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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Genet.
Sec. Applied Genetic Epidemiology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fgene.2024.1426401

Genetic Insights and Therapeutic Avenues: Unraveling the Role of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids as Mediators Between Hypothyroidism and Von Willebrand Disease through Mendelian Randomization

Provisionally accepted
  • Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Previous observational studies have shown that Hypothyroidism is associated with Von Willebrand Disease(VWD), but the causal relationship has not been confirmed because of conflicting findings and confounding by mixing factors. There are also some studies suggesting that polyunsaturated fatty acids(PUFA) may be one of the potential mediators. In this study, we used a Mendelian randomization study to analyze the causal relationship between Hypothyroidism and VWD and to investigate whether polyunsaturated fatty acids mediate the effects of Hypothyroidism on VWD.Methods: Using a large publicly available genome-wide association study of predominantly European ancestry to obtain data on Hypothyroidism, VWD, and PUFA, we conducted a two-sample Mendelian randomisation study to assess the causal relationship between Hypothyroidism and VWD and assess the potential role of Polyunsaturated fatty acids in mediating the causal pathway between Hypothyroidism and VWD. Finally, we also inferred reverse causality between VWD and Hypothyroidism. Inverse variance weighting (IVW) was the primary analytical method.We found that Hypothyroidism may be negatively causally associated with the development of VWD and that PUFA have a role in mediating role in this process (the ratio of the mediating effect: 24.33%). The causal effects of Hypothyroidism and PUFA on VWD remained significant (p<0.05) after correction of each other by MVMR.Our study unveils a novel negative correlation between hypothyroidism and VWD, further enriched by the discovery of partial mediation by PUFA. This groundbreaking finding not only advances our comprehension of VWD etiology but also opens promising avenues for its control and treatment. By elucidating the intricate interplay between hypothyroidism, PUFA, and VWD, our research pioneers a paradigm shift in therapeutic approaches, offering fresh perspectives for the management of this complex disorder.

    Keywords: Hypothyroidism, von Willebrand disease, polyunsaturated fatty acids, Mendelian randomisation study, Mediation analysis

    Received: 01 May 2024; Accepted: 18 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Zhou and He. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Rui He, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.