with the IVW method showing an OR of 0.9991 (95% CI: 0.9693-1.0298, P = .9527). Sensitivity analyses confirmed the absence of heterogeneity or pleiotropic effects that could influence the results. The MR-PRESSO analysis did not detect any outlier SNPs. This bidirectional MR analysis provides no evidence for a causal relationship between IBD and HT in either direction.
本研究旨在利用孟德尔随机化（MR）分析探索炎症性肠病（IBD）与桥本甲状腺炎（HT）之间的双向因果关系。虽然这两种疾病都以持续性炎症和免疫失调为特征，但因果关系的方向仍不明确。我们使用IBD和HT的全基因组关联研究的汇总统计数据进行了两样本双向MR分析。分别选择与IBD和HT密切相关的基因变异作为正向和反向MR分析的工具变量。采用了多种MR方法，包括逆方差加权（IVW）、MR-Egger回归、加权中位数和加权模式，以评估因果关系。进行了敏感性分析以评估结果的可靠性，包括多效性和异质性检验。数据来源于欧洲血统的个体，以尽量减少群体分层偏差。在正向MR分析中，未发现IBD对HT有因果效应的有力证据，IVW方法得出的优势比（OR）为0.9617（95%CI：0.7549-1.2251；P = 0.7519）。同样，在反向MR分析中，未观察到HT对IBD有显著因果效应，IVW方法显示的OR为0.9991（95%CI：0.9693-1.0298，P = 0.9527）。敏感性分析证实不存在可能影响结果的异质性或多效性效应。MR-PRESSO分析未检测到任何异常单核苷酸多态性（SNP）。这项双向MR分析没有提供IBD和HT在任何一个方向上存在因果关系的证据。
