Gut microbiota influence on lung cancer risk through blood metabolite mediation: from a comprehensive Mendelian randomization analysis and genetic analysis

BackgroundGut microbiota (GM) and metabolic alterations play pivotal roles in lung cancer (LC) development and host genetic variations are known to contribute to LC susceptibility by modulating the GM. However, the causal links among GM, metabolite, host genes, and LC remain to be fully delineated.MethodThrough bidirectional MR analyses, we examined the causal links between GM and LC, and utilized two-step mediation analysis to identify potential mediating blood metabolite. We employed diverse MR methods, including inverse-variance-weighted (IVW), weighted median, MR-Egger, weighted mode, and simple mode, to ensure a robust examination of the data. MR-Egger intercept test, Radial MR, MR-PRESSO, Cochran Q test and Leave-one-out (LOO) analysis were used for sensitivity analyses. Analyses were adjusted for smoking, alcohol intake frequency and air pollution. Linkage disequilibrium score regression and Steiger test were used to probe genetic causality. The study also explored the association between specific host genes and the abundance of gut microbes in LC patients.ResultsThe presence of Bacteroides clarus was associated with an increased risk of LC (odds ratio [OR] = 1.07, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.03–1.11, p = 0.012), whereas the Eubacteriaceae showed a protective effect (OR = 0.82, 95% CI: 0.75–0.89, p = 0.001). These findings remained robust after False Discovery Rate (FDR) correction. Our mediator screening identified 13 blood metabolites that significantly influence LC risk after FDR correction, underscoring cystine and propionylcarnitine in reducing LC risk, while linking specific lipids and hydroxy acids to an increased risk. Our two-step mediation analysis demonstrated that the association between the bacterial pathway of synthesis of guanosine ribonucleotides and LC was mediated by Fructosyllysine, with mediated proportions of 11.38% (p = 0.037). LDSC analysis confirmed the robustness of these associations. Our study unveiled significant host genes ROBO2 may influence the abundance of pathogenic gut microbes in LC patients. Metabolic pathway analysis revealed glutathione metabolism and glutamate metabolism are the pathways most enriched with significant metabolites related to LC.ConclusionThese findings underscore the importance of GM in the development of LC, with metabolites partly mediating this effect, and provide dietary and lifestyle recommendations for high-risk lung cancer populations.