Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan.
Department of Nursing, National Taichung University of Science and Technology, Taichung, Taiwan; Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan.
Nutrition. 2019 Oct;66:29-37. doi: 10.1016/j.nut.2019.03.019. Epub 2019 Apr 25.
A plant-based diet has been associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular (CV) diseases. This study aimed to determine the levels and correlations of CV-related biomarkers and the beneficial role of dietary habits.
A total of 63 healthy vegetarians (n = 32) and omnivores (n = 31) were recruited. The baseline characteristics were recorded and measured (including lipid profiles, blood glucose, etc.). Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method was developed for the simultaneous determination of seven circulating CV-related biomarkers.
L-carnitine (L-Car), L-methionine, and ascorbic acid (AA) were significantly higher in vegetarians than in omnivores. In the vegetarians, L-Car had a negative correlation with triacylglycerols (P = 0.042) and blood glucose (P = 0.048) and a positive correlation with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P = 0.049). L-Car was also positively correlated with L-lysine (P = 0.009), L-methionine (P = 0.006), and AA (P = 0.035). The vegetarians' AA also had a negative correlation with L-homocysteine (P = 0.028). In the omnivores, L-Car was negatively correlated with total cholesterol (P = 0.008), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P = 0.004), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P = 0.038). Omnivores' body mass index was positively correlated with L-homocysteine (P = 0.033), and age was positively correlated with trimethylamine N-oxide (P < 0.001) and blood glucose (P = 0.007), but not in vegetarians.
Our results suggest that vegetarians have an elevated level of L-Car, which might be associated with endogenous biosynthesis and diet composition. Circulating L-Car might play an important role in CV protection, especially in vegetarians.
植物性饮食与心血管疾病风险降低有关。本研究旨在确定心血管相关生物标志物的水平和相关性，以及饮食习惯的有益作用。
共招募了 63 名健康素食者（n=32）和杂食者（n=31）。记录并测量了基线特征（包括血脂谱、血糖等）。采用液相色谱-质谱法同时测定七种循环心血管相关生物标志物。
素食者的 L-肉碱（L-Car）、L-蛋氨酸和抗坏血酸（AA）水平明显高于杂食者。在素食者中，L-Car 与三酰甘油（P=0.042）和血糖（P=0.048）呈负相关，与高密度脂蛋白胆固醇（P=0.049）呈正相关。L-Car 还与 L-赖氨酸（P=0.009）、L-蛋氨酸（P=0.006）和 AA（P=0.035）呈正相关。素食者的 AA 也与 L-同型半胱氨酸（P=0.028）呈负相关。在杂食者中，L-Car 与总胆固醇（P=0.008）、低密度脂蛋白胆固醇（P=0.004）和高密度脂蛋白胆固醇（P=0.038）呈负相关。杂食者的体重指数与 L-同型半胱氨酸（P=0.033）呈正相关，年龄与氧化三甲胺（P<0.001）和血糖（P=0.007）呈正相关，但在素食者中则没有。
我们的结果表明，素食者的 L-Car 水平升高，这可能与内源性生物合成和饮食成分有关。循环 L-Car 可能在心血管保护中发挥重要作用，尤其是在素食者中。
