Hu Gang, Yu Yunfeng, Yin Yuman, Yang Xinyu, Yu Rong, Xiang Qin
School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, China; The First Hospital of Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, China.
The First Hospital of Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, China.
Clinics (Sao Paulo). 2025 Sep 3;80:100765. doi: 10.1016/j.clinsp.2025.100765.
This study aimed to investigate the causal relationship between Telomere Length (TL) and Autoimmune Thyroid Disease (AITD) in Europeans using Mendelian Randomization (MR).
Single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with TL and AITD were obtained from genome-wide association studies. MR analysis was conducted using inverse variance weighted as the primary method. Cochran's Q test and leave-one-out sensitivity analysis were employed to assess heterogeneity and robustness, respectively.
TL was significantly associated with reduced genetic susceptibility to Graves' Disease (GD) in Europeans (Odds Ratio [OR = 0.776], 95 % Confidence Interval [95 %CI 0.625-0.964]; p = 0.022). However, no association was found between TL and Autoimmune Thyroiditis (AIT) (OR = 1.474, 95 % CI 0.870-2.497; p = 0.149). Cochran's Q test and leave-one-out sensitivity analysis confirmed that the findings were free of heterogeneity and robust.
MR analysis revealed that TL shortening is associated with increased genetic susceptibility to GD in Europeans, but no such association was observed for AIT. Further research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms through which TL influences AITD.
本研究旨在利用孟德尔随机化（MR）方法探究欧洲人群中端粒长度（TL）与自身免疫性甲状腺疾病（AITD）之间的因果关系。
从全基因组关联研究中获取与TL和AITD相关的单核苷酸多态性。以逆方差加权法作为主要方法进行MR分析。分别采用 Cochr an's Q检验和留一法敏感性分析来评估异质性和稳健性。
在欧洲人群中，TL与格雷夫斯病（GD）的遗传易感性降低显著相关（优势比[OR = 0.776]，95%置信区间[95%CI 0.625 - 0.964]；p = 0.022）。然而，未发现TL与自身免疫性甲状腺炎（AIT）之间存在关联（OR = 1.474，95%CI 0.870 - 2.497；p = 0.149）。 Cochr an's Q检验和留一法敏感性分析证实研究结果不存在异质性且具有稳健性。
MR分析显示，在欧洲人群中，TL缩短与GD的遗传易感性增加相关，但未观察到与AIT存在此类关联。需要进一步研究以阐明TL影响AITD的机制。
