Causal relationship between gut microbes and cardiovascular protein expression

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Cardiovascular Science
• Genetics

Background:

• Gut microbiota composition is associated with plasma cardiovascular protein levels.
• The causal nature of these associations remains largely unelucidated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the causal relationship between gut microbiota and cardiovascular protein levels using Mendelian randomization.
• To identify specific gut taxa causally influencing cardiovascular protein expression.

Main Methods:

• Two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was employed.
• Genome-wide association study (GWAS) data from MiBioGen (211 bacterial taxa, 18,473 individuals) and cardiovascular proteins (90 proteins, 30,931 individuals) were utilized.
• Sensitivity analyses were conducted to assess pleiotropy and heterogeneity.

Main Results:

• Fourteen causal relationships were identified between specific gut microbial taxa and cardiovascular proteins.
• Examples include *Euryarchaeota* and carbohydrate antigen 125, *Dorea* and HSP-27, and *Methanobrevibacter* and NT-proBNP.
• No evidence of pleiotropy, heterogeneity, or reverse causality was found.

Conclusions:

• Mendelian randomization provides strong evidence for a causal role of gut microbiota in modulating cardiovascular protein expression.
• These findings highlight potential therapeutic targets within the gut microbiome for cardiovascular disease management.