Skin autofluorescence is associated with arterial stiffness and insulin level in endurance runners and healthy controls: Effects of aging and endurance exercise

TY - JOUR

T1 - Skin autofluorescence is associated with arterial stiffness and insulin level in endurance runners and healthy controls

T2 - Effects of aging and endurance exercise

AU - Couppé, Christian

AU - Dall, Christian Have

AU - Svensson, Rene Brüggebusch

AU - Olsen, Rasmus Huan

AU - Karlsen, Anders

AU - Praet, Stephan

AU - Prescott, Eva

AU - Magnusson, S Peter

N1 - Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

PY - 2017/5/1

Y1 - 2017/5/1

N2 - Background Life-long regular endurance exercise yields positive effects on cardiovascular and metabolic function, disease and mortality rate. Glycation may be a major mechanism behind age-related diseases. However, it remains unknown if skin autofluorescence (SAF), which reflects glycation, is related to arterial and metabolic function in life-long endurance runners and sedentary controls. Methods Healthy elderly men: 15 life-long endurance runners (OT) (64 ± 4 years) and 12 old untrained (OU) (66 ± 4 years), and healthy young men; ten young athletes (YT) (26 ± 4 years) matched to OT for running distance, and 12 young untrained (YU) (24 ± 3 years) were recruited. Endothelial function (reactive hyperemia index, RHI) and arterial stiffness (augmentation index, AI@75 and AI) were measured by an operator-independent PAT 2000. SAF was non-invasively determined using an autofluorescence spectrometer. Results For AI@75 there was an effect of age (p < 0.0001), but not training (p = 0.71). There was an interaction for endothelial function (p < 0.05): YT had higher RHI than YU (p < 0.05) and OU (p < 0.01). SAF was associated with arterial stiffness (r2 = 0.57, p < 0.001), insulin and HOMA-index levels after age correction (both r2 = 0.19, p < 0.05). Conclusions To our knowledge, these are the first data to show that skin autofluorescence (SAF) is linked to human arterial stiffness and insulin resistance in well-trained elderly and young men as well as sedentary controls. SAF may in the future be a helpful tool to predict vascular and metabolic dysfunction (early signs of aging and pathology). Surprisingly, endurance running only had modest effects on cardiovascular function compared to lean healthy controls.

AB - Background Life-long regular endurance exercise yields positive effects on cardiovascular and metabolic function, disease and mortality rate. Glycation may be a major mechanism behind age-related diseases. However, it remains unknown if skin autofluorescence (SAF), which reflects glycation, is related to arterial and metabolic function in life-long endurance runners and sedentary controls. Methods Healthy elderly men: 15 life-long endurance runners (OT) (64 ± 4 years) and 12 old untrained (OU) (66 ± 4 years), and healthy young men; ten young athletes (YT) (26 ± 4 years) matched to OT for running distance, and 12 young untrained (YU) (24 ± 3 years) were recruited. Endothelial function (reactive hyperemia index, RHI) and arterial stiffness (augmentation index, AI@75 and AI) were measured by an operator-independent PAT 2000. SAF was non-invasively determined using an autofluorescence spectrometer. Results For AI@75 there was an effect of age (p < 0.0001), but not training (p = 0.71). There was an interaction for endothelial function (p < 0.05): YT had higher RHI than YU (p < 0.05) and OU (p < 0.01). SAF was associated with arterial stiffness (r2 = 0.57, p < 0.001), insulin and HOMA-index levels after age correction (both r2 = 0.19, p < 0.05). Conclusions To our knowledge, these are the first data to show that skin autofluorescence (SAF) is linked to human arterial stiffness and insulin resistance in well-trained elderly and young men as well as sedentary controls. SAF may in the future be a helpful tool to predict vascular and metabolic dysfunction (early signs of aging and pathology). Surprisingly, endurance running only had modest effects on cardiovascular function compared to lean healthy controls.

KW - Adult

KW - Aged

KW - Aging/physiology

KW - Athletes

KW - Biomarkers/analysis

KW - Case-Control Studies

KW - Denmark

KW - Exercise Tolerance

KW - Fluorescence

KW - Glycation End Products, Advanced/analysis

KW - Healthy Volunteers

KW - Humans

KW - Insulins/blood

KW - Linear Models

KW - Male

KW - Middle Aged

KW - Reference Values

KW - Running

KW - Skin/pathology

KW - Vascular Stiffness

KW - Young Adult

U2 - 10.1016/j.exger.2017.02.002

DO - 10.1016/j.exger.2017.02.002

M3 - Letter

C2 - 28189699

SN - 0531-5565

VL - 91

SP - 9

EP - 14

JO - Experimental Gerontology

JF - Experimental Gerontology

ER -