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Calcified atherosclerotic plaques inversely associated with plasma DKK1



DOI:10.1038/bonekey.2013.94

It is known that bone mineral density (BMD) and the formation of atherosclerotic arterial calcified plaques (CPs) demonstrate inverse relationships.

Register et al. studied a sample of 450 African American adults with type 2 diabetes with a mean age of 55.4 years and an average duration of diabetes of 10.3 years. Their objective was to determine the relationship between Dickkopf-1 (DKK1 – an endogenous bone formation inhibitor), trabecular volumetric BMD in the lumbar and thoracic vertebrae and CP formation in the aortoiliac, coronary and carotid arteries.

After adjusting for confounding factors such as sex, age, BMI, smoking, mean arterial blood pressure, hemaglobin A1c and LDL cholesterol, an inverse association was noted between expression of DKK1, CP in the aortoiliac and coronary arteries and albuminuria. DKK1 showed a trend towards an inverse relationship with CP in the carotid artery, but this did not reach significance. DKK1 showed no association with volumetric BMD in either the thoracic or the lumbar vertebrae.

Editor’s comment: The lack of an association between DKK1 and BMD is believed to be due to the presence of diabetes in the sample studied. More studies in other populations, including Europeans, are warranted.


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