| Application: | 9142, Using Mendelian Randomisation to investigate the causal effects of caffeine and smoking on health outcomes. |
| Title: | The effect of body mass index on smoking behaviour and nicotine metabolism: a Mendelian randomization study |
| Size: | 1.9 MB |
| Archived: | 27 Nov 2020 |
| Stability: | Complete |
| Personal: | No individual-level data |
Return 2895
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Notes
Given clear evidence that smoking lowers weight, it is possible that individuals with higher body mass index (BMI) smoke in order to lose or maintain their weight. We used genetic variants associated with body mass index in a Mendelian Randomisation analysis to investigate whether BMI causes differences in smoking behaviour. We looked at both self-reported smoking behaviour in UK Biobank at more objective measures of smoking behaviour, DNA methylation and cotinine in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children and at nicotine metabolism. Our results indicate that higher BMI increases lifetime smoking, smoking heaviness, increases risk of starting smoking and affects smoking related DNA methylation. We found no clear evidence for an effect of BMI on cotinine. It is likely that there is a causal effect of BMI on smoking, but the relationship is likely to be complex due to opposing effects on behaviour and metabolism.Application 9142
Using Mendelian Randomisation to investigate the causal effects of caffeine and smoking on health outcomes.
This research aims to investigate whether observed associations between caffeine and smoking and health outcomes are causal. We will use Mendelian randomisation methods, using genetic variants associated with caffeine consumption and smoking as proxies for measured exposures. We will investigate the role of caffeine consumption and smoking in the following outcome measures: cardiovascular and metabolic disease (including diagnoses of coronary heart disease, stroke and diabetes and intermediate traits such as glucose, lipids and blood pressure), mental health outcomes (including diagnoses of depression, anxiety, psychosis and dementia), cognitive function, lung function, asthma and allergy, kidney function, liver function and thyroid function. The proposed research will help to further understanding of the role of caffeine consumption and smoking in disease outcomes, which will inform prevention and treatment strategies. Knowledge of causal effects of caffeine will help to inform public health messages regarding caffeine intake. Knowledge of the causal effects of smoking will be important for strategies for reducing the harmful effects of smoking in those unable to quit. This work may also contribute to the development of novel treatments by identifying pathways through which caffeine intake and smoking contribute to disease. We will use Mendelian randomisation methods to look at the associations of genetic variants that are associated with caffeine consumption and smoking behaviour with health outcomes of interest. Due to the way that genes are passed from parents to offspring, which is essentially random, genetic variants that are associated with caffeine intake or smoking behaviour will not be associated with other lifestyle factors (unlike reported caffeine consumption and smoking). Additionally, health outcomes cannot affect the genes that an individual is born with so we do not need to worry about the possibility of reverse causality. This work will be undertaken in the full cohort, N?500,000.
| Lead investigator: | Dr Amy Taylor |
| Lead institution: | University of Bristol |
8 related Returns
| Return ID | App ID | Description | Archive Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2526 | 9142 | Associations of coffee genetic risk scores with consumption of coffee, tea and other beverages in the UK Biobank | 23 Oct 2020 |
| 2822 | 9142 | Cigarette smoking and personality: interrogating causality using Mendelian randomisation | 17 Nov 2020 |
| 2820 | 9142 | Does coffee consumption impact on heaviness of smoking? | 17 Nov 2020 |
| 2821 | 9142 | Evidence for Genetic Correlations and Bidirectional, Causal Effects Between Smoking and Sleep Behaviors | 17 Nov 2020 |
| 2825 | 9142 | Heavier smoking increases coffee consumption: findings from a Mendelian randomization analysis | 17 Nov 2020 |
| 2824 | 9142 | Investigating the causal effect of smoking on hay fever and asthma: a Mendelian randomization metaanalysis in the CARTA consortium | 17 Nov 2020 |
| 2826 | 9142 | Is smoking heaviness causally associated with alcohol use? A Mendelian randomization study in four European cohorts | 17 Nov 2020 |
| 2823 | 9142 | The effect of smoking intensity on all-cause and cause-specific mortality - a Mendelian randomization analysis | 17 Nov 2020 |
1 Publication
| Pub ID | Title | Author(s) | Year | Journal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2896 | The effect of body mass index on smoking behaviour and nicotine metabolism: a Mendelian randomization study | Amy E Taylor (+8) | 2018 | Human Molecular Genetics |
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