Circulating inflammatory proteins may be potential drug targets for Idiopathic Membranous Nephropathy: proteome-wide Mendelian Randomization and colocalization analysis

Background Idiopathic membranous nephropathy (IMN) is a predominant cause of nephrotic syndrome among adults. Existing drugs are ineffective in about one-third of IMN patients, and the high recurrence rate makes them far from satisfactory. Therefore, it is imperative to find new therapeutic targets for membranous nephropathy. Circulating inflammatory proteins in plasma have been found to be related to the disease and prognosis of IMN patients, yet the causal relationship between them still remains unclear. A better understanding of the inflammatory response of IMN can help us better understand the occurrence of IMN, as well as a good way to find new therapeutic targets. In this study, we aim to use proteome-wide Mendelian Randomization and colocalization analysis to identify plasma inflammatory proteins as potential therapeutic targets for IMN.