Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine [5-HT]) mediates vasoconstriction and induces the activation of platelets, which may promote atherosclerosis. Plasma 5-HT concentrations have been reported to be high in diabetic patients (1,2); this may be one of the underlying mechanisms of diabetes complications. The 5-HT 2A receptor has been identified in glomerular mesangial cells (3), suggesting involvement of 5-HT in the development of diabetic nephropathy through proliferation and matrix sysnthesis in mesangial lesions. Male sex is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (4). Moreover, elevated urinary albumin excretion (UAE) has been reported to be associated with increased risk of cardiovascular mortality (5). Few studies have examined the association between plasma 5-HT concentration and atherosclerosis (6). To our knowledge, a relationship between plasma 5-HT concentration and degree of UAE has never been explored in men with type 2 diabetes. In this study, we evaluated the relationships between plasma 5-hydroxyindole-3-acetic acid (5-HIAA), a derivative end product of 5-HT, concentration and degree of UAE, and markers of subclinical atherosclerosis, such as pulse wave velocity (PWV), anklebrachial index (ABI), carotid intimamedia thickness (IMT), or plaque score in men with type 2 diabetes.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS -The relationships of plasma 5-HIAA concentrations with degree of UAE and major cardiovascular risk factors were investigated in 205 consecutive men with type 2 diabetes recruited from the outpatient clinic at the Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine (Kyoto, Japan). Additionally, the relationships between plasma 5-HIAA concentration and PWV or ABI (n ϭ 160) and between plasma 5-HIAA concentration and IMT or plaque score (n ϭ 102) were investigated in a subgroup of patients.Plasma 5-HIAA concentrations (normal range 1.8 -6.1 ng/ml) were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. The intra-assay coefficients of variation (CVs) were 2.1, 2.0, and 0.9% for plasma 5-HIAA concentrations of 25.27, 41.30, and 95.09 ng/ml, respectively, and the interassay CVs were 3.9, 3.3, and 2.4% for plasma 5-HIAA concentrations of 7.45, 20.55, and 60.83 ng/ml, respectively. UAE was measured with an immunoturbidimetric assay. A mean value for UAE was determined from three urine collections. Patients were excluded if they were taking any medications that might affect plasma 5-HIAA concentrations (e.g., 5-HT receptor blockers). Approval for the study was obtained from the local research ethics committee, and informed consent was obtained from all participants. Brachial-ankle PWV and ABI were measured using a Colin Waveform Analyzer (form PWV/ABI; Colin Medical Technology, Komaki, Japan) (7). B-mode ultrasonographic imaging of the carotid artery was performed as previously described (8). Because plasma 5-HIAA concentration and UAE showed skewed distributions, log transformation of these values was carried out before performing correlation and regression analysis. The relationships between log (plasma 5-HI...