@article {1096, title = {Usefulness of myeloperoxidase levels in healthy elderly subjects to predict risk of developing heart failure.}, journal = {Am J Cardiol}, volume = {103}, year = {2009}, month = {2009 May 01}, pages = {1269-74}, abstract = {

Increased systemic myeloperoxidase (MPO) has been associated with both the presence and severity of heart failure (HF). This study tested the hypothesis that increased systemic MPO in apparently healthy elderly subjects may predict increased risk of developing HF. Systemic MPO was measured in all available samples from the 1992 to 1993 visit of the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS). After excluding subjects without available blood samples or with a history of prevalent HF, myocardial infarction (MI), or stroke, 3,733 subjects were included. A total of 569 subjects developed incident HF during 7.2 +/- 2.3 years of follow-up. Patients in the highest MPO quartile (>432 pmol/L) showed higher risk of developing incident HF after adjusting for MI, age, gender, systolic blood pressure, smoking, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, diabetes mellitus, and any subclinical cardiovascular disease (hazard ratio 1.34, 95\% confidence interval 1.06 to 1.72, p = 0.013). However, the relation was more apparent after censoring subjects with incident MI before incident HF, even when adjusted for C-reactive protein and cystatin C (hazard ratio 1.46, 95\% confidence interval 1.08 to 1.97, p = 0.02). Interestingly, stratified analyses showed that the relation between increased MPO and HF risk was stronger in subjects without traditional cardiovascular risk factors (}, keywords = {Age Factors, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Biomarkers, Disease Progression, Female, Geriatric Assessment, Heart Failure, Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Peroxidase, Predictive Value of Tests, Probability, Prognosis, Risk Assessment, Sensitivity and Specificity, Severity of Illness Index, Sex Factors}, issn = {1879-1913}, doi = {10.1016/j.amjcard.2009.01.026}, author = {Tang, W H Wilson and Katz, Ronit and Brennan, Marie-Luise and Aviles, Ronnier J and Tracy, Russell P and Psaty, Bruce M and Hazen, Stanley L} } @article {1355, title = {New gene functions in megakaryopoiesis and platelet formation.}, journal = {Nature}, volume = {480}, year = {2011}, month = {2011 Nov 30}, pages = {201-8}, abstract = {

Platelets are the second most abundant cell type in blood and are essential for maintaining haemostasis. Their count and volume are tightly controlled within narrow physiological ranges, but there is only limited understanding of the molecular processes controlling both traits. Here we carried out a high-powered meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in up to 66,867 individuals of European ancestry, followed by extensive biological and functional assessment. We identified 68 genomic loci reliably associated with platelet count and volume mapping to established and putative novel regulators of megakaryopoiesis and platelet formation. These genes show megakaryocyte-specific gene expression patterns and extensive network connectivity. Using gene silencing in Danio rerio and Drosophila melanogaster, we identified 11 of the genes as novel regulators of blood cell formation. Taken together, our findings advance understanding of novel gene functions controlling fate-determining events during megakaryopoiesis and platelet formation, providing a new example of successful translation of GWAS to function.

}, keywords = {Animals, Blood Platelets, Cell Size, Drosophila melanogaster, Drosophila Proteins, Europe, Gene Expression Profiling, Gene Silencing, Genome, Human, Genome-Wide Association Study, Hematopoiesis, Humans, Megakaryocytes, Platelet Count, Protein Interaction Maps, Transcription, Genetic, Zebrafish, Zebrafish Proteins}, issn = {1476-4687}, doi = {10.1038/nature10659}, author = {Gieger, Christian and Radhakrishnan, Aparna and Cvejic, Ana and Tang, Weihong and Porcu, Eleonora and Pistis, Giorgio and Serbanovic-Canic, Jovana and Elling, Ulrich and Goodall, Alison H and Labrune, Yann and Lopez, Lorna M and M{\"a}gi, Reedik and Meacham, Stuart and Okada, Yukinori and Pirastu, Nicola and Sorice, Rossella and Teumer, Alexander and Voss, Katrin and Zhang, Weihua and Ramirez-Solis, Ramiro and Bis, Joshua C and Ellinghaus, David and G{\"o}gele, Martin and Hottenga, Jouke-Jan and Langenberg, Claudia and Kovacs, Peter and O{\textquoteright}Reilly, Paul F and Shin, So-Youn and Esko, T{\~o}nu and Hartiala, Jaana and Kanoni, Stavroula and Murgia, Federico and Parsa, Afshin and Stephens, Jonathan and van der Harst, Pim and Ellen van der Schoot, C and Allayee, Hooman and Attwood, Antony and Balkau, Beverley and Bastardot, Fran{\c c}ois and Basu, Saonli and Baumeister, Sebastian E and Biino, Ginevra and Bomba, Lorenzo and Bonnefond, Am{\'e}lie and Cambien, Francois and Chambers, John C and Cucca, Francesco and D{\textquoteright}Adamo, Pio and Davies, Gail and de Boer, Rudolf A and de Geus, Eco J C and D{\"o}ring, Angela and Elliott, Paul and Erdmann, Jeanette and Evans, David M and Falchi, Mario and Feng, Wei and Folsom, Aaron R and Frazer, Ian H and Gibson, Quince D and Glazer, Nicole L and Hammond, Chris and Hartikainen, Anna-Liisa and Heckbert, Susan R and Hengstenberg, Christian and Hersch, Micha and Illig, Thomas and Loos, Ruth J F and Jolley, Jennifer and Khaw, Kay Tee and Kuhnel, Brigitte and Kyrtsonis, Marie-Christine and Lagou, Vasiliki and Lloyd-Jones, Heather and Lumley, Thomas and Mangino, Massimo and Maschio, Andrea and Mateo Leach, Irene and McKnight, Barbara and Memari, Yasin and Mitchell, Braxton D and Montgomery, Grant W and Nakamura, Yusuke and Nauck, Matthias and Navis, Gerjan and N{\"o}thlings, Ute and Nolte, Ilja M and Porteous, David J and Pouta, Anneli and Pramstaller, Peter P and Pullat, Janne and Ring, Susan M and Rotter, Jerome I and Ruggiero, Daniela and Ruokonen, Aimo and Sala, Cinzia and Samani, Nilesh J and Sambrook, Jennifer and Schlessinger, David and Schreiber, Stefan and Schunkert, Heribert and Scott, James and Smith, Nicholas L and Snieder, Harold and Starr, John M and Stumvoll, Michael and Takahashi, Atsushi and Tang, W H Wilson and Taylor, Kent and Tenesa, Albert and Lay Thein, Swee and T{\"o}njes, Anke and Uda, Manuela and Ulivi, Sheila and van Veldhuisen, Dirk J and Visscher, Peter M and V{\"o}lker, Uwe and Wichmann, H-Erich and Wiggins, Kerri L and Willemsen, Gonneke and Yang, Tsun-Po and Hua Zhao, Jing and Zitting, Paavo and Bradley, John R and Dedoussis, George V and Gasparini, Paolo and Hazen, Stanley L and Metspalu, Andres and Pirastu, Mario and Shuldiner, Alan R and Joost van Pelt, L and Zwaginga, Jaap-Jan and Boomsma, Dorret I and Deary, Ian J and Franke, Andre and Froguel, Philippe and Ganesh, Santhi K and Jarvelin, Marjo-Riitta and Martin, Nicholas G and Meisinger, Christa and Psaty, Bruce M and Spector, Timothy D and Wareham, Nicholas J and Akkerman, Jan-Willem N and Ciullo, Marina and Deloukas, Panos and Greinacher, Andreas and Jupe, Steve and Kamatani, Naoyuki and Khadake, Jyoti and Kooner, Jaspal S and Penninger, Josef and Prokopenko, Inga and Stemple, Derek and Toniolo, Daniela and Wernisch, Lorenz and Sanna, Serena and Hicks, Andrew A and Rendon, Augusto and Ferreira, Manuel A and Ouwehand, Willem H and Soranzo, Nicole} } @article {6282, title = {Genome-wide and gene-centric analyses of circulating myeloperoxidase levels in the charge and care consortia.}, journal = {Hum Mol Genet}, volume = {22}, year = {2013}, month = {2013 Aug 15}, pages = {3381-93}, abstract = {

Increased systemic levels of myeloperoxidase (MPO) are associated with the risk of coronary artery disease (CAD). To identify the genetic factors that are associated with circulating MPO levels, we carried out a genome-wide association study (GWAS) and a gene-centric analysis in subjects of European ancestry and African Americans (AAs). A locus on chromosome 1q31.1 containing the complement factor H (CFH) gene was strongly associated with serum MPO levels in 9305 subjects of European ancestry (lead SNP rs800292; P = 4.89 {\texttimes} 10(-41)) and in 1690 AA subjects (rs505102; P = 1.05 {\texttimes} 10(-8)). Gene-centric analyses in 8335 subjects of European ancestry additionally identified two rare MPO coding sequence variants that were associated with serum MPO levels (rs28730837, P = 5.21 {\texttimes} 10(-12); rs35897051, P = 3.32 {\texttimes} 10(-8)). A GWAS for plasma MPO levels in 9260 European ancestry subjects identified a chromosome 17q22 region near MPO that was significantly associated (lead SNP rs6503905; P = 2.94 {\texttimes} 10(-12)), but the CFH locus did not exhibit evidence of association with plasma MPO levels. Functional analyses revealed that rs800292 was associated with levels of complement proteins in serum. Variants at chromosome 17q22 also had pleiotropic cis effects on gene expression. In a case-control analysis of \~{}80 000 subjects from CARDIoGRAM, none of the identified single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were associated with CAD. These results suggest that distinct genetic factors regulate serum and plasma MPO levels, which may have relevance for various acute and chronic inflammatory disorders. The clinical implications for CAD and a better understanding of the functional basis for the association of CFH and MPO variants with circulating MPO levels require further study.

}, keywords = {Adult, African Americans, Aged, Case-Control Studies, Complement Factor H, Coronary Artery Disease, European Continental Ancestry Group, Female, Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic, Genetic Association Studies, Genetic Variation, Genome-Wide Association Study, Genotype, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Peroxidase, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Young Adult}, issn = {1460-2083}, doi = {10.1093/hmg/ddt189}, author = {Reiner, Alexander P and Hartiala, Jaana and Zeller, Tanja and Bis, Joshua C and Dupuis, Jos{\'e}e and Fornage, Myriam and Baumert, Jens and Kleber, Marcus E and Wild, Philipp S and Baldus, Stephan and Bielinski, Suzette J and Fontes, Jo{\~a}o D and Illig, Thomas and Keating, Brendan J and Lange, Leslie A and Ojeda, Francisco and M{\"u}ller-Nurasyid, Martina and Munzel, Thomas F and Psaty, Bruce M and Rice, Kenneth and Rotter, Jerome I and Schnabel, Renate B and Tang, W H Wilson and Thorand, Barbara and Erdmann, Jeanette and Jacobs, David R and Wilson, James G and Koenig, Wolfgang and Tracy, Russell P and Blankenberg, Stefan and M{\"a}rz, Winfried and Gross, Myron D and Benjamin, Emelia J and Hazen, Stanley L and Allayee, Hooman} } @article {6691, title = {Exome sequencing identifies rare LDLR and APOA5 alleles conferring risk for myocardial infarction.}, journal = {Nature}, volume = {518}, year = {2015}, month = {2015 Feb 5}, pages = {102-6}, abstract = {

Myocardial infarction (MI), a leading cause of death around the world, displays a complex pattern of inheritance. When MI occurs early in life, genetic inheritance is a major component to risk. Previously, rare mutations in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) genes have been shown to contribute to MI risk in individual families, whereas common variants at more than 45 loci have been associated with MI risk in the population. Here we evaluate how rare mutations contribute to early-onset MI risk in the population. We sequenced the protein-coding regions of 9,793 genomes from patients with MI at an early age (<=50 years in males and <=60 years in females) along with MI-free controls. We identified two genes in which rare coding-sequence mutations were more frequent in MI cases versus controls at exome-wide significance. At low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR), carriers of rare non-synonymous mutations were at 4.2-fold increased risk for MI; carriers of null alleles at LDLR were at even higher risk (13-fold difference). Approximately 2\% of early MI cases harbour a rare, damaging mutation in LDLR; this estimate is similar to one made more than 40 years ago using an analysis of total cholesterol. Among controls, about 1 in 217 carried an LDLR coding-sequence mutation and had plasma LDL cholesterol > 190~mg~dl(-1). At apolipoprotein A-V (APOA5), carriers of rare non-synonymous mutations were at 2.2-fold increased risk for MI. When compared with non-carriers, LDLR mutation carriers had higher plasma LDL cholesterol, whereas APOA5 mutation carriers had higher plasma triglycerides. Recent evidence has connected MI risk with coding-sequence mutations at two genes functionally related to APOA5, namely lipoprotein lipase and apolipoprotein C-III (refs 18, 19). Combined, these observations suggest that, as well as LDL cholesterol, disordered metabolism of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins contributes to MI risk.

}, keywords = {Age Factors, Age of Onset, Alleles, Apolipoproteins A, Case-Control Studies, Cholesterol, LDL, Coronary Artery Disease, Exome, Female, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Genetics, Population, Heterozygote, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Mutation, Myocardial Infarction, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (U.S.), Receptors, LDL, Triglycerides, United States}, issn = {1476-4687}, doi = {10.1038/nature13917}, author = {Do, Ron and Stitziel, Nathan O and Won, Hong-Hee and J{\o}rgensen, Anders Berg and Duga, Stefano and Angelica Merlini, Pier and Kiezun, Adam and Farrall, Martin and Goel, Anuj and Zuk, Or and Guella, Illaria and Asselta, Rosanna and Lange, Leslie A and Peloso, Gina M and Auer, Paul L and Girelli, Domenico and Martinelli, Nicola and Farlow, Deborah N and DePristo, Mark A and Roberts, Robert and Stewart, Alexander F R and Saleheen, Danish and Danesh, John and Epstein, Stephen E and Sivapalaratnam, Suthesh and Hovingh, G Kees and Kastelein, John J and Samani, Nilesh J and Schunkert, Heribert and Erdmann, Jeanette and Shah, Svati H and Kraus, William E and Davies, Robert and Nikpay, Majid and Johansen, Christopher T and Wang, Jian and Hegele, Robert A and Hechter, Eliana and M{\"a}rz, Winfried and Kleber, Marcus E and Huang, Jie and Johnson, Andrew D and Li, Mingyao and Burke, Greg L and Gross, Myron and Liu, Yongmei and Assimes, Themistocles L and Heiss, Gerardo and Lange, Ethan M and Folsom, Aaron R and Taylor, Herman A and Olivieri, Oliviero and Hamsten, Anders and Clarke, Robert and Reilly, Dermot F and Yin, Wu and Rivas, Manuel A and Donnelly, Peter and Rossouw, Jacques E and Psaty, Bruce M and Herrington, David M and Wilson, James G and Rich, Stephen S and Bamshad, Michael J and Tracy, Russell P and Cupples, L Adrienne and Rader, Daniel J and Reilly, Muredach P and Spertus, John A and Cresci, Sharon and Hartiala, Jaana and Tang, W H Wilson and Hazen, Stanley L and Allayee, Hooman and Reiner, Alex P and Carlson, Christopher S and Kooperberg, Charles and Jackson, Rebecca D and Boerwinkle, Eric and Lander, Eric S and Schwartz, Stephen M and Siscovick, David S and McPherson, Ruth and Tybjaerg-Hansen, Anne and Abecasis, Goncalo R and Watkins, Hugh and Nickerson, Deborah A and Ardissino, Diego and Sunyaev, Shamil R and O{\textquoteright}Donnell, Christopher J and Altshuler, David and Gabriel, Stacey and Kathiresan, Sekar} } @article {8831, title = {Longitudinal Plasma Measures of Trimethylamine N-Oxide and Risk of Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease Events in Community-Based Older Adults.}, journal = {J Am Heart Assoc}, year = {2021}, month = {2021 Aug 16}, pages = {e020646}, abstract = {

Background Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) is a gut microbiota-dependent metabolite of dietary choline, L-carnitine, and phosphatidylcholine-rich foods. On the basis of experimental studies and patients with prevalent disease, elevated plasma TMAO may increase risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). TMAO is also renally cleared and may interact with and causally contribute to renal dysfunction. Yet, how serial TMAO levels relate to incident and recurrent ASCVD in community-based populations and the potential mediating or modifying role of renal function are not established. Methods and Results We investigated associations of serial measures of plasma TMAO, assessed at baseline and 7~years, with incident and recurrent ASCVD in a community-based cohort of 4131 (incident) and 1449 (recurrent) older US adults. TMAO was measured using stable isotope dilution liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (laboratory coefficient of variation, <6\%). Incident ASCVD (myocardial infarction, fatal coronary heart disease, stroke, sudden cardiac death, or other atherosclerotic death) was centrally adjudicated using medical records. Risk was assessed by multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression, including time-varying demographics, lifestyle factors, medical history, laboratory measures, and dietary habits. Potential mediating effects and interaction by estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were assessed. During prospective follow-up, 1766 incident and 897 recurrent ASCVD events occurred. After multivariable adjustment, higher levels of TMAO were associated with a higher risk of incident ASCVD, with extreme quintile hazard ratio (HR) compared with the lowest quintile=1.21 (95\% CI, 1.02-1.42; -trend=0.029). This relationship appeared mediated or confounded by eGFR (eGFR-adjusted HR, 1.07; 95\% CI, 0.90-1.27), as well as modified by eGFR (-interaction <0.001). High levels of TMAO were associated with higher incidence of ASCVD in the presence of impaired renal function (eGFR <60~mL/min per 1.73~m: HR, 1.56 [95\% CI, 1.13-2.14]; -trend=0.007), but not normal or mildly reduced renal function (eGFR >=60~mL/min per 1.73~m: HR, 1.03 [95\% CI, 0.85-1.25]; -trend=0.668). Among individuals with prior ASCVD, TMAO associated with higher risk of recurrent ASCVD (HR, 1.25 [95\% CI, 1.01-1.56]; -trend=0.009), without significant modification by eGFR. Conclusions In this large community-based cohort of older US adults, serial measures of TMAO were associated with higher risk of incident ASCVD, with apparent modification by presence of impaired renal function and with higher risk of recurrent ASCVD.

}, issn = {2047-9980}, doi = {10.1161/JAHA.120.020646}, author = {Lee, Yujin and Nemet, Ina and Wang, Zeneng and Lai, Heidi T M and de Oliveira Otto, Marcia C and Lemaitre, Rozenn N and Fretts, Amanda M and Sotoodehnia, Nona and Budoff, Matthew and DiDonato, Joseph A and McKnight, Barbara and Tang, W H Wilson and Psaty, Bruce M and Siscovick, David S and Hazen, Stanley L and Mozaffarian, Dariush} } @article {9091, title = {Association of Trimethylamine N-Oxide and Metabolites With Mortality in Older Adults.}, journal = {JAMA Netw Open}, volume = {5}, year = {2022}, month = {2022 05 02}, pages = {e2213242}, abstract = {

Importance: Little is known about the association of trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), a novel plasma metabolite derived from L-carnitine and phosphatidylcholine, and related metabolites (ie, choline, betaine, carnitine, and butyrobetaine) with risk of death among older adults in the general population.

Objective: To investigate the associations of serial measures of plasma TMAO and related metabolites with risk of total and cause-specific death (ie, deaths from cardiovascular diseases [CVDs] and non-CVDs) among older adults in the US.

Design, Setting, and Participants: This prospective cohort study involved 5333 participants from the Cardiovascular Health Study-a community-based longitudinal cohort of adults aged 65 years or older-who were followed up from June 1, 1989, to December 31, 2015. Participants were from 4 communities in the US (Forsyth County, North Carolina; Sacramento County, California; Washington County, Maryland; and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania). Data were analyzed from March 17 to June 23, 2021.

Exposures: Plasma TMAO, choline, betaine, carnitine, and butyrobetaine levels were measured using stored samples from baseline (June 1, 1989, to May 31, 1990, or November 1, 1992, to June 31, 1993) and follow-up examination (June 1, 1996, to May 31, 1997). Measurements were performed through stable-isotope dilution liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry using high-performance liquid chromatography with online electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry.

Main Outcomes and Measures: Deaths (total and cause specific) were adjudicated by a centralized Cardiovascular Health Study events committee based on information from medical records, laboratory and diagnostic reports, death certificates, and/or interviews with next of kin. The associations of each metabolite with mortality were assessed using Cox proportional hazards regression models.

Results: Among 5333 participants in the analytic sample, the mean (SD) age was 73 (6) years; 2149 participants (40.3\%) were male, 3184 (59.7\%) were female, 848 (15.9\%) were African American, 4450 (83.4\%) were White, and 35 (0.01\%) were of other races (12 were American Indian or Alaska Native, 4 were Asian or Pacific Islander, and 19 were of other races or ethnicities). During a median follow-up of 13.2 years (range, 0-26.9 years), 4791 deaths occurred. After adjustment for potential confounders, the hazard ratios for death from any cause (ie, total mortality) comparing extreme quintiles (fifth vs first) of plasma concentrations were 1.30 (95\% CI, 1.17-1.44) for TMAO, 1.19 (95\% CI, 1.08-1.32) for choline, 1.26 (95\% CI, 1.15-1.40) for carnitine, and 1.26 (95\% CI, 1.13-1.40) for butyrobetaine. Plasma betaine was not associated with risk of death. The extent of risk estimates was similar for CVD and non-CVD mortality.

Conclusions and Relevance: In this cohort study, plasma concentrations of TMAO and related metabolites were positively associated with risk of death. These findings suggest that circulating TMAO is an important novel risk factor associated with death among older adults.

}, keywords = {Aged, Betaine, Cardiovascular Diseases, Carnitine, Choline, Cohort Studies, Female, Humans, Male, Methylamines, Prospective Studies}, issn = {2574-3805}, doi = {10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.13242}, author = {Fretts, Amanda M and Hazen, Stanley L and Jensen, Paul and Budoff, Matthew and Sitlani, Colleen M and Wang, Meng and de Oliveira Otto, Marcia C and DiDonato, Joseph A and Lee, Yujin and Psaty, Bruce M and Siscovick, David S and Sotoodehnia, Nona and Tang, W H Wilson and Lai, Heidi and Lemaitre, Rozenn N and Mozaffarian, Dariush} } @article {9182, title = {Dietary Meat, Trimethylamine N-Oxide-Related Metabolites, and Incident Cardiovascular Disease Among Older Adults: The Cardiovascular Health Study.}, journal = {Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol}, volume = {42}, year = {2022}, month = {2022 09}, pages = {e273-e288}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Effects of animal source foods (ASF) on atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and underlying mechanisms remain controversial. We investigated prospective associations of different ASF with incident ASCVD and potential mediation by gut microbiota-generated trimethylamine N-oxide, its L-carnitine-derived intermediates γ-butyrobetaine and crotonobetaine, and traditional ASCVD risk pathways.

METHODS: Among 3931 participants from a community-based US cohort aged 65+ years, ASF intakes and trimethylamine N-oxide-related metabolites were measured serially over time. Incident ASCVD (myocardial infarction, fatal coronary heart disease, stroke, other atherosclerotic death) was adjudicated over 12.5 years median follow-up. Cox proportional hazards models with time-varying exposures and covariates examined ASF-ASCVD associations; and additive hazard models, mediation proportions by different risk pathways.

RESULTS: After multivariable-adjustment, higher intakes of unprocessed red meat, total meat, and total ASF associated with higher ASCVD risk, with hazard ratios (95\% CI) per interquintile range of 1.15 (1.01-1.30), 1.22 (1.07-1.39), and 1.18 (1.03-1.34), respectively. Trimethylamine N-oxide-related metabolites together significantly mediated these associations, with mediation proportions (95\% CI) of 10.6\% (1.0-114.5), 7.8\% (1.0-32.7), and 9.2\% (2.2-44.5), respectively. Processed meat intake associated with a nonsignificant trend toward higher ASCVD (1.11 [0.98-1.25]); intakes of fish, poultry, and eggs were not significantly associated. Among other risk pathways, blood glucose, insulin, and C-reactive protein, but not blood pressure or blood cholesterol, each significantly mediated the total meat-ASCVD association.

CONCLUSIONS: In this large, community-based cohort, higher meat intake associated with incident ASCVD, partly mediated by microbiota-derived metabolites of L-carnitine, abundant in red meat. These novel findings support biochemical links between dietary meat, gut microbiome pathways, and ASCVD.

}, keywords = {Animals, Atherosclerosis, Cardiovascular Diseases, Carnitine, Humans, Meat, Methylamines, Risk Factors}, issn = {1524-4636}, doi = {10.1161/ATVBAHA.121.316533}, author = {Wang, Meng and Wang, Zeneng and Lee, Yujin and Lai, Heidi T M and de Oliveira Otto, Marcia C and Lemaitre, Rozenn N and Fretts, Amanda and Sotoodehnia, Nona and Budoff, Matthew and DiDonato, Joseph A and McKnight, Barbara and Tang, W H Wilson and Psaty, Bruce M and Siscovick, David S and Hazen, Stanley L and Mozaffarian, Dariush} } @article {9157, title = {Longitudinal Associations of Plasma TMAO and Related Metabolites with Cognitive Impairment and Dementia in Older Adults: The Cardiovascular Health Study.}, journal = {J Alzheimers Dis}, year = {2022}, month = {2022 Sep 02}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Animal studies suggest that gut microbiome metabolites such as trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) may influence cognitive function and dementia risk. However potential health effects of TMAO and related metabolites remain unclear.

OBJECTIVE: We examined prospective associations of TMAO, γ-butyrobetaine, crotonobetaine, carnitine, choline, and betaine with risk of cognitive impairment and dementia among older adults aged 65 years and older in the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS).

METHODS: TMAO and metabolites were measured in stored plasma specimens collected at baseline. Incident cognitive impairment was assessed using the 100-point Modified Mini-Mental State Examination administered serially up to 7 times. Clinical dementia was identified using neuropsychological tests adjudicated by CHS Cognition Study investigators, and by ICD-9 codes from linked Medicare data. Associations of each metabolite with cognitive outcomes were assessed using Cox proportional hazards models.

RESULTS: Over a median of 13 years of follow-up, 529 cases of cognitive impairment, and 522 of dementia were identified. After multivariable adjustment for relevant risk factors, no associations were seen with TMAO, carnitine, choline, or betaine. In contrast, higher crotonobetaine was associated with 20-32\% higher risk of cognitive impairment and dementia per interquintile range (IQR), while γ-butyrobetaine was associated with \~{}25\% lower risk of the same cognitive outcomes per IQR.||Conclusion:These findings suggest that γ-butyrobetaine, crotonobetaine, two gut microbe and host metabolites, are associated with risk of cognitive impairment and dementia. Our results indicate a need for mechanistic studies evaluating potential effects of these metabolites, and their interconversion on brain health, especially later in life.

}, issn = {1875-8908}, doi = {10.3233/JAD-220477}, author = {de Oliveira Otto, Marcia C and Li, Xinmin S and Wang, Zeneng and Siscovick, David and Newman, Anne B and Lai, Heidi Tsz Mung and Nemet, Ina and Lee, Yujin and Wang, Meng and Fretts, Amanda and Lemaitre, Rozenn N and Tang, W H Wilson and Lopez, Oscar and Hazen, Stanley L and Mozaffarian, Dariush} } @article {9648, title = {The Gut Microbial Metabolite Trimethylamine N-oxide, Incident CKD, and Kidney Function Decline.}, journal = {J Am Soc Nephrol}, year = {2024}, month = {2024 Apr 09}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) is a gut microbiota-derived metabolite of dietary phosphatidylcholine and carnitine. Experimentally, TMAO causes kidney injury and tubulointerstitial fibrosis. Little is known about prospective associations between TMAO and kidney outcomes, especially incident CKD. We hypothesized that higher plasma TMAO levels would be associated with higher risk of incident CKD and greater rate of kidney function decline.

METHODS: We included 10,564 participants from two community-based, prospective cohorts with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) >= 60 mL/min/1.73m2 to assess incident CKD. TMAO was measured using targeted mass spectrometry at baseline and one follow-up visit. Creatinine and Cystatin C were measured up to 4 times during follow-up and used to compute eGFR. Incident CKD was defined as an eGFR decline >= 30\% from baseline and a resulting eGFR<60 ml/min/1.73 m2. Time-varying Cox models assessed the association of serial TMAO measures with incident CKD, adjusting for sociodemographic, lifestyle, diet, and cardiovascular disease risk factors. Linear mixed models assessed the association with annualized eGFR change in 10,009 participants with at least one follow-up eGFR measure without exclusions for baseline eGFR levels.

RESULTS: During a median follow-up of 9.4 years (interquartile range: 9.1-11.6 years), 979 incident CKD events occurred. Higher TMAO levels associated with higher risk of incident CKD (2nd to 5th vs. 1st quintile HR[95\%CI]= 1.65 [1.22-2.23], 1.68 [1.26-2.25], 2.28 [1.72-3.02], and 2.24[1.68-2.98], respectively) and greater annualized eGFR decline ( 2nd to 5th vs. 1st quintile annualized eGFR change= -0.21 [-0.32, -0.09], -0.17 [-0.29, -0.05], -0.35 [-0.47, -0.22], and -0.43[-0.56, -0.30], respectively) with monotonic dose-response relationships. These associations were consistent across different racial/ethnic groups examined. The association with eGFR decline was similar to or larger than that seen for established CKD risk factors including diabetes, per 10 mmHg of higher systolic blood pressure, per 10 years of older age, and Black race.

CONCLUSIONS: In community-based US adults, higher serial measures of plasma TMAO were associated with higher risk of incident CKD and greater annualized kidney function decline.

}, issn = {1533-3450}, doi = {10.1681/ASN.0000000000000344}, author = {Wang, Meng and Tang, W H Wilson and Li, Xinmin S and de Oliveira Otto, Marcia C and Lee, Yujin and Lemaitre, Rozenn N and Fretts, Amanda and Nemet, Ina and Sotoodehnia, Nona and Sitlani, Colleen M and Budoff, Matthew and DiDonato, Joseph A and Wang, Zeneng and Bansal, Nisha and Shlipak, Michael G and Psaty, Bruce M and Siscovick, David S and Sarnak, Mark J and Mozaffarian, Dariush and Hazen, Stanley L} }