Effect of ageing on plasma lipoprotein(a) levels.
BACKGROUND
Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] is a risk factor for atherosclerosis and increases with age. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of ageing on Lp(a) for three different apo(a) phenotypes.


METHODS
We measured plasma Lp(a) concentrations in 551 unrelated Japanese subjects (20-88 years of age). We performed statistical analyses separately for three apo(a) phenotypes: the low-molecular-weight (LMW) phenotype with the F, B or S1 isoform, the intermediate-molecular-weight (IMW) phenotype with the S2 isoform and the high-molecular-weight (HMW) phenotype with the S3 or S4 isoform.


RESULTS
For each phenotype, the mean plasma Lp(a) concentration and the frequency of Lp(a) concentrations > or = 250 mg/L increased with age. Further, a statistically significant difference was always found between the younger subjects (20-39 years of age) and the elderly (over 60 years). The frequency of coronary heart disease increased with age, particularly for the LMW and IMW phenotypes.


CONCLUSIONS
We conclude that ageing elevates plasma Lp(a) concentrations, which may have a role in the prevalence of coronary heart disease in the elderly, especially those with the LMW or IMW phenotypes.
Akita
Harukuni
H
Department of Laboratory Medicine, Hokkaido University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.
Matsubara
Miyao
M
Shibuya
Hitoshi
H
Fuda
Hirotoshi
H
Chiba
Hitoshi
H
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000097:blood*; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D017270:Lipoprotein(a) / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
D017270:Lipoprotein(a)