Background: Allergic diseases (ADs) such as asthma are presumed risk factors for COVID-19 infection. However, recent observational studies suggest that the assumed correlation contradicts each other. We therefore systematically investigated the genetic causal correlations between various ADs and COVID-19 infection/severity.
Methods: We performed a two-sample, bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) study for five types of ADs and the latest round of COVID-19 GWAS meta-analysis datasets (critically ill, hospitalized, and infection cases). We also further validated the significant causal correlations and elucidated the potential underlying molecular mechanisms.
Results: With the most suitable MR method, asthma consistently demonstrated causal protective effects on critically ill and hospitalized COVID-19 cases (OR < 0.93, p < 2.01 × 10), which were further confirmed by another validated GWAS dataset (OR < 0.92, p < 4.22 × 10). In addition, our MR analyses also observed significant causal correlations of food allergies such as shrimp allergy with the risk of COVID-19 infection/severity. However, we did not find any significant causal effect of COVID-19 phenotypes on the risk of ADs. Regarding the underlying molecular mechanisms, not only multiple immune-related cells such as CD4 T, CD8 T and the ratio of CD4/CD8 T cells showed significant causal effects on COVID-19 phenotypes and various ADs, the hematology traits including monocytes were also significantly correlated with them. Conversely, various ADs such as asthma and shrimp allergy may be causally correlated with COVID-19 infection/severity by affecting multiple hematological traits and immune-related cells.
Conclusions: Our systematic and bidirectional MR analyses suggest a unidirectional causal effect of various ADs, particularly of asthma on COVID-19 infection/severity, but the reverse is not true. The potential underlying molecular mechanisms of the causal effects call for more attention to clinical monitoring of hematological cells/traits and may be beneficial in developing effective therapeutic strategies for allergic patients following infection with COVID-19.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10804553 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12967-024-04887-4 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Relationship between bullous pemphigoid and metabolic syndrome and its relevant traits: a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization study.
Arch Dermatol Res
January 2025
Department of Dermatology, State Key Laboratory of Complex Severe and Rare Diseases, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Science and Peking Union Medical College, National Clinical Research Center for Dermatologic and Immunologic Diseases, No.1 Shuai Fu Yuan Street, Dong Cheng District, Beijing, 100730, China.
Article Synopsis
- Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is a chronic autoimmune blistering disease primarily affecting older adults, while metabolic syndrome (MetS) encompasses various metabolic disorders.
- Previous observational studies have suggested a link between BP and MetS, but the results are inconsistent due to potential biases from confounding factors like corticosteroid use or age.
- This study utilized Mendelian randomization (MR) to explore the causal relationship between BP and MetS, using genetic data, and found no significant causal association between the two or their related traits.
Are cathepsins a risk factor for papillary thyroid carcinoma? A bidirectional two-sample mendelian randomization analysis.
Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol
January 2025
Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, Guizhou, 550004, China.
Article Synopsis
- Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is the most common endocrine tumor, and the rise in its incidence may be linked to cathepsins, which are proteins thought to influence tumor progression.
- A study used Mendelian randomization to analyze data on cathepsins and PTC, finding a significant association with cathepsin Z (CTSZ) increasing the risk of PTC, while reverse causality was not supported.
- The results suggest that CTSZ could be a potential marker for predicting and diagnosing PTC early, and may inform future therapeutic approaches targeting this protein.
Mendelian randomization analysis reveals causal relationship between depression, antidepressants and benign paroxysmal vertigo.
Sci Rep
January 2025
Department of Neurology, The Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Liuzhou, Guangxi, China.
Benign paroxysmal vertigo (BPV) is a common cause of dizziness, and some patients are comorbid with psychiatric disorders such as depression, requiring intervention with antidepressants. However, the causal association between BPV, depression and antidepressants has not been clearly established. We used two-sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) to analyze the causal association between BPV, depression, and antidepressants.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAssociation of organ iron levels with type 2 diabetes mellitus and glycemic traits: A bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization study.
J Trace Elem Med Biol
December 2024
Department of Biochemistry, Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India; Affiliated to The Tamil Nadu Dr. MGR Medical University, Chennai, India. Electronic address:
Introduction: Observational studies have found that higher iron levels are associated with an increased risk of diabetes mellitus. Given the limitations of causal inferences from observational studies and the expensive and time-consuming nature of randomized controlled trials, Mendelian randomization analysis presents a reasonable alternative to study causal relationships. Previous MR analyses studying iron levels and diabetes have used indirect markers of iron levels, such as serum ferritin, and found conflicting results.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenetic evidence of the causal relationships between psychiatric disorders and cardiovascular diseases.
J Psychosom Res
December 2024
Department of Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Shanxi Medical University, 56 Xin Jian South Road Street, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China; Key Laboratory of Coal Environmental Pathogenicity and Prevention (Shanxi Medical University), Ministry of Education, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China. Electronic address:
Objective: Our primary objective is to investigate the causal relationships between 12 psychiatric disorders (PDs) and atrial fibrillation (AF), coronary artery disease (CAD), myocardial infarction (MI), and heart failure (HF).
Methods: Firstly, we used linkage disequilibrium score regression to calculate the genetic correlations between 12 PDs and 4 cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Subsequently, we performed two-sample and bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses of phenotypes with significant genetic correlations to explore the causal relationships between PDs and CVDs.
Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!