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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Med.
Sec. Geriatric Medicine
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1351376

Circulating inflammatory cytokines and sarcopenia-related traits: A Mendelian randomization analysis

Provisionally accepted
Aochuan Sun Aochuan Sun 1,2Saiya Liu Saiya Liu 1,3Zhuangzhuang Li Zhuangzhuang Li 2Fen Yin Fen Yin 1,2Zhengtang Liu Zhengtang Liu 2*
  • 1 Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China
  • 2 Xiyuan Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
  • 3 Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China

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

    Objective: To explore the causal relationships between 91 circulating inflammatory cytokines and sarcopeniarelated traits (low hand grip strength, appendicular lean mass, and usual walking pace) by Mendelian randomized analysis.Methods: Independent genetic variations of inflammatory cytokines and sarcopenia-related traits were selected as instrumental variables from publicly available genome-wide association studies (GWAS). The MR analysis was primarily conducted using the inverse variance-weighted (IVW) method. Sensitivity analyses included Steiger filtering and MR PRESSO, with additional assessments for heterogeneity and pleiotropy.Results: The IVW method indicated a causal relationship between Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A (VEGF-A) and low hand grip strength (OR=1.05654, 95% CI: 1.02453 to 1.08956, P=0.00046). Additionally, Tumor Necrosis Factor-beta (TNF-β) was found to have a causal relationship with appendicular lean mass (ALM) (β=0.04255, 95% CI: 0.02838 to 0.05672, P=3.96E-09). There was no evidence suggesting a significant causal relationship between inflammatory cytokines and usual walking pace.Conclusion: Our research substantiated the causal association between inflammatory cytokines, such as VEGF-A and TNF-β, and sarcopenia. This finding may provide new avenues for future clinical treatments.

    Keywords: Sarcopenia, Hand grip strength, Appendicular lean mass, usual walking pace, inflammatory cytokines, Mendelian Randomization Analysis

    Received: 22 Jan 2024; Accepted: 30 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Sun, Liu, Li, Yin and Liu. 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: Zhengtang Liu, Xiyuan Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, 100091, 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.