Journal
EUROPEAN HEART JOURNAL
Volume 30, Issue 19, Pages 2346-2353Publisher
OXFORD UNIV PRESS
DOI: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehp261
Keywords
GDF-15; Biomarker; Endothelial function; Atherosclerosis; Hypertrophy; Heart failure
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Aims Growth-differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) is emerging as an independent prognostic biomarker in patients with cardiovascular (CV) disease. Little is known about the pathophysiological basis for the close association of GDF-15 to future CV events. We hypothesized that GDF-15 is related to underlying CV pathologies. Methods and results To relate the levels of GDF-15 to indices of CV dysfunction and disease in elderly individuals, serum levels of GDF-15 were measured in 1004 subjects aged 70 years from the Prospective Investigation of the Vasculature in Uppsala Seniors (PIVUS) study. Carotid intima-media thickness and plaque burden, and left ventricular (LV) geometry and function were assessed by ultrasound. Endothelial function was evaluated in forearm resistance vessels and in the brachial artery by venous occlusion plethysmography and ultrasound imaging, respectively. Elevated levels of GDF-15 were related to several CV risk factors (mate gender, current smoking, body mass index, waist circumference. diabetes, fasting glucose, triglycerides, and low HDL cholesterol). After adjustment for CV risk factors, increased levels of GDF-15 were associated with reduced endothelium-dependent vasodilation in resistance vessels, plaque burden, LV mass and concentric LV hypertrophy, reduced LV ejection fraction, and clinical manifestations of coronary artery disease and heart failure. Conclusion GDF-15 carries information on CV dysfunction and disease that is not captured by traditional CV risk factors in elderly individuals.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available