Physical activity and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a Mendelian randomization study

Physical activity (PA) participation has been noted as a potential risk factor for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) for decades. However, current studies have been unable to pinpoint the exact relationship between them. Here, we used 2-sample Mendelian randomization (MR), a novel method to systematically investigate causal relationships between PA and ALS. Summary-level data for accelerometer-based and self-reported PA phenotypes were obtained from 2 large genome-wide association studies (GWASs; n = 91,105-377,234), and the ALS summary statistics were from a GWAS of 20,806 cases and 59,804 healthy participants. The present MR study affords no support for causality between 5 included activity habits and ALS. We conclude that PA in the general population is unlikely to affect ALS incidence. (C) 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Using Mendelian randomization, this study found no causal relationship between physical activity and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) incidence in the general population.