Abstract
Aging causes arterial stiffening which can be mitigated by increased physical activity. Although low circulating levels of salusin-α are associated with cardiovascular disease, whether salusin-α decreases with aging and whether the reduced arterial stiffening occurring with exercise training is associated with increased serum salusin-α is unknown. Herein we assessed carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV), systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressures in a cross-sectional study that compared young (20-39-year-old, n=45) versus middle-aged and older (40-80-year-old, n=60) subjects. We also performed an interventional study in which 36 young and 40 middle-aged and older subjects underwent eight weeks of aerobic exercise training. In the cross-sectional study, serum salusin-α levels were lesser in middle-aged and older subjects compared to young individuals and negatively correlated with age, SBP, DBP, or cfPWV. In the interventional study, exercise training increased serum salusin-α in middle-aged and older subjects. Notably, negative correlations were noted between the exercise training-induced changes in serum salusin-α and cfPWV, SBP and DBP. Results indicate that advanced age associates with low circulating salusin-α, the levels of which can be augmented by exercise training. Importantly, increased serum salusin-α with exercise correlates with improvements in arterial stiffness and a reduction in blood pressure.
Highlights
Aging is associated with an increased prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors, among which is arterial stiffening [1,2,3]
In the cross-sectional study, body mass index (BMI), carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean blood pressure (MBP), common carotid intima-media thickness and the levels of total cholesterol and triglycerides were significantly greater in the Middleaged and older group than in the Young group (Table 1)
We report that arterial stiffening and other CVD risk factors associated with aging are negatively correlated with serum levels of the anti-inflammatory bioactive peptide, salusin-α
Summary
Aging is associated with an increased prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors, among which is arterial stiffening [1,2,3]. Aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV), i.e., the in vivo gold-standard measurement of aortic stiffness, increases 6–8% with each decade of life up to 50 years and by 18% thereafter [4, 5] This progressive stiffening of the vasculature augments the risk for coronary artery disease, heart failure, atherosclerosis and stroke [1,2,3]. Much effort has been placed on deciphering the mechanisms that control arterial stiffness, and on developing interventions to reduce arterial stiffness and its associated cardiovascular consequences [8]. Among such interventions is aerobic exercise training (AT), which is known to reduce arterial stiffness, blood pressure and overall CVD risk in old adults [9, 10]
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