Skin autofluorescence as tool for cardiovascular and diabetes risk prediction.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Advanced glycation endproducts (AGE) have an important role in the development of chronic complications in diabetes mellitus and in renal failure. Skin autofluorescence (SAF) is a simple noninvasive optical technique to estimate AGE levels in the dermis. SAF increases with age, but rises more rapidly in diabetes and renal failure, and is also associated with, and a predictor of their complications. RECENT FINDINGS: In recent large population studies, SAF is a strong predictor of development of type 2 diabetes (T2D), and in persons with known diabetes of its complications. SAF also predicts new cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality not only in individuals with known type 2 diabetes but also in the general population. SUMMARY: SAF is a simple, powerful and independent predictor for development of type 2 diabetes (T2D), and also for cardiovascular disease and mortality in both persons with diabetes, and in the general population.

A physically active lifestyle is related to a lower level of skin autofluorescence in a large population with chronic-disease (LifeLines cohort).

BACKGROUND: Physical activity (PA) has substantial health benefits and is important in combatting chronic diseases, which have been associated with elevated levels of advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs). AGEs play a role in the aging process, and an association between PA and AGEs has been reported. We aimed to investigate the relationship between PA and AGE accumulation in a general population and in a population with chronic diseases. METHODS: This large cross-sectional population study used data from adult participants in the LifeLines project, with participant information drawn from the LifeLines database as well data from patients with diabetes mellitus or renal and/or cardiovascular diseases. Tissue AGE accumulation was assessed non-invasively by skin-autofluorescence (SAF) using an AGE reader (DiagnOptics Technologies BV, Groningen, the Netherlands). PA was assessed using the short questionnaire to assess health-enhancing physical activity (SQUASH). Multivariate linear regression analyses were adjusted for age, body mass index, sex, and smoking status. RESULTS: Data from 63,452 participants (general population n = 59,177, chronic disease n = 4275) were analyzed. The general population was significantly younger (43.58 ± 11.77 years, mean ± SD) and had significantly lower SAF (1.90 ± 0.42 arbitrary units (AU)) compared to the population with chronic disease (age: 55.51 ± 12.07 years; SAF: 2.27 ± 0.51 AU). In the group with chronic disease, more hours of moderate to vigorous physical activities per week were associated with lower SAF (ß = -0.002, 95% confidence interval (95%CI): -0.002 to -0.001). For the general population, there was no association between hours of moderate to vigorous activity and SAF (ß = 3.2 â€¯× 10-5, 95%CI: 0.000-0.001, p = 0.742). However, there was an association in the general population between total hours of PA per week and SAF (ß = 4.2 × 10-4, 95%CI: 0.000-0.001, p < 0.001), but this association was not found in the chronic disease population (ß = -3.2 × 10-4, 95%CI: -0.001 to 0.000, p = 0.347). CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrates that an inverse relationship exists between PA and AGE accumulation in the population with chronic disease. More hours of moderate to vigorous activity is associated with a significantly decreased SAF. More PA is associated with a lower SAF, even after adjusting for the established predictors (age, body mass index, smoking status, and sex). Our findings could help to promote health and prolong longevity.

Relationship between Circulating PCSK9 and Markers of Subclinical Atherosclerosis-The IMPROVE Study.

(1) Background and purpose: circulating proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) is one of the key regulators of cholesterol metabolism. Despite this, its role as a player in atherosclerosis development is still matter of debate. Here, we investigated the relationships between this protein and several markers of subclinical atherosclerosis. (2) Methods: the IMPROVE study enrolled 3703 European subjects (54-79 years; 48% men; with ≥3 vascular risk factors), asymptomatic for cardiovascular diseases. PCSK9 levels were measured by ELISA. B-mode ultrasound was used to measure markers of carotid subclinical atherosclerosis. (3) Results: in the crude analysis, PCSK9 levels were associated with several baseline measures of carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) (all p < 0.0001); with cIMT change over time (Fastest-IMTmax-progr) (p = 0.01); with inter-adventitia common carotid artery diameter (ICCAD) (p < 0.0001); and with the echolucency (Grey Scale Median; GSM) of both carotid plaque and plaque-free common carotid IMT (both p < 0.0001). However, after adjustment for age, sex, latitude, and pharmacological treatment, all the afore-mentioned correlations were no longer statistically significant. The lack of correlation was also observed after stratification for sex, latitude, and pharmacological treatments. (4) Conclusions: in subjects who are asymptomatic for cardiovascular diseases, PCSK9 plasma levels do not correlate with vascular damage and/or subclinical atherosclerosis of extracranial carotid arteries.