Mendelian Randomization — the Key to Understanding Aspects of Parkinson's Disease Causation?

Parkinson's disease has multiple determinants and is associated with a wide range of exposures that appear to modify risk in traditional observational studies, including numerous lifestyle and environmental factors. Across other fields of medicine, Mendelian randomization has emerged as a powerful method to examine whether associations between exposures and disease outcomes are causal. Here we discuss the concept of Mendelian randomization, its potential relevance to Parkinson's disease, and suggest avenues through which the method could be employed to further understanding of the causal basis of Parkinson's disease. © 2015 The Authors. Movement Disorders published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.