Explore the genetic exposure to alopecia areata

Background Alopecia areata is an autoimmune hair loss disorder with an incompletely understood etiology. Although trace elements, serum metabolites, and inflammatory factors are implicated in the disease, the potential causal relationships between these factors and alopecia areata require further investigation. Methods This study employed Mendelian randomization (MR), utilizing data from genome‐wide association studies, to explore the causal relationships between 15 trace elements, 1400 serum metabolites, and 91 inflammatory factors and alopecia areata. The analysis was conducted using the inverse variance weighted (IVW) method complemented by various sensitivity analyses, including Cochran's Q test, MR‐Egger regression intercept test, MR‐PRESSO global test, and leave‐one‐out analysis, to assess the robustness of the results. Results MR analysis indicated a negative correlation between copper levels and the risk of developing alopecia areata (odds ratio = 0.86, 95% confidence interval: 0.75–0.99, p = 0.041). Additionally, causal relationships were identified between 15 serum metabolites and 6 inflammatory factors and the risk of alopecia areata (IVW, all p values