Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41173832›Full record

ArticleTranslational psychiatry2025

Immunometabolic and brain structural alterations mediate increased risk of brain diseases in rheumatoid arthritis patients.

Siyu He, Zeyu Li, Feng Zeng, Yifei Jin, Wei Zhang, Xinyi Chen, Zequn Zhang, Wei Cheng, Linbo Wang, Wenze Xiao and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Translational psychiatry, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Spleen-associated macrophage alterations and embryo viability in a murine model of recurrent spontaneous abortion.Inflammation research : official journal of the European Histamine Research Society ... [et al.] · 2026
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Siyu He *Fudan University Affiliated Pudong Medical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Zeyu Li *Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Feng Zeng *Department of Neurosurgery, Changzheng Hospital, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, China.
Yifei Jin *Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0008-2817-2791
Wei ZhangInstitute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Xinyi ChenFudan University Affiliated Pudong Medical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Zequn ZhangFudan University Affiliated Pudong Medical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Wei ChengInstitute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1118-1743
Linbo WangInstitute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. linbowang@fudan.edu.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6982-103X
Wenze XiaoFudan University Affiliated Pudong Medical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. wenzexiao@fudan.edu.cn.
Qiyong MeiDepartment of Neurosurgery, Changzheng Hospital, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, China. meiqiyong@smmu.edu.cn.

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 82102199
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with an increased risk of brain diseases, yet the underlying biological mechanisms remain poorly understood. Using data from the UK Biobank, including blood-based biomarkers, brain imaging, and diagnostic records, we investigated the roles of immunometabolic and brain structure alterations in the link between RA and brain diseases. The effects of antirheumatic treatments were evaluated using Cox proportional hazards models. To ensure a clear temporal sequence, only individuals with RA diagnosed before baseline were included. The cohort comprised 2534 prevalent RA cases (mean age: 59.80 ± 6.99 years; 70.84% women), with a mean disease duration of 5.54 years (SD = 3.57). RA was significantly associated with depression (HR = 1.659 [95% CI: 1.444-1.905]), sleep disturbances (HR = 1.673 [1.379-2.029]), and dementia (HR = 1.466 [1.225-1.755]). Mediation analyses revealed that immunometabolic alterations (indirect effect = 0.0099, P < 0.001) and reduced white matter integrity (FA; indirect effect = 0.012, P = 0.002) mediated these associations. Notably, treatment with slow-acting antirheumatic drugs (SAARDs) was linked to a reduced risk of anxiety (P = 0.006). These findings indicate that immunometabolic alterations in RA may lead to a decrease in white matter integrity, thereby increasing susceptibility to brain diseases. They highlight the importance of managing systemic immunometabolic alterations to preserve brain health in RA patients.

Indexed as

Arthritis, RheumatoidBrainBrain DiseasesDementiaWhite MatterAgedAntirheumatic AgentsDepressionFemaleHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleMiddle AgedProportional Hazards ModelsRisk FactorsSleep Wake DisordersAntirheumatic Agents

Identifiers

PMID41173832
PMCPMC12578888

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.