Basal metabolic rate and risk of multiple sclerosis: a Mendelian randomization study

Potential Mechanisms of Precision Nutrition-Based Interventions for Managing Obesity

Precision nutrition (PN) considers multiple individual-level and environmental characteristics or variables to better inform dietary strategies and interventions for optimizing health, including managing obesity and metabolic disorders. Here, we review the evidence on potential mechanisms-including ones to identify individuals most likely to respond-that can be leveraged in the development of PN interventions addressing obesity. We conducted a review of the literature and included laboratory, animal, and human studies evaluating biochemical and genetic data, completed and ongoing clinical trials, and public programs in this review. Our analysis describes the potential mechanisms related to 6 domains including genetic predisposition, circadian rhythms, physical activity and sedentary behavior, metabolomics, the gut microbiome, and behavioral and socioeconomic characteristics, i.e., the factors that can be leveraged to design PN-based interventions to prevent and treat obesity-related outcomes such as weight loss or metabolic health as laid out by the NIH 2030 Strategic Plan for Nutrition Research. For example, single nucleotide polymorphisms can modify responses to certain dietary interventions, and epigenetic modulation of obesity risk via physical activity patterns and macronutrient intake have also been demonstrated. Additionally, we identified limitations including questions of equitable implementation across a limited number of clinical trials. These include the limited ability of current PN interventions to address systemic influences such as supply chains and food distribution, healthcare systems, racial or cultural inequities, and economic disparities, particularly when designing and implementing PN interventions in low- and middle-income communities. PN has the potential to help manage obesity by addressing intra- and inter-individual variation as well as context, as opposed to "one-size fits all" approaches though there is limited clinical trial evidence to date.

Causal Effects of Basal Metabolic Rate on Cardiovascular Disease: A Bidirectional Mendelian Randomization Study

BACKGROUND

Despite the health effects of basal metabolic rate (BMR), the causal effect of BMR on cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remains undetermined. To elucidate the causal nature, Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses were performed.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Summary genome-wide association statistics regarding BMR and 5 CVDs were obtained from European databases. A 2-sample bidirectional MR was performed to assess the causal association between BMR and CVDs. The causal effects were estimated using inverse variance weighting. Simultaneously, multiple sensitivity analyses were performed to validate the robustness and reliability of the results. Our results indicated that genetically predicted BMR was significantly positively associated with the risk of heart failure (odds ratio, 1.53 [95% CI, 1.39-1.67]; P<0.001), atrial fibrillation and flutter (odds ratio, 2.12 [95% CI, 1.87-2.40]; P<0.001), and aortic aneurysm (odds ratio, 1.64 [95% CI, 1.41-1.92]; P<0.001). Genetically predicted BMR may not be causally associated with coronary artery disease and ischemic stroke risk. Furthermore, a significant causal effect of CVDs on BMR was not found in the reverse MR analysis. Multivariable MR was applied to further assess the direct effect of BMR on CVDs. Multivariable MR indicated that a high level of BMR still increased the risk of heart failure and atrial fibrillation and flutter after adjustment independent of possible confounders. However, the P value of aortic aneurysm was not significant.

CONCLUSIONS

The present study provides robust evidence that genetically predicted BMR is independently causally associated with heart failure and atrial fibrillation and flutter but not vice versa. These findings have implications for the prevention and treatment of CVDs in clinical practice.

Genetically predicted basal metabolic rate and venous thromboembolism risk: a Mendelian randomization study

Background

Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the minimum amount of energy needed by the body to carry out essential physiological functions. The goal of this study was to evaluate whether BMR causally influences venous thromboembolism (VTE) and its subtypes in European individuals.

Methods

A two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) was performed. Within a genome-wide association study (GWAS) involving 454,874 people, genetic variants were chosen as instrumental variables based on their significant associations (p < 5 × 10-8) with BMR and their limited linkage disequilibrium (r2 < 0.001). The FinnGen project served as sources for summary statistics of VTE, encompassing different subtypes.

Results

Using the multiplicative random-effect inverse variance weighted method, our investigation revealed that one standard deviation higher BMR was associated with VTE (odds ratio [OR] = 1.684, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.465-1.936, p = 2.339 × 10-13), PE (OR = 1.824, 95% CI: 1.512-2.200, p = 3.399 × 10-10), and DVT of lower extremities (OR = 1.887, 95% CI: 1.562-2.280, p = 4.778 × 10-11). The consistency of these associations was observed in sensitivity analyses using various MR techniques like Mendelian randomization pleiotropy residual sum and outlier, MR-Egger, weighted median, and contamination mixture method. In addition, multivariable MR revealed direct effects of BMR on VTE and its subtypes when taking body mass index and current tobacco smoking into account.

Conclusion

Higher BMR may increase the risk of VTE and its subtypes including PE and DVT of lower extremities.

Causal Relationship Between Basal Metabolic Rate and Alzheimer's Disease: A Bidirectional Two-sample Mendelian Randomization Study

INTRODUCTION

Objective observational studies have shown that basal metabolic rate (BMR) decreases in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), but the causal relationship between BMR and AD has not been established. We determined the causal relationship between BMR and AD by two-way Mendelian randomization (MR) and investigated the impact of factors associated with BMR on AD.

METHODS

We obtained BMR (n = 454,874) and AD from a large genome-wide association study (GWAS) database (21,982 patients with AD, 41,944 controls). The causal relationship between AD and BMR was investigated using two-way MR. Additionally, we identified the causal relationship between AD and factors related with BMR, hyperthyroidism (hy/thy) and type 2 diabetes (T2D), height and weight.

RESULTS

BMR had a causal relationship with AD [451 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), odds ratio (OR) 0.749, 95% confidence intervals (CIs) 0.663-0.858, P = 2.40E-03]. There was no causal relationship between hy/thy or T2D and AD (P > 0.05). The bidirectional MR showed that there was also a causal relationship between AD and BMR (OR 0.992, Cls 0.987-0.997, N_SNPs18, P = 1.50E-03). BMR, height and weight have a protective effect on AD. Based on MVMR analysis, we found that genetically determined height and weight may be adjusted by BMR to have a causal effect on AD, not height and weight themselves.

CONCLUSION

Our study showed that higher BMR reduced the risk of AD, and patients with AD had a lower BMR. Because of a positive correlation with BMR, height and weight may have a protective effect on AD. The two metabolism-related diseases, hy/thy and T2D, had no causal relationship with AD.