Department of Medicine, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Hypertension. 2011 Oct;58(4):588-95. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.111.174557. Epub 2011 Aug 22.
Endothelial dysfunction and low-grade inflammation are associated with cardiovascular disease. Arterial stiffening plays an important role in cardiovascular disease and, thus, may be a mechanism through which endothelial dysfunction and/or low-grade inflammation lead to cardiovascular disease. We investigated the associations between, on the one hand, biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction (soluble endothelial selectin, thrombomodulin, and both vascular and intercellular adhesion molecules 1 and von Willebrand factor) and of low-grade inflammation (C-reactive protein, serum amyloid A, interleukin 6, interleukin 8, tumor necrosis factor-α and, soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1) and, on the other hand, arterial stiffness over a 6-year period, in 293 healthy adults (155 women). Biomarkers were combined into mean z scores. Carotid, femoral, and brachial arterial stiffness and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity were determined by ultrasonography. Measurements were obtained when individuals were 36 and 42 years of age. Associations were analyzed with generalized estimating equation and adjusted for sex, height, and mean arterial pressure. The endothelial dysfunction z score was inversely associated with femoral distensibility (β: -0.51 [95% CI: -0.95 to -0.06]) and compliance coefficients (β: -0.041 [95% CI: -0.076 to -0.006]) but not with carotid or brachial stiffness or carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity. The low-grade inflammation z score was inversely associated with femoral distensibility (β: -0.51 [95% CI: -0.95 to -0.07]) and compliance coefficients (β: -0.050 [95% CI: -0.084 to -0.016]) and with carotid distensibility coefficient (β: -0.910 [95% CI: -1.810 to -0.008]) but not with brachial stiffness or carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity. Biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction and low-grade inflammation are associated with greater arterial stiffness. This provides evidence that arterial stiffening may be a mechanism through which endothelial dysfunction and low-grade inflammation lead to cardiovascular disease.
内皮功能障碍和低度炎症与心血管疾病有关。动脉僵硬在心血管疾病中起着重要作用，因此，它可能是内皮功能障碍和/或低度炎症导致心血管疾病的一种机制。我们研究了一方面，内皮功能障碍（可溶性内皮选择素、血栓调节蛋白以及血管细胞间黏附分子 1 和血管性血友病因子）和低度炎症（C 反应蛋白、血清淀粉样蛋白 A、白细胞介素 6、白细胞介素 8、肿瘤坏死因子-α和可溶性细胞间黏附分子 1）的生物标志物，另一方面，在 293 名健康成年人（155 名女性）中，在 6 年内与动脉僵硬的关系。生物标志物被组合成平均 z 分数。通过超声检查测定颈动脉、股动脉和肱动脉僵硬及颈动脉-股动脉脉搏波速度。当个体分别为 36 岁和 42 岁时，进行测量。采用广义估计方程分析相关性，并调整性别、身高和平均动脉压。内皮功能障碍 z 评分与股动脉扩张性（β：-0.51[95%CI：-0.95 至-0.06]）和顺应系数（β：-0.041[95%CI：-0.076 至-0.006]）呈负相关，但与颈动脉或肱动脉僵硬或颈动脉-股动脉脉搏波速度无关。低度炎症 z 评分与股动脉扩张性（β：-0.51[95%CI：-0.95 至-0.07]）和顺应系数（β：-0.050[95%CI：-0.084 至-0.016]）以及颈动脉扩张性系数（β：-0.910[95%CI：-1.810 至-0.008]）呈负相关，但与肱动脉僵硬或颈动脉-股动脉脉搏波速度无关。内皮功能障碍和低度炎症的生物标志物与更大的动脉僵硬相关。这提供了证据表明，动脉僵硬可能是内皮功能障碍和低度炎症导致心血管疾病的一种机制。
