Increasing serum iron levels and their role in the risk of infectious diseases: a Mendelian randomization approach.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Increased iron stores have been associated with elevated risks of different infectious diseases, suggesting that iron supplementation may increase the risk of infections. However, these associations may be biased by confounding or reverse causation. This is important, since up to 19% of the population takes iron supplementation. We used Mendelian randomization (MR) to bypass these biases and estimate the causal effect of iron on infections.

Methods

As instrumental variables, we used genetic variants associated with iron biomarkers in two genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of European ancestry participants. For outcomes, we used GWAS results from the UK Biobank, FinnGen, the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative or 23andMe, for seven infection phenotypes: 'any inf

SUBMITTER: Butler-Laporte G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10396421 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature