Bilirubin and risk of ischemic heart disease in Korea: a two-sample Mendelian randomization study
- Author:
Christina JEON
1
;
Ji Young LEE
;
Sun Ju LEE
;
Keum Ji JUNG
;
Heejin KIMM
;
Sun Ha JEE
Author Information
- Publication Type:Original Article
- From:Epidemiology and Health 2019;41():e2019034-
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
OBJECTIVES:Bilirubin is an endogenous antioxidant that protects cells against oxidative stress. Increased plasma levels of bilirubin have been associated with a reduced risk of ischemic heart disease (IHD) in previous studies. Nonetheless, whether those associations reflect a true protective effect of bilirubin on IHD, rather than confounding or reverse causation, remains unknown. Therefore, we applied two-sample Mendelian randomization to evaluate the causal association between bilirubin levels and IHD risk in a Korean population.
METHODS:A total of 5 genetic variants—TRPM8 (rs10490012), USP40 (rs12993249), ATG16L1 (rs2119503), SLCO1B1 (rs4149014), and SLCO1B3 (rs73233620)—were selected as genetic instruments for serum bilirubin levels using a community-based cohort, the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study, comprising 33,598 subjects. We then evaluated their impact on IHD using the Korean Cancer Prevention Study-II cohort.
RESULTS:Among the 5 instrumental variables that showed significant associations with serum bilirubin levels, rs12993249 (USP40) showed the most significant association (p<2.36×10
