Published in:
Open Access 01-06-2020 | Alzheimer's Disease | Short Communication
Polyunsaturated fatty acids and risk of Alzheimer’s disease: a Mendelian randomization study
Published in: European Journal of Nutrition | Issue 4/2020
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Purpose
Observational studies have suggested that polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) may decrease Alzheimer’s disease (AD) risk. In the present study, we examined this hypothesis using a Mendelian randomization analysis.
Methods
We used summary statistics data for single-nucleotide polymorphisms associated with plasma levels of n-6 PUFAs (linoleic acid, arachidonic acid) and n-3 PUFAs (alpha-linolenic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, docosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid), and the corresponding data for AD from a genome-wide association meta-analysis of 63,926 individuals (21,982 diagnosed AD cases, 41,944 controls).
Results
None of the genetically predicted PUFAs was significantly associated with AD risk; odds ratios (95% confidence interval) per 1 SD increase in PUFA levels were 0.98 (0.93, 1.03) for linoleic acid, 1.01 (0.98, 1.05) for arachidonic acid, 0.96 (0.88, 1.06) for alpha-linolenic acid, 1.03 (0.93, 1.13) for eicosapentaenoic acid, 1.03 (0.97, 1.09) for docosapentaenoic acid, and 1.01 (0.81, 1.25) for docosahexaenoic acid.
Conclusions
This study did not support the hypothesis that PUFAs decrease AD risk.