title: Predicting death from tumour necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-6 in 80-year-old people.
abstract: Ageing is associated with low-grade inflammation and markers such as IL-6 possess prognostic value. Tumour necrosis-alpha (TNF-alpha) initiates the inflammatory cascade and has been linked to several age-associated disorders. It remains, however, unknown if TNF-alpha is associated with mortality in old populations. The aim of the present study was to investigate if serum levels of TNF-alpha were associated with all-cause mortality independently of interleukin (IL)-6 in a prospective study of 333 relatively healthy 80-year-old people. A Cox regression model was used to explore effects of TNF-alpha and IL-6 on survival in the following 6 years. A total of 133 participants died during this follow-up period. TNF-alpha was associated with mortality in men, but not in women, whereas low-grade elevations in IL-6 were associated strongly with mortality in both sexes. TNF-alpha explained only 7% of the variability in IL-6 and effects of the two cytokines were independent of each other as well as of other traditional risk factors for death [smoking, blood pressure, physical exercise, total cholesterol, co-morbidity, body mass index (BMI) and intake of anti-inflammatory drugs]. These findings indicate that at least in old populations chronic elevated levels of TNF-alpha and IL-6 have different biological functions that trigger age-associated pathology and cause mortality.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases, H:S, Rigshospitalet, University of Copenhagen, Glostrup University Hospital, Denmark. infdishb@rh.dk
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bruunsgaard
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ladelund
authors.forename: A N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Pedersen
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schroll
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jørgensen
authors.forename: B K
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Pedersen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002423:Cause of Death; D015897:Comorbidity; D003643:Death; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D015996:Survival Rate; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D015850:Interleukin-6; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha