Frontiers in Genetics (Feb 2024)

Potential causal associations of PM2.5 and osteoporosis: a two-sample mendelian randomization study

  • Yi Zhang,
  • Jinsheng Yu,
  • Hang Pei,
  • Xinzheng Zhao,
  • Chao Wang,
  • Guanyin Wang,
  • Zan Shen,
  • Jiang Hua,
  • Bangjian He

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fgene.2024.1263916
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 15

Abstract

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Background: Observational studies suggest a potential association between atmospheric particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) and osteoporosis, but a causal association is unclear due to the presence of confounding factors.Methods: We utilized bone mineral density indices at four specific sites to represent osteoporosis: femoral neck (FN-BMD), lumbar spine (LS-BMD), forearm (FA-BMD), and heel (HE-BMD). The PM2.5 data was obtained from the UK Biobank database, while the datasets for FN-BMD, LS-BMD, and FA-BMD were obtained from the GEFOS database, and the dataset for HE-BMD was obtained from the EBI database. A two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis was conducted using mainly the inverse variance weighted method, horizontal pleiotropy and heterogeneity were also assessed.Results: The results indicated that PM2.5 was not correlated with a decrease in FN-BMD (β: −0.305, 95%CI: −0.762, 0.153), LS-BMD (β: 0.134, 95%CI: −0.396, 0.666), FA-BMD (β: -0.056, 95%CI: −1.172,1.060), and HE-BMD (β: −0.084, 95%CI: −0.261,0.093). Additionally, acceptable levels of horizontal pleiotropy and heterogeneity were observed.Conclusion: In contrast to most observational studies, our research did not discover a potential causal relationship between PM2.5 and the development of osteoporosis.

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