Ji Yuelong, Kong Xiangyi, Wang Guoying, Hong Xiumei, Xu Xin, Chen Zhu, Bartell Tami, Xu Xiping, Tang Genfu, Hou Fanfan, Huo Yong, Wang Xiaobin, Wang Binyan
Center on the Early Life Origins of Disease, Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N. Wolfe Street, E4132 Baltimore, MD 21205-2179, USA.
Anzen Hospital, Beijing Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China.
Nutrients. 2014 Dec 18;6(12):5900-14. doi: 10.3390/nu6125900.
Plasma homocysteine (Hcy) is a modifiable, independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and is affected by both environmental and genetic factors. This study aimed to describe the gender- and age-specific distribution of Hcy concentration for 1117 subjects aged 10-66 years, a subset of a community-based rural Chinese twin cohort. In addition, we examined environmental and genetic contributions to variances in Hcy concentration by gender and age groups. We found that the distribution pattern for Hcy varied by both age and gender. Males had higher Hcy than females across all ages. Elevated Hcy was found in 43% of male adults and 13% of female adults. Moreover, nearly one fifth of children had elevated Hcy. Genetic factors could explain 52%, 36% and 69% of the variation in Hcy concentration among children, male adults and female adults, respectively. The MTHFR C677T variant was significantly associated with Hcy concentrations. Smokers with the TT genotype had the highest Hcy levels. Overall, our results indicate that elevated Hcy is prevalent in the children and adults in this rural Chinese population. The early identification of elevated Hcy will offer a window of opportunity for the primary prevention of CVD and metabolic syndrome.
血浆同型半胱氨酸（Hcy）是心血管疾病（CVD）的一个可改变的独立危险因素，受环境和遗传因素的双重影响。本研究旨在描述1117名年龄在10至66岁之间的受试者（中国农村社区双生子队列的一个子集）中Hcy浓度的性别和年龄特异性分布。此外，我们还按性别和年龄组研究了环境和遗传因素对Hcy浓度变异的影响。我们发现，Hcy的分布模式随年龄和性别而变化。在所有年龄段中，男性的Hcy水平均高于女性。43%的成年男性和13%的成年女性Hcy水平升高。此外，近五分之一的儿童Hcy水平升高。遗传因素分别可解释儿童、成年男性和成年女性中Hcy浓度变异的52%、36%和69%。MTHFR C677T变异与Hcy浓度显著相关。携带TT基因型的吸烟者Hcy水平最高。总体而言，我们的结果表明，中国农村人群中的儿童和成人中Hcy水平升高较为普遍。早期识别Hcy水平升高将为CVD和代谢综合征的一级预防提供一个机会窗口。
