Dose-response relationship of elements with blood lipids and the potential interaction: A cross-sectional study from four areas with different pollution levels in China.

BACKGROUND

A growing number of researches indicated the association between plasma trace elements and blood lipids. However, the potential interaction and dose-response relationship were less frequently reported.

METHODS

In this study, a total of 3548 participants were recruited from four counties in Hunan Province, South China. Demographic characteristics were collected by face-to-face interviews and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) was used to determine the levels of 23 trace elements in plasma. We applied a fully adjusted generalized linear regression model (GLM) and a multivariate restricted cubic spline (RCS) to estimate the correlation, dose-response relationship and possible interaction between 23 trace elements and four blood lipid markers.

RESULTS

The results indicated positive dose-response relationships of plasma zinc with triglycerides (TG) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), plasma selenium with LDL-C and total cholesterol (TCH), and plasma cobalt with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). There was a negative dose-response relationship between cobalt and LDL-C. Further analysis found that zinc and cobalt had an antagonistic effect on the risk of increased LDL-C level.

CONCLUSIONS

This study added new evidence for the potential adverse effects of Zn and Se on blood lipids, and provided new insight into the threshold value setting for metals as well as the intervention strategy for dyslipidemia.