Causal role of immune cells in allergic rhinitis: A bidirectional Mendelian randomization study

Previous observational studies have indicated an association between various immune cells and allergic rhinitis; however, the causal relationship remains uncertain. This study seeks to further investigate the causal link between immune cells and allergic rhinitis through bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis.

Allergic rhinitis related data were obtained from the MRC-IEU database, while data for 731 immune cells were sourced from the GWAS catalog. The causal association between immune cells and allergic rhinitis was assessed using inverse variance weighting, MR-Egger, weighted median, simple mode, and weighted mode methods. Stability and reliability of the findings were evaluated through Cochran's Q test, MR-Egger intercept p-value, and leave-one-out analysis.

Primarily based on IVW methods, 38 distinct immunocyte phenotypes were identified as potentially influencing allergic rhinitis (p < 0.05), while allergic rhinitis was found to potentially impact 20 different immunocyte phenotypes (p < 0.05). The results for heterogeneity, horizontal pleiotropy, and sensitivity analyses demonstrated stability.

This study establishes a strong genetic correlation between immune cells and allergic rhinitis, enhances current knowledge regarding the role of immune cells in AR, and offers potential targets for the development of novel immune-based therapeutic strategies.

Level 5.