The Causal Effect of Vitamin D Binding Protein (DBP) Levels on Calcemic and Cardiometabolic Diseases: A Mendelian Randomization Study

Background

Observational studies have shown that vitamin D binding protein (DBP) levels, a key determinant of 25-hydroxy-vitamin D (25OHD) levels, and 25OHD levels themselves both associate with risk of disease. If 25OHD levels have a causal influence on disease, and DBP lies in this causal pathway, then DBP levels should likewise be causally associated with disease. We undertook a Mendelian randomization study to determine whether DBP levels have causal effects on common calcemic and cardiometabolic disease.

Methods and Findings

We measured DBP and 25OHD levels in 2,254 individuals, followed for up to 10 y, in the Canadian Multicentre Osteoporosis Study (CaMos). Using the single nucleotide polymorphism rs2282679 as an instrumental variable, we applied Mendelian randomization methods to determine the causal effect of DBP on calcemic (osteoporosis and hyperparathyroidism) and cardiometabolic diseases (hypertension, type 2 diabetes, coronary artery disease, and stroke) and related traits, first in CaMos and then in large-scale genome-wide association study consortia. The effect allele was associated with an age- and sex-adjusted decrease in DBP level of 27.4 mg/l (95% CI 24.7, 30.0; n = 2,254). DBP had a strong observational and causal association with 25OHD levels (p = 3.2×10⁻¹⁹). While DBP levels were observationally associated with calcium and body mass index (BMI), these associations were not supported by causal analyses. Despite well-powered sample sizes from consortia, there were no associations of rs2282679 with any other traits and diseases: fasting glucose (0.00 mmol/l 95% CI −0.01, 0.01]; p = 1.00; n = 46,186); fasting insulin (0.01 pmol/l 95% CI −0.00, 0.01,]; p = 0.22; n = 46,186); BMI (0.00 kg/m² 95% CI −0.01, 0.01]; p = 0.80; n = 127,587); bone mineral density (0.01 g/cm² 95% CI −0.01, 0.03]; p = 0.36; n = 32,961); mean arterial pressure (−0.06 mm Hg 95% CI −0.19, 0.07]); p = 0.36; n = 28,775); ischemic stroke (odds ratio OR] = 1.00 95% CI 0.97, 1.04]; p = 0.92; n = 12,389/62,004 cases/controls); coronary artery disease (OR = 1.02 95% CI 0.99, 1.05]; p = 0.31; n = 22,233/64,762); or type 2 diabetes (OR = 1.01 95% CI 0.97, 1.05]; p = 0.76; n = 9,580/53,810).

Conclusions

DBP has no demonstrable causal effect on any of the diseases or traits investigated here, except 25OHD levels. It remains to be determined whether 25OHD has a causal effect on these outcomes independent of DBP. Please see later in the article for the Editors'' Summary