Levels of asymmetrical dimethylarginine are predictive of brachial artery flow-mediated dilation 6 years later. The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study

Päivä, Hannu; Kähönen, Mika; Lehtimäki, Terho; Alfthan, Georg; Viikari, Jorma; Laaksonen, Reijo; Hutri-Kähönen, Nina; Laitinen, Tomi; Taittonen, Leena; Raitakari, Olli T.; Juonala, Markus

doi:10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2010.06.041

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Volume 212, Issue 2 , Pages 512-515, October 2010

Levels of asymmetrical dimethylarginine are predictive of brachial artery flow-mediated dilation 6 years later. The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study

Hannu Päivä
- Division of Emergency, University Hospital of Tampere, Tampere, Finland
- Department of Clinical Chemistry, Tampere University Hospital and University of Tampere Medical School, Tampere, Finland
- Corresponding author at: Division of Emergency, University Hospital of Tampere, PO Box 2000, 33521 Tampere, Finland. Tel.: +358 3 311 611; fax: +358 3 311 65346.
Mika Kähönen
- Department of Clinical Physiology, University of Tampere and Tampere University Hospital, Tampere, Finland
Terho Lehtimäki
- Department of Clinical Chemistry, Tampere University Hospital and University of Tampere Medical School, Tampere, Finland
- Medical School, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland
Georg Alfthan
- National Institute of Health and Welfare, Helsinki, Finland
Jorma Viikari
- Department of Medicine, University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
Reijo Laaksonen
- Department of Clinical Chemistry, Tampere University Hospital and University of Tampere Medical School, Tampere, Finland
- Department of Clinical Pharmacology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
Nina Hutri-Kähönen
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Tampere and Tampere University Hospital, Tampere, Finland
Tomi Laitinen
- Department of Clinical Physiology, University of Eastern Finland and Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland
Leena Taittonen
- Department of Pediatrics, Vaasa Central Hospital, Vaasa, Finland
Olli T. Raitakari
- Department of Medicine, University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Department of Clinical Physiology, Turku University Hospital and Research Centre of Applied and Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
Markus Juonala
- Department of Medicine, University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland

Received 9 May 2010; received in revised form 19 June 2010; accepted 21 June 2010. published online 23 July 2010.

Abstract

Aim

Plasma asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) is a novel risk factor for atherosclerosis and has been observed to associate with endothelial function in cross-section studies. In the present study our aim was to investigate whether plasma ADMA levels are predictive of brachial artery endothelial function in a prospective setting.

Methods and results

Using ultrasound we measured brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD) both in 2001 and 2007 in 1808 healthy subjects aged 24–39 years at baseline. Plasma methylarginines were determined by isocratic high-pressure liquid chromatography in 2001. In a multivariable model adjusted with brachial diameter and conventional cardiovascular risk factors, baseline ADMA levels had a significant inverse association with FMD measured 6 years later (β±SE: −1.89±0.69%, P=0.006).

Conclusions

We conclude that plasma ADMA can predict brachial artery FMD in subjects without prevalent atherosclerotic disease. These data suggest that plasma ADMA may have a determinative role in predicting endothelial function.

Keywords: Asymmetric dimethylarginine, Flow-mediated dilatation, Endothelium