The causality between gut microbiome and anorexia nervosa: a Mendelian randomization analysis

Area of Science:

• Microbiome research
• Genetics
• Nutritional science

Background:

• Gut microbial composition influences appetite regulation.
• The direct causal link between gut microbes and anorexia nervosa (AN) is not well understood.
• Mendelian Randomization (MR) offers a method to explore causal effects, minimizing confounding factors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the causal relationship between specific gut microbial taxa and anorexia nervosa (AN).
• To explore the bidirectional causal effects between the gut microbiome and AN.

Main Methods:

• Utilized large-scale Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS) data for AN and 211 gut microbes.
• Employed two-sample Mendelian Randomization (MR) analysis.
• Conducted bidirectional MR analysis and applied Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons.

Main Results:

• Forward MR identified 10 gut microbial taxa potentially impacting AN occurrence.
• High abundance of Class Actinobacteria (ID: 419) was identified as a significant risk factor for AN post-correction.
• Reverse MR indicated AN influences 8 gut microbial taxa, though not statistically significant after adjustment.

Conclusions:

• Identified significant correlations between AN and 18 novel microbial taxa.
• Class Actinobacteria (ID: 419) demonstrated a continued influence on AN.
• Findings suggest a complex interplay between the gut microbiome and anorexia nervosa.