Inactive Matrix Gla-Protein and Arterial Stiffness in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

Background: Large artery stiffness is increased in diabetes mellitus and causes an excessive pulsatile load to the heart and to the microvasculature. The identification of pathways related to arterial stiffness may provide novel therapeutic targets to ameliorate arterial stiffness in diabetes. Matrix Gla-Protein (MGP) is an inhibitor of vascular calcification.

Vitamin-K-Dependent Protection of the Renal Microvasculature: Histopathological Studies in Normal and Diseased Kidneys.

Vitamin-K-dependent carboxylation of matrix Gla protein (MGP) protects the macrocirculation against calcification. We recently reported in a multiethnic population study that the estimated glomerular filtration rate, a microvascular trait, decreased and the risk of chronic kidney disease increased with higher circulating levels of inactive dephospho-uncarboxylated MGP, a marker of vitamin K deficiency. These findings highlighted the possibility that vitamin K might have a beneficial effect on the renal microcirculation.

Vitamin K Dependent Protection of Renal Function in Multi-ethnic Population Studies.

Background: Following activation by vitamin K (VK), matrix Gla protein (MGP) inhibits arterial calcification, but its role in preserving renal function remains unknown.

Methods: In 1166 white Flemish (mean age, 38.2 years) and 714 South Africans (49.

The abnormal status of uncarboxylated matrix Gla protein species represents an additional mortality risk in heart failure patients with vascular disease.

Background: Matrix Gla protein (MGP) is a natural inhibitor of tissue calcification. In a previous study, we observed the positive association between abnormal concentrations of uncarboxylated MGP species and increased mortality risk in stable vascular patients. We explore whether co-incidence of abnormal status of uncarboxylated MPG and heart failure (HF) affects the mortality risk.

Inactive Matrix Gla-Protein Is Associated With Arterial Stiffness in an Adult Population-Based Study.

Increased pulse wave velocity (PWV) is a marker of aortic stiffness and an independent predictor of mortality. Matrix Gla-protein (MGP) is a vascular calcification inhibitor that needs vitamin K to be activated. Inactive MGP, known as desphospho-uncarboxylated MGP (dp-ucMGP), can be measured in plasma and has been associated with various cardiovascular markers, cardiovascular outcomes, and mortality.

Association Between Vitamin K and the Metabolic Syndrome: A 10-Year Follow-Up Study in Adults.

Context: The Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of metabolic abnormalities and is associated with increased risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Phylloquinone, menaquinones, and vitamin K status are associated with several components of MetS, but the association with MetS has hardly been studied to date.

Objective: This study aimed to examine whether the intake and/or status of vitamin K is associated with MetS and its components.

Menaquinone-7 supplementation improves arterial stiffness in healthy postmenopausal women. A double-blind randomised clinical trial.

Observational data suggest a link between menaquinone (MK, vitamin K2) intake and cardiovascular (CV) health. However, MK intervention trials with vascular endpoints are lacking. We investigated long-term effects of MK-7 (180 µg MenaQ7/day) supplementation on arterial stiffness in a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

The association between uncarboxylated matrix Gla protein and lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2.

Background: Lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2) is independently associated with cardiovascular risk, probably via inflammatory activity in sclerotic plaque. We speculated whether Lp-PLA2 has a role in the aetiology of vascular calcifications, estimated from circulating uncarboxylated matrix Gla protein (MGP) species and whether we could find a potential interaction of Lp-PLA2 and MGP in terms of mortality.

Materials And Methods: We examined 798 patients (mean age 65.

Vitamin K status and mortality after kidney transplantation: a cohort study.

Background: Vitamin K modulates calcification by activating calcification inhibitors such as matrix Gla protein (MGP). In kidney transplant recipients, vitamin K insufficiency is common, but implications for long-term outcomes are unclear.

Study Design: Single-center observational study with a longitudinal design.

Leptin modulates innate and adaptive immune cell recruitment after cigarette smoke exposure in mice.

Leptin, a pleiotropic type I cytokine, was recently demonstrated to be expressed by resident lung cells in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients and asymptomatic smokers. To elucidate the functional role of leptin in the onset of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, we tested leptin-deficient ob/ob mice (C57BL/6), leptin receptor-deficient db/db mice (C57BKS), and littermates in a model of cigarette smoke (CS)-induced pulmonary inflammation. Wild-type (WT) C57BL/6 mice were exposed for 4 or 24 wk to control air or CS.