Progression of aortic calcification among Japanese in Japan and white and Japanese Americans: a prospective cohort study.

Aims: Continued low mortality from coronary heart disease in Japan, despite deleterious changes in traditional risk factors, remains unexplained. Since aortic calcification (AC) was an early predictor of cardiovascular mortality, we compared the progression and incidence of AC between Japanese in Japan, white Americans, and third-generation Japanese Americans in the ERA JUMP cohort. We examined whether higher blood levels of marine-derived n-3 fatty acids (FAs) in Japanese than in Americans accounted for the difference.

Circulating plasma phospholipid fatty acid levels as a biomarker of habitual dietary fat intake: The INTERMAP/INTERLIPID Study.

Background: Accurate assessment of fat intake is essential to examine relationships between diet and disease risk. However, estimating individual intakes of fat quantity by dietary assessment is difficult.

Objective: We assessed the association of plasma phospholipid fatty acid levels with dietary intake of fatty acids in the INTERMAP/INTERLIPID study, conducted with a standardized protocol.

Adiposity and Smoking Mediate the Relationship Between Depression History and Inflammation Among Young Adults.

Background: Depression is associated with inflammation, but the mechanisms underlying this association are unclear. We examined adiposity and smoking as potential pathways through which childhood depression may lead to an elevated inflammatory status among young adults.

Methods: The sample included 294 subjects with histories of depression (probands), 270 never-depressed siblings of probands (high-risk siblings), and 169 controls.

Childhood-onset depression and arterial stiffness in young adulthood.

Objectives: The literature on childhood-onset depression and future compromised vascular function is suggestive but limited. The objective of this study was to determine if arterial stiffness, a predictor of future cardiovascular disease (CVD), measured in young adulthood, is associated with childhood-onset depression.

Methods: Cardiometabolic risk factors and pulse wave velocity (PWV), a measure of arterial stiffness, were cross-sectionally assessed in young adults with a history of childhood-onset depression (clinical diagnosis of major depressive episode or dysthymic disorder; N = 294 probands; initially recruited via child mental health facilities across Hungary; mean age of first depressive episode = 10.

Maternal Serum Antioxidants in Mid Pregnancy and Risk of Preterm Delivery and Small for Gestational Age Birth: Results from a Prospective Pregnancy Cohort.

Preterm delivery (PTD) and poor fetal growth are major contributors to neonatal mortality and morbidity that can extend from birth onward. Although overt maternal nutrient deficiencies are associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, such deficiencies are rare in developed countries. However, some evidence suggests that even within the normal range, higher levels of antioxidant nutrients are protective against adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Lipoprotein particles and coronary artery calcium in middle-aged US-White and Japanese men.

Objective: This cross-sectional study examined whether contrasting distributions of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-measured lipoproteins contribute to differences in the prevalence of subclinical atherosclerosis measured using coronary artery calcium (CAC) between the two groups of middle-aged males: the US-residing Caucasian (US-White) and Japan-residing Japanese (Japanese).

Methods: In a population-based study of 570 randomly selected asymptomatic men aged 40-49 years (270 US-White and 300 Japanese), we examined the relationship between race/ethnicity, NMR-measured lipoproteins and CAC (measured by Electron Beam CT and quantified using the Agatston method) using multivariable robust Poisson regression adjusting for traditional and novel risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD).

Results: The US-White compared with the Japanese had significantly different NMR-measured lipoprotein particle distributions.

Association of High-Sensitivity Troponin with Cardiac CT Angiography Evidence of Myocardial and Coronary Disease in a Primary Prevention Cohort of Men: Results from MACS.

Background: High-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTn) elevations are associated with incident cardiovascular disease events in primary prevention samples. However, the mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear.

Methods: We studied 458 men without known cardiovascular disease who participated in the cardiovascular disease substudy of the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study and had cardiac CT angiography.

The haptoglobin 2-2 genotype is associated with cardiac autonomic neuropathy in type 1 diabetes: the RETRO HDLc study.

Aim: The haptoglobin (Hp) 2-2 genotype has been shown to increase the risk of coronary artery disease, kidney dysfunction and mortality from cardiovascular and renal causes in type 1 diabetes (T1D). Similar associations, however, have not been observed in those without diabetes. As cardiac autonomic neuropathy (CAN) is a cardiovascular disease risk factor, we assessed the presence of an association between the Hp 2-2 genotype and CAN.

Serum long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and aortic calcification in middle-aged men: The population-based cross-sectional ERA-JUMP study.

Background And Aim: Few studies have examined the association of long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCn-3PUFAs) with the measures of atherosclerosis in the general population. This study aimed to examine the relationship of total LCn-3PUFAs, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) with aortic calcification.

Methods And Results: In a multiethnic population-based cross-sectional study of 998 asymptomatic men aged 40-49 years (300 US-White, 101 US-Black, 287 Japanese American, and 310 Japanese in Japan), we examined the relationship of serum LCn-3PUFAs to aortic calcification (measured by electron-beam computed tomography and quantified using the Agatston method) using Tobit regression and ordinal logistic regression after adjusting for potential confounders.

Comparison of carotid plaque burden among healthy middle-aged men living in the US, Japan, and South Korea.

Background: Carotid plaque has emerged as a marker of coronary heart disease (CHD) risk. Comparison of carotid plaque burden between different race/ethnic groups may provide a relative estimate of their future CHD risk.

Methods: We conducted a population-based study among apparently healthy middle-aged men aged 40-49 years (ERA JUMP study (n = 924)) and recruited 310 Whites in Pittsburgh, US, 313 Japanese in Otsu, Japan, and 301 Koreans in Ansan, South Korea.

Data on alcohol consumption and coronary artery calcification among asymptomatic middle-aged men for the ERA-JUMP study.

Data presented in this article are supplementary data to our primary article 'Association of Alcohol Consumption and Aortic Calcification in Healthy Men Aged 40-49 Years for the ERA JUMP Study' [1]. In this article, we have presented supplementary tables showing the independent association of alcohol consumption with coronary artery calcification using Tobit conditional regression and ordinal logistic regression.

Is Magnetic Resonance Imaging Detection of Kidney Iron Deposition Increased in Haptoglobin 2-2 Genotype Carriers with Type 1 Diabetes?

Haptoglobin's (Hp) main role is to bind free hemoglobin (Hb), reducing its oxidative potential. The Hp-Hb complex formed is cleared from the circulation by macrophage receptor CD163. In diabetes, impaired Hp 2-2-Hb CD163 clearance and abnormal glomerular permeability allow the large Hp 2-2-Hb complex to cross the barrier, where its redox active iron leads to cellular toxicity.

Significant inverse association of equol-producer status with coronary artery calcification but not dietary isoflavones in healthy Japanese men.

Equol, a metabolite of the dietary isoflavone daidzein, is produced by the action of gut bacteria in some individuals who are termed as equol-producers. It is proposed to have stronger atheroprotective properties than dietary isoflavones. We examined a cross-sectional association of dietary isoflavones and equol-producer status with coronary artery calcification (CAC), a biomarker of coronary atherosclerosis, among men in Japan.

Increased Aortic Calcification Is Associated With Arterial Stiffness Progression in Multiethnic Middle-Aged Men.

Arterial stiffness is established as an independent predictor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The objective was to prospectively evaluate association of aortic calcification burden with progression of arterial stiffness in population-based samples of healthy middle-aged men from ERA JUMP cohort (Electron-Beam Computed Tomography and Risk Factor Assessment in Japanese and US Men in the Post-World War II Birth Cohort). Men (n=635) aged 40 to 49 years (207 white American, 45 black American, 142 Japanese American, and 241 Japanese in Japan) were examined at baseline and 4 to 7 years later.

A Significant Positive Association of Vitamin D Deficiency with Coronary Artery Calcification among Middle-aged Men: For the ERA JUMP Study.

Objective: Although a significant positive association of vitamin D deficiency with coronary heart disease has been demonstrated in cross-sectional as well as prospective studies, only a few studies have examined the association of vitamin D deficiency with subclinical atherosclerosis. We examined whether vitamin D deficiency is associated with subclinical atherosclerosis, as measured by coronary artery calcification (CAC) in asymptomatic adults.

Methods: In a population-based cross-sectional study, 195 men aged 40 to 49 years without cardiovascular disease were randomly selected (98 Caucasian and 97 Japanese American men).

The role of initial and longitudinal change in blood pressure on progression of arterial stiffness among multiethnic middle-aged men.

Objective: A few studies have examined the longitudinal association of blood pressure (BP) with arterial stiffness progression, and the results were inconsistent. The objective of this study was to investigate the roles of initial BP and its longitudinal change on the progression of arterial stiffness measured using brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV).

Method: Study participants (n = 656) were from population-based samples of healthy men aged 40-49 years at baseline (213 White Americans, 47 African-Americans, 152 Japanese Americans and 244 Japanese in Japan).

The impact of equol-producing status in modifying the effect of soya isoflavones on risk factors for CHD: a systematic review of randomised controlled trials.

Recent studies suggest that the ability to produce equol, a metabolite of the soya isoflavone daidzein, is beneficial to coronary health. Equol, generated by bacterial action on isoflavones in the human gut, is biologically more potent than dietary sources of isoflavones. Not all humans are equol producers.

Association of Lipopolysaccharide-Binding Protein With Aging-Related Adiposity Change and Prediabetes Among African Ancestry Men.

Objective: Cross-sectional studies suggest that lipopolysaccharide-binding protein (LBP) may be associated with obesity and metabolic disorders. However, prospective studies examining LBP are lacking. This prospective study investigated the association between LBP and metabolic abnormalities in 580 African ancestry men (mean age, 59.

The association between maternal antioxidant levels in midpregnancy and preeclampsia.

Objective: We sought to determine whether midpregnancy antioxidant levels are associated with preeclampsia, overall and by timing of onset.

Study Design: We carried out a case-control study, nested within a cohort of 5337 pregnant women in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Blood samples obtained at 24-26 weeks were assayed for nonenzymatic antioxidant levels among cases of preeclampsia (n = 111) and unaffected controls (n = 441).

Does the Concentration of Oxidative and Inflammatory Biomarkers Differ by Haptoglobin Genotype in Type 1 Diabetes?

The haptoglobin (Hp) 2 allele directly predicts coronary artery disease in type 1 diabetes, potentially due to its decreased antioxidative/anti-inflammatory properties. We measured the concentrations of oxidative/inflammatory biomarkers (urinary 15-isoprostane F(2t) [IsoP], α- and γ-tocopherol, tumor necrosis factor α [TNF-α], high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [hsCRP], white blood cell [WBC] count, fibrinogen, and adiponectin) thrice during 20 years of follow-up among 454 individuals with childhood-onset type 1 diabetes (mean baseline age, 28 years and diabetes duration, 19 years). Differences in biomarkers by Hp were assessed both at baseline (i.

Renal Function and Bone Loss in a Cohort of Afro-Caribbean Men.

Poor renal function is associated with increased rates of bone loss and osteoporotic fractures in Caucasian men. The importance of kidney function for skeletal health in African ancestry men, who are a population segment with a high prevalence of chronic kidney disease as well as high peak bone mass, is not well known. We examined the relationship between estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and rates of bone loss in a large population cohort of otherwise healthy Afro-Caribbean men aged 40 years and older.

Effect of vitamin E supplementation on HDL function by haptoglobin genotype in type 1 diabetes: results from the HapE randomized crossover pilot trial.

Aims: Haptoglobin (Hp) genotype 2-2 increases cardiovascular diabetes complications. In type 2 diabetes, α-tocopherol was shown to lower cardiovascular risk in Hp 2-2, potentially through HDL function improvements. Similar type 1 diabetes data are lacking.

Maternal mid-pregnancy lipids and birthweight.

Objective: To describe associations between maternal lipids and birthweight and to determine whether pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) modifies these associations.

Design: Cohort study.

Setting: Multiple communities in Michigan, USA.

Lipoprotein particles and size, total and high molecular weight adiponectin, and leptin in relation to incident coronary heart disease among severely obese postmenopausal women: The Women's Health Initiative Observational Study.

Background: We hypothesized that higher concentrations of LDL particles (LDL-P) and leptin, and lower concentrations of HDL particles (HDL-P), and total and high molecular weight (HMW) adiponectin, would predict incident coronary heart disease (CHD) among severely obese postmenopausal women.

Methods: In a case-cohort study nested in the Women's Health Initiative Observational Study, we sampled 677 of the 1852 white or black women with body mass index (BMI) ≥40 kg/m and no prevalent cardiovascular disease (CVD), including all 124 cases of incident CHD over mean 5.0 year follow-up.