Transcriptomics, lifestyle, and autoimmune thyroiditis: an integrated association study.

Authors

Chun-Hu Li, Yu-Hang Liu, Zong-Yu Yue, Xiang-Kun Zeng, Ze-Xu Zhang, Xuan Li, Yi-Hang Liu, Ya-Hui Li, Tong Zhao, Peng Liu

Published in

Frontiers in immunology. Volume 17. Pages 1853447. Epub Jun 24, 2026.

Abstract

Autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT) ranks among the most common autoimmune disorders globally. Adherence to a healthy lifestyle may substantially offset the risk conferred by a high transcriptomic risk profile.
Immune-related differentially expressed genes (IRDEGs) were first identified based on data from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database (N_AIT=13, N_non-AIT=10) and a cross-sectional dataset from Anhui Province (N_AIT=5, N_non-AIT=5). Feature selection was then performed using LASSO regression and random forest algorithms to pinpoint key IRDEGs. These key genes were subsequently validated in a large, multi-province Chinese cross-sectional dataset (N = 902). Within this validation dataset, an RNA sequencing-based risk score (RSR score) was developed, and lifestyle factors were evaluated via structured questionnaires. The associations between the RSR score, lifestyle, and AIT were examined using multivariable logistic regression.
Through a multi-stage screening and validation process, three key genes were identified: IFI16, CASP4, and BKT. The study included 902 participants with a mean age of 39.17 ± 10.70 years, 56.32% of whom were female. Among them, 126 cases of AIT were identified (13.97%). The prevalence of AIT showed significant differences across strata of gender, lifestyle, and the RSR score. Logistic regression identified a high RSR score (OR = 2.58, 95% CI: 1.72-3.89), along with intermediate (OR = 2.38, 95% CI: 1.18-4.79) and unfavorable (OR = 2.84, 95% CI: 1.43-5.62) lifestyles, as significant risk factors for AIT. The robustness of these associations was confirmed in stratified analyses by age and gender.
This study suggests independent and interactive roles of transcriptomic risk and lifestyle in AIT etiology. Adherence to a healthy lifestyle may substantially offset the risk conferred by high transcriptomic susceptibility.

PMID:
42421942
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 09 Jul 2026.

Read full publication at:
Please sign in to see all details.

Stats

1-terrible, 9-excellent. How would you rate this publication? Sign in in to submit your rating.

Post a comment

You need to be signed in to post comments. You can sign in here.

Comments

There are no comments yet.