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Published on: July 31, 2019
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Causal effects between gut microbiota and endometriosis: a two-sample Mendelian randomisation study.
Tiefeng Cao1, Yunfei Wang2, Shen Huimin1
1Department of Gynaecology, First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.
Summary
This study used Mendelian randomization to investigate the causal link between gut microbiota and endometriosis. Phylum Cyanobacteria showed the strongest association, suggesting a causal role in endometriosis development.
Area of Science:
- Microbiome research
- Genetics
- Women's health
Background:
- Observational studies suggest a link between gut microbiota (GM) and endometriosis.
- The causal relationship between GM and endometriosis requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the causal relationship between gut microbiota and endometriosis using Mendelian randomization.
- To identify specific gut bacteria causally associated with endometriosis and its subtypes.
Main Methods:
- Utilized two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) with genome-wide association study (GWAS) data from MiBioGen (GM) and FinnGen (endometriosis).
- Employed Inverse Variance-Weighted (IVW) as the primary MR method, with MR-Egger regression, weighted mode, weighted median, and simple mode for confirmation.
- Conducted reverse MR analysis and sensitivity analyses (Cochran's Q, MR-Egger, MR-PRESSO, leave-one-out) to assess heterogeneity, pleiotropy, and outliers.
Main Results:
- Identified 12 causal relationships between endometriosis and gut microbiota taxa, including phylum Cyanobacteria, which showed the strongest association.
- Discovered 6 significant causal effects between specific GM taxa and 6 endometriosis subtypes.
- Confirmed no reverse causal relationships, horizontal pleiotropy, or significant outliers in sensitivity analyses.
Conclusions:
- Established significant causal effects between gut microbiota and endometriosis.
- Highlighted phylum Cyanobacteria as a key bacterial taxon with a strong causal association with endometriosis.
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