Towards clinical application of GlycA and GlycB for early detection of inflammation associated with (pre)diabetes and cardiovascular disease: recent evidence and updates

Abstract

Summary Cardiometabolic diseases are associated with low-grade inflammation early in life and persists into old age. The long latency period presents opportunities for early detection, lifestyle modification and intervention. However, the performance of conventional biomarker assays to detect low-grade inflammation has been variable, particularly for early-stage cardiometabolic disorder including prediabetes and subclinical atherosclerotic vascular inflammation. During the last decade, the application of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy for metabolic profiling of biofluids in translational and epidemiological research has advanced to a stage approaching clinical application. Proton (1H)-NMR profiling induces no destructible physical changes to specimens, and generates quantitative signals from deconvoluted spectra that are highly repeatable and reproducible. Apart from quantitative analysis of amino acids, lipids/lipoproteins, metabolic intermediates and small proteins, 1H-NMR technology is unique in being able to detect composite signals of acute-phase and low-grade inflammation indicated by glycosylated acetyls (GlycA) and N-acetylneuraminic acid (sialic acid) moieties (GlycB). Different from conventional immunoassays that target epitopes and are susceptible to conformational variation in protein structure and binding, GlycA and GlycB signals are stable over time, and maybe complementary as well as superior to high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and other inflammatory cytokines. Here we review the physicochemical principles behind 1H-NMR profiling of GlycA and GlycB, and the available evidence supporting their potential clinical application for the prediction of incident (pre)diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and adverse outcomes.

Clinical prediction of wound re-epithelisation outcomes in non-severe burn injury using the plasma lipidome

“…For the RE group, lipid and lipoprotein profiles may be indicating a divergent systemic response to injury and an underlying lipid-mediated inflammatory mechanism compared to the DRE group (Figure 2, Figure 4). GlycB is a composite signal from the 5-N-acetyl methyl groups of sialic acid in glycosylated acute phase protein markers during inflammation [58]. GlycB and CRP can correlate [58] but numerous studies have identified that the two markers can reflect different inflammatory processes [59], as seen in conditions such as obesity [60], type 2 diabetes [61] and cardiovascular disease [59].…”

“…GlycB is a composite signal from the 5-N-acetyl methyl groups of sialic acid in glycosylated acute phase protein markers during inflammation [58]. GlycB and CRP can correlate [58] but numerous studies have identified that the two markers can reflect different inflammatory processes [59], as seen in conditions such as obesity [60], type 2 diabetes [61] and cardiovascular disease [59]. With the difference observed in GlycB and CRP levels (though not statistically significant) between RE and DRE (Figure S3) two differing inflammatory patterns may have triggered in response to the burn injury.…”