UCL Discovery
UCL home » Library Services » Electronic resources » UCL Discovery

Plasma ceramides independently predict all-cause mortality in men aged 85^{+}

Strandberg, Timo E; Kivimaki, Mika; Urtamo, Annele; Jyvakorpi, Satu; Laaksonen, Reijo; (2022) Plasma ceramides independently predict all-cause mortality in men aged 85^{+}. Age and Ageing , 51 (6) , Article afac136. 10.1093/ageing/afac136. Green open access

[thumbnail of afac136.pdf]
Preview
Text
afac136.pdf - Published Version

Download (345kB) | Preview

Abstract

BACKGROUND: assessing cardiovascular and mortality risk with conventional biomarkers is challenging in oldest-old due to multimorbidity and polypharmacy. Ceramides are bioactive lipids shown to predict mortality in late middle-aged cohorts. OBJECTIVE: to assess whether plasma ceramides have independent prognostic value for mortality among oldest-old (85+). DESIGN: longitudinal cohort study (Helsinki Businessmen Study, HBS) with a 3.5-year follow-up. SETTING AND SUBJECTS: survivors of HBS (125 men born in 1919-1934) visited the clinic for laboratory and clinical examination. METHODS: functional status including physical (short physical performance battery) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) cognitive performance was assessed and laboratory examinations included a large set of biomarkers. Plasma ceramide concentration (Cer(d18:1/16:0)) was measured using a targeted liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry assay. Mortality was retrieved from national registers. RESULTS: median age was 88 years, two-thirds had multimorbidity and 59% were on statin treatment. During the follow-up, 22 (18%) men died. In a model adjusted for variables associated with mortality in the whole cohort at P < 0.20 (log glucose, SPPB, MoCA and statin use), Cer(d18:1/16:0) as a continuous trait was associated with increased mortality: hazard ratio (HR) per 1 SD 1.64 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.23-2.18). Compared with the bottom tertile of Cer(d18:1/16:0), HR of mortality was 5.44-fold (95% CI 1.17-25.3) in the top tertile. CONCLUSIONS: these data raise the hypothesis that plasma ceramide concentrations and especially Cer(d18:1/1:60) may offer a clinically useful biomarker to evaluate prognosis in very old age. Such biomarkers are needed for geriatrics, where multimorbidity and pharmacotherapies, such as statins are prevalent hampering assessment of prognosis using conventional methods.

Type: Article
Title: Plasma ceramides independently predict all-cause mortality in men aged 85^{+}
Location: England
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1093/ageing/afac136
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afac136
Language: English
Additional information: © The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Geriatrics Society. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Keywords: Ceramides, elderly, mortality, risk factor
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health > Epidemiology and Public Health
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10154682
Downloads since deposit
44Downloads
Download activity - last month
Download activity - last 12 months
Downloads by country - last 12 months

Archive Staff Only

View Item View Item