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In the healthy octogenarians, higher SUA levels are associated with vascular inflammation (hs-CRP) but not with coronary atherosclerosis (CAC); markers for the subclinical CVD.

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BackgroundReduced zinc intake has been related to atherogenesis and arteriosclerosis. We verified this assumption in very old individuals, which are particularly prone to both zinc deficiency and structural and functional changes in the arterial wall.MethodsSubjects (n = 201, 80–102 years) with uneventful cardiovascular history and who were not in use of anti-inflammatory treatments in the last 30-days were enrolled. Daily intake of zinc, lipid profile, plasma C-reactive protein (CRP), plasma zinc, flow-mediated dilation (FMD), carotid ultrasonography and cardiac computed tomography were obtained. Young's Elastic Modulus, Stiffness Index and Artery Compliance were calculated.ResultsThere was no significant difference in clinical or laboratorial data between subjects grouped according to plasma zinc tertile, except for CRP (p = 0.01) and blood leukocytes (p = 0.002), of which levels were higher in the upper tertiles. The average daily intake of zinc was not significantly correlated with zinc or CRP plasma levels.The plasma zinc/zinc intake ratio was inversely correlated with plasma CRP levels (− 0.18; p = 0.01). There was no significant difference between the plasma zinc tertiles and FMD, carotid intima–media thickness, coronary calcium score, carotid plaque presence, remodeled noncalcified coronary plaques, or low-attenuation noncalcified coronary plaques.ConclusionAlthough plasma zinc level is inversely related to systemic inflammatory activity, its plasma levels of daily intake are not associated to alterations in structure or function of the arterial wall.General significanceIn the very elderly plasma concentrations or daily intake of zinc is not related to endothelial dysfunction, arteriosclerosis or atherosclerotic burden at coronary or carotid arteries.

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Excessive sodium intake increases oxidative stress, inflammatory response, myocardial stretching and dilatation, and short and long-term mortality after STEMI.

The present study confirms in a healthy cohort of individuals aged of 80 years or more that while the association between LDL-C and coronary atherosclerosis weakens with aging, the opposite occurs with the levels of HDL-C.

RUNNING TITLECholesterol efflux capacity and atherosclerosis in elderly. ABBREVIATIONSANCOVA, analysis of covariance; CAC, coronary artery calcium; CEC, cholesterol efflux capacity; CRP, Creactive protein; HDL-C, HDL cholesterol; FMD, flow mediated dilation; IMT, intima-media thickness; LDL-C, LDL cholesterol; TC, total cholesterol; TL, telomere length; WHO, world health organization. AbstractSeveral studies revealed that traditional risk factors are less effective in predicting CVD risk in the elderly, suggesting the need to identify new biomarkers. Here we evaluated the association between serum cholesterol efflux capacity (CEC), an atheroprotective property of HDL recently identified as a novel marker of CVD risk, and atherosclerotic burden in a cohort of very old, healthy individuals. Serum CEC values were not significantly correlated neither with calcium score nor with markers of vulnerable plaque, such as positive remodeling, hypodensity, spotty calcification or napking-ring sign. In addition, no association was detected between CEC and telomere length, a marker of biological aging that has been linked to atherosclerosis extent. Interestingly, elderly subjects presented a remarkably higher CEC (+30.2%; p<0.0001) compared to values obtained from a cohort of sex-matched, free of cardiovascular events, middle-aged individuals. In conclusion, serum CEC is not related to traditional risk factors in very old, free of cardiovascular events subjects, but has significantly higher values compared to a healthy, younger population. Whether this improved HDL functionality may represent a protective factor in CVD onset has to be established in future studies.