Objective

To investigate the contribution of biomarkers of glucose homeostasis (adiponectin, glucose, glycated albumin, and insulin levels) and inflammation (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 levels) to the risk of developing Alzheimer disease (AD) and all-cause dementia.

Design

Prospective cohort study.

Setting

Dementia-free Framingham Heart Study participants had sera measured for these biomarkers at the 19th biennial examination (1985–1988) and were followed up prospectively for the development of AD and all-cause dementia.

Participants

Eight hundred forty (541 women, median age of 76 years) subjects participated in the study.

Main Outcome Measures

We used sex-pooled and sex-specific multivariable Cox proportional hazards models adjusted for age, education, body mass index, recent change in weight, APOE ε4 allele status, and plasma docosahexaenoic acid levels to determine association of these biomarkers with the development of all-cause dementia and AD.

Results

Over a mean follow-up period of 13 years, 159 persons developed dementia (including 125 with AD). After adjustment for other risk factors, only adiponectin in women was associated with an increased risk of all-cause dementia (hazard ratio [HR], 1.29; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.00–1.66; P=.054) and AD (HR, 1.33; 95% CI, 1.00–1.76; P=.050) per 1-SD increase in adiponectin level. Women with baseline adiponectin values more than the median had a higher risk of all-cause dementia (HR, 1.63; 95% CI, 1.03–2.56; P=.04) and AD (HR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.13–3.10; P=.01) as compared with those with values less than the median.

Conclusion

In women, increased plasma adiponectin levels are an independent risk factor for the development of both all-cause dementia and AD.

Objectives

Familial combined hyperlipidemia (FCH) is a common familial lipid disorder characterized by increases in plasma total cholesterol, triglyceride and apolipoprotein B-100 levels. In light of prior metabolic and genetic research, our purpose was to ascertain whether FCH cases had significant abnormalities of plasma markers of cholesterol synthesis and absorption as compared to unaffected kindred members.

Methods and Results

Plasma levels of squalene, desmosterol and lathosterol (cholesterol synthesis markers) and campesterol, sitosterol and cholestanol (cholesterol absorption markers) were measured by gas-liquid chromatography in 103 FCH patients and 240 normolipidemic relatives (NLR). Squalene, desmosterol, and lathosterol levels were 6% (0.078), 31%, (p<0.001) and 51% (p<0.001) higher in FCH as compared to NLR, and these differences were especially pronounced in women. An interaction with obesity was also noted for a subset of these markers. We did not observe any apparent differences for the cholesterol absorption markers among FCH patients and NLR.

Conclusions

Our data indicate that both men and women with FCH have alterations in the cholesterol synthesis pathway, resulting in 51% higher levels of lathosterol (and additionally desmosterol in women). Plasma levels of the cholesterol precursor sterol squalene were only slightly increased (6%), suggesting enhanced conversion of squalene to lathosterol in this disorder.