Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2012 Mar;120(3):361-6.
doi: 10.1289/ehp.1103467. Epub 2011 Dec 5.

Lead concentrations in relation to multiple biomarkers of cardiovascular disease: the Normative Aging Study

Junenette L Peters  1 , Laura D Kubzansky, Ai Ikeda, Shona C Fang, David Sparrow, Marc G Weisskopf, Robert O Wright, Pantel Vokonas, Howard Hu, Joel Schwartz
Affiliations

Lead concentrations in relation to multiple biomarkers of cardiovascular disease: the Normative Aging Study

Junenette L Peters et al. Environ Health Perspect. 2012 Mar.

Abstract

Background: Lead exposure has been associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) in animal and human studies. However, the mechanisms of action have not been fully elucidated. We therefore examined the relationship between lead and multiple biomarkers of CVD.

Methods: Participants were older men from the Normative Aging Study without preexisting coronary heart disease, diabetes, or active infection at baseline (n = 426). Serum biomarkers included lipid profile [total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and triglycerides] and inflammatory markers [C-reactive protein, intercellular adhesion molecule-1, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor receptor-2 (TNF-R2)]. We measured lead in blood and in bone by K-shell X-ray fluorescence. In this sample, 194 men (44.3%) had two or more repeated measures, resulting in 636 observations for analysis. We conducted analyses using mixed effects models with random subject intercepts.

Results: Lead levels were associated with several CVD biomarkers, including levels of TNF-R2 and lipid markers. Specifically, in multivariable models, a 50% increase in blood lead level was associated with 26% increased odds of high TNF-R2 levels (> 5.52 ng/mL; odds ratio = 1.26; 95% confidence interval: 1.09, 1.45). There were positive associations of blood lead level with total cholesterol and HDL levels, and these associations were more evident when modeled as continuous outcomes than when categorized using clinically relevant cut points. In addition, longitudinal analyses indicated a significant increase in TNF-R2 levels over time to be associated with high blood lead level at the preceding visit.

Conclusions: Blood lead level may be related with CVD in healthy older men through its association with TNF-R2 levels. In addition, the magnitude of the association of blood lead level with TNF-R2 level increased with age in the study population.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare they have no actual or potential competing financial interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow chart of participants. CHD, coronary heart disease. aTotal cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides, hs-CRP, ICAM-1. bhs-CRP > 10 mg/L.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Ademuyiwa O, Ugbaja RN, Idumebor F, Adebawo O.2005Plasma lipid profiles and risk of cardiovascular disease in occupational lead exposure in Abeokuta, Nigeria. Lipids Health Dis 419; doi: 10.1186/1476-511X-4-19[Online 28 September 2005] - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bhatnagar A. Environmental cardiology: studying mechanistic links between pollution and heart disease. Circ Res. 2006;99(7):692–705. - PubMed
    1. Burger DE, Milder FL, Morsillo PR, Adams BB, Hu H. Automated bone lead analysis by K-X-ray fluorescence for the clinical environment. Basic Life Sci. 1990;55:287–292. - PubMed
    1. Cheng Y, Schwartz J, Sparrow D, Aro A, Weiss ST, Hu H. Bone lead and blood lead levels in relation to baseline blood pressure and the prospective development of hypertension: the Normative Aging Study. Am J Epidemiol. 2001;153(2):164–171. - PubMed
    1. Chobanian AV, Bakris GL, Black HR, Cushman WC, Green LA, Izzo JL, Jr, et al. The Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure: the JNC 7 report. JAMA. 2003;289(19):2560–2572. - PubMed

Publication types