Background: Intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) is caused by an imbalance between the catabolic and anabolic processes within intervertebral disc tissue. Several studies have suggested a potential association between cerebrospinal fluid metabolites (CFMs) and the development of IVDD. However, the existing evidence on the relationship between CFM and IVDD is limited and inconsistent. Methods: The data on 338 cerebrospinal fluid metabolites and intervertebral disc degeneration analyzed in this study were sourced from their respective genome-wide association studies (GWAS). MR analysis employed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) closely associated with disease as instrumental variables (IVs). The inverse variance weighted (IVW) method was employed as the primary statistical approach, complemented by MR-Egger, the Weighted median, Simple mode, and the Weighted mode for result validation. Comprehensive sensitivity analyses were performed to confirm the robustness of the results and assess for heterogeneity and horizontal pleiotropy. Results: Using the IVW method, this study revealed positive causal effects between 11 cerebrospinal fluid metabolites (CFMs) and intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD), indicating that elevated levels of these 11 CFMs increase the risk of IVDD. Conversely, negative causal effects were identified for 6 CFMs, suggesting that higher levels of these CFMs have a protective effect against IVDD. Reverse MR analysis indicated 1 positive and 18 negative causal relationships between IVDD and CFMs. Conclusions: Our bidirectional Mendelian analysis provides compelling evidence of a causal relationship between CFMs and IVDD. These findings enhance our understanding of IVDD pathogenesis and highlight the potential for preventive therapies targeting CFMs. Further research is needed to clarify the mechanisms of these CFMs on IVDD.
Keywords: causal inference; cerebrospinal fluid metabolites; intervertebral disc degeneration; mendelian randomization.