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. 2026 Feb;40(2):238-249.
doi: 10.1111/jdv.70045. Epub 2025 Sep 16.

Lifestyle-associated serum metabolites profiling in relation to risk of late-onset psoriasis

Xin Zhou  1   2   3   4   5   6 , Yutong Wang  1 , Zhaojun Pan  7 , Qinyu Chang  2   3   4   5 , Yiqun Zhu  2   3   4   5 , Guowei Zhou  1 , Guanxiong Zhang  8   9 , Yan Zhang  2   3   4   5 , Xiang Chen  1   6   8   9 , Hong Liu  1   6   8   9
Affiliations

Lifestyle-associated serum metabolites profiling in relation to risk of late-onset psoriasis

Xin Zhou et al. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2026 Feb.

Abstract

Background: Although healthy lifestyle behaviours are associated with a lower risk of psoriasis, the underlying metabolic mechanisms remain unclear.

Objectives: To investigate lifestyle-related serum metabolites associated with late-onset psoriasis risk and evaluate their predictive potential.

Methods: We analysed 190,692 participants (aged 38-73) from UK Biobank with complete data on lifestyle and serum metabolites. Healthy lifestyle was assessed based on diet, exercise, smoking and BMI. The association between lifestyle-related metabolites and late-onset psoriasis risk was identified by a sequential analytic strategy that combined the Cox regression and elastic net regression model. A machine learning model was developed to predict psoriasis risk using clinical features, polygenic risk scores (PRS) and critical metabolites.

Results: During a median of 14.6 years of follow-up, 2114 incident late-onset psoriasis cases were documented among 186,812 participants. Ideal lifestyle factors were significantly associated with reduced disease burden, with BMI showing the highest population attributable fractions (PAF) of 24.1%. We identified 11 of 134 lifestyle-related metabolites that were significantly associated with the risk of late-onset psoriasis. These predominantly mapped to lipid and glucose metabolism pathways, comprising seven lipoprotein subclasses, two ketones, unsaturation degree and phenylalanine. The addition of these metabolites into clinical characteristics and PRS could significantly improve the performance of predicting the risk of late-onset psoriasis (AUC 0.860, 95% CI 0.857-0.863).

Conclusions: Multiple lifestyle-related serum metabolites are associated with the incidence of late-onset psoriasis, and their integration with traditional clinical features and genetic susceptibility shows promise in enhancing the predictive accuracy of late-onset psoriasis using a machine learning-based model.

Keywords: lifestyle; machine learning; metabolomics; psoriasis.

Plain language summary

WHAT IS THE DISEASE?: Psoriasis is a long‐lasting skin condition caused by problems with the immune system. It leads to red, scaly patches on the skin. WHERE WAS THE STUDY DONE?: The research was based in Changsha, China, using health data from the UK Biobank. WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE?: The study wanted to find out whether certain substances in the blood (called metabolites), which are linked to lifestyle habits like diet or exercise, could help predict the chance of developing late‐onset psoriasis (psoriasis that starts after age 40). HOW WAS THE STUDY DONE?: Researchers looked at data from nearly 191,000 adults aged 38–73 years. They studied the relationship between blood metabolites, lifestyle factors and the risk of developing psoriasis later in life. They also built computer models to test whether these factors could help predict psoriasis risk. WHAT DID THE STUDY FIND?: Several blood metabolites connected to lifestyle were linked with psoriasis risk. Combining this information with clinical and genetic data improved the accuracy of predicting who might develop psoriasis. WHAT DO THESE RESULTS MEAN?: The findings highlight that healthy lifestyle choices and regular monitoring of blood health may lower the risk of psoriasis later in life.

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