Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37961927›Full record

ArticleEuropean journal of neurology2024

Exploring causal association between circulating inflammatory cytokines and functional outcomes following ischemic stroke: A bidirectional Mendelian randomization study.

Huacong Liu, Zhaoxing Liu, Yumeng Huang, Qian Ding, Zhenyi Lai, Xiaowen Cai, Shengtao Huang, Lianjun Yin, Xiaoyan Zheng, Yong Huang and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in European journal of neurology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Inflammatory cytokines are associated with stroke and risk factors of cerebrovascular diseases: a Mendelian randomization study.Mammalian genome : official journal of the International Mammalian Genome Society · 2025
    Pooled it
  2. Leveraging Mendelian randomization to inform drug discovery and development for ischemic stroke.Journal of cerebral blood flow and metabolism : official journal of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism · 2026
    Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Huacong LiuSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.ORCID 0000-0002-2673-1827
Zhaoxing LiuSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Yumeng HuangSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Qian DingThe Third Affiliated Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Zhenyi LaiSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Xiaowen CaiSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Shengtao HuangSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Lianjun YinDepartment of Rehabilitation Medicine, Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Xiaoyan ZhengSchool of Rehabilitation Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Yong HuangSchool of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
Junqi ChenDepartment of Rehabilitation Medicine, Third Affiliated Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.

Funding

Annual Guangdong Provincial Medical Research C2023102National Natural Science Foundation of China k120290048Traditional Chinese Medicine Bureau of Guangdong Province 20221262
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesPrevious observational studies have indicated correlations between various inflammatory cytokines and functional outcomes following ischemic stroke (IS); however, the causality remains unclear. We aimed to further evaluate the causal association between 41 circulating inflammatory cytokines and functional outcomes following IS.

methodsTwo-sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was used in this study. The genetic variation of 41 circulating inflammatory cytokines were derived from genome-wide association study (GWAS) data of European ancestry (n = 8293). The corresponding genetic association of functional outcomes following IS were derived from European ancestry GWAS data (n = 6021).

resultsInverse variance weighted (IVW) analysis showed that genetically predicted increased levels of regulation and activation in normal T-cell expression and secretion factor (RANTES/CCL5) and eosinophilic chemotactic factor (EOTAXIN/CCL11) were positively correlated with the increased adverse functional outcomes (modified Rankin Scale [mRS≥3] following IS (OR: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.002-1.96, p = 0.049; OR: 1.33, 95% CI: 1.15-1.54, p = 0.0001). Interleukin 18 (IL-18) level might be the downstream consequence of adverse functional outcomes following IS (β: -0.09, p = 0.039). Other inflammatory cytokines and functional outcomes following IS did not appear to be causally related.

conclusionsThis study suggests a causality between inflammation and adverse functional outcomes following IS. RANTES (CCL5) and EOTAXIN (CCL11) may be the upstream factors of adverse functional outcomes following IS, while IL-18 may be the downstream effect of adverse functional outcomes following IS. Whether these cytokines can be used to predict or improve adverse functional outcomes after IS requires further researches.

Indexed as

CytokinesIschemic StrokeGenome-Wide Association StudyHumansInterleukin-18Mendelian Randomization AnalysisCytokinesInterleukin-18functional outcomesGWASinflammatory cytokinesischemic strokeMendelian randomization

Identifiers

PMID37961927
PMCPMC11235604

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.