Genetically Predicted 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Levels on Hypothyroidism: A Two-Sample Mendelian Randomization.
Biomed Res Int 2026; 2026(1):e8086558.

Abstract

BACKGROUND

Alterations in levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D have been associated with the risk of thyroid disease. This study uses Mendelian randomization (MR) to infer the possible causal association of 25-hydroxyvitamin D with hypothyroidism.

METHODS

We performed two-sample MR using the summary statistics data from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) from populations with European ancestry to infer the causality of genetically controlled levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D on the risk of hypothyroidism, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, and biochemical parameters of thyroid diseases. The inverse-variance-weighted (IVW) method was used as the primary method to calculate the combined effect of all SNPs. Other methods were adopted to evaluate the stability and reliability of the results. Comprehensive sensitivity analyses were conducted to ensure that none of the MR analysis's primary assumptions were violated.

RESULTS

The results of the IVW analysis revealed a significant causal association between higher levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D and lower risk of hypothyroidism (beta = -0.197, 95% CI [-0.301, -0.093]; SE = 0.053, Pbeta = 2.256 × 10-4) as well as increased levels of free T4 (beta = 0.204, 95% CI [0.094, 0.305]; SE = 0.056, Pbeta = 3.0506 × 10-4). On the other hand, no significant causality was determined for higher levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D in association with Hashimoto's thyroiditis (beta = -0.047, 95% CI [-0.245, 0.151], p = 0.641) and TSH levels (IVW method: beta = -0.030, SE = 0.034, 95% CI [-0.097, 0.038]; P = 0.392).

CONCLUSION

The results of this two-sample MR study provide evidence supporting the potential of 25-hydroxyvitamin D supplementation in reducing the risk of hypothyroidism.

Authors+Show Affiliations

Akbarzadeh M0000-0002-8048-744XCellular and Molecular Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, sbmu.ac.ir.
Fateh ST0009-0002-8903-2713School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, tums.ac.ir.
Moeinafshar A0000-0001-8944-4123School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, tums.ac.ir.
Habibi D0000-0003-4080-1809Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Health Research Institute, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran, mubabol.ac.ir.
Ghanooni AH0000-0001-9666-4378Department of Endocrinology, School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, iums.ac.ir.
Saeidian AH0000-0003-3512-0654Department of Surgery, Rasool-E Akram Hospital, School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, iums.ac.ir.
Riahi P0000-0002-6163-1071Cellular and Molecular Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, sbmu.ac.ir.
Zarkesh M0000-0002-8519-4865Cellular and Molecular Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, sbmu.ac.ir.
Lanjanian H0000-0003-4284-6592Cellular and Molecular Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, sbmu.ac.ir.
Jahangiri M0000-0001-9119-7571Department of Biostatistics, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran, modares.ac.ir.
Moazzam-Jazi M0000-0003-3603-9284Cellular and Molecular Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, sbmu.ac.ir.
Teymoori F0000-0002-2382-5967Nutrition and Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, sbmu.ac.ir.
Azizi F0000-0002-6470-2517Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, sbmu.ac.ir.
Hedayati M0000-0001-5816-775XCellular and Molecular Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, sbmu.ac.ir.
Daneshpour MS0000-0003-1525-8672Cellular and Molecular Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Molecular Biology, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, sbmu.ac.ir.

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article

Language

eng

PubMed ID

42253156