Serum Irisin Levels, Precocious Myocardial Infarction, and Healthy Exceptional Longevity

BACKGROUND: Skeletal muscles produce irisin. Growing controversy exists on the association between this myokine and chronic disease risk. On the basis of the potential protective effects that irisin could exert on both vascular function and skeletal muscle mass, we hypothesized that an elevated level of this molecule may contribute to successful aging. METHODS: Serum irisin levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in disease-free centenarians, young healthy controls, and patients with precocious acute myocardial infarction. RESULTS: We found the highest levels of serum irisin in disease-free centenarians (35.3 +/- 5.5 ng/mL) compared with young healthy controls (20.7 +/- 6.3 ng/mL) and especially with young patients with acute myocardial infarction (15.1 +/- 5.4 ng/mL). CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrates that healthy centenarians are characterized by increased serum irisin levels, whereas levels of this molecule were found to be significantly lower in young patients with myocardial infarction. Our findings may prompt further research into the role played by irisin not only in vascular disorders but also in life span modulation. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.