Abstract
Background: Because the predictive significance of previously reported racial differences in leptin and adiponectin levels remains unclear, we assessed the prospective association of these adipokines with the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) events in African Americans, a population with a high prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors.Methods: Serum specimens from 4,571 Jackson Heart Study participants without prevalent CVD at baseline examination (2000–2004) were analyzed for adiponectin and leptin levels. Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to estimate the associations of the two adipokines with incident coronary heart disease (CHD) and incident ischemic stroke.Results: During 6.2 years average of follow-up, 98 incident CHD and 87 incident ischemic stroke events were documented. Among study participants (64% women; mean age 54 ± 13 years), the mean (standard deviation, SD) was 6.04 (4.32) μg/mL in women and 4.03 (3.14) μg/mL in men for adiponectin and 37.35 (23.90) ng/mL in women and 11.03 (10.05) ng/mL in men for leptin. After multivariable adjustment that included age, body mass index, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, C-reactive protein, insulin resistance by homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance, systolic blood pressure, hypertension medication, smoking, and physical activity, adiponectin was directly associated in women with incident stroke, HR = 1.41 (1.04–1.91) per one SD increase (p = 0.03), but not in men (p = 0.42). It was not associated with incident CHD in women or men. Leptin was not associated with incident CHD or incident stroke.Conclusion: In the largest community-based African American cohort, adiponectin was associated among women with a higher risk of incident stroke. Whether adiponectin harbors harmful properties, or it is produced in response to vascular inflammation to counter the atherosclerotic process, or the putative “adiponectin resistance” phenomenon acts, should be further assessed.
Highlights
Significant research has been conducted in order to understand the obesity mechanisms related to cardiovascular disease (CVD) pathogenesis [1]
After multivariable adjustment that included age, body mass index, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, C-reactive protein, insulin resistance by homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance, systolic blood pressure, hypertension medication, smoking, and physical activity, adiponectin was directly associated in women with incident stroke, HR = 1.41 (1.04–1.91) per one SD increase (p = 0.03), but not in men (p = 0.42)
Leptin was not associated with incident coronary heart disease (CHD) or incident stroke
Summary
Significant research has been conducted in order to understand the obesity mechanisms related to cardiovascular disease (CVD) pathogenesis [1]. It is evident that adipose tissue is more than an energy storage compartment; it is a secretory organ for bioactive molecules known as adipokines [2] Adipokines such as leptin and adiponectin contribute to the pathophysiology of obesity-related disorders through their properties to modulate inflammatory and metabolic processes. Given the conflicting studies in animal and human research and the reported racial differences in adipokine levels [12,13,14], we assessed the prospective association of the two adipokines with the risk of CVD events in African American participants in the Jackson Heart Study (JHS). Because the predictive significance of previously reported racial differences in leptin and adiponectin levels remains unclear, we assessed the prospective association of these adipokines with the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) events in African Americans, a population with a high prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors
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