Markers of inflammation, vitamin E and peripheral nervous system function: the InCHIANTI study.
BACKGROUND
Aging of the peripheral nervous system is associated with several morphologic and functional changes, including a decrease of the nerve conduction velocity. There is evidence that these changes contribute to age-related-decline in muscle strength, sensory discrimination, and autonomic responses. The aim of this study was to characterize the decline in nerve conduction velocity in the peripheral nervous system over the aging process and to identify factors that, independent of age, affect nerve conduction velocity.


METHODS
We measured motor nerve conduction velocity of the right superficial peroneal nerve using a standard neurophysiologic technique in a population-based sample of subjects aged between 20 and 103 years old enrolled in the InCHIANTI study.


RESULTS
Average conduction velocities in the peripheral nerve decreased linearly with age in both sexes. We found that diabetes, cognitive impairment, uric acid, sIL-6R and alpha-tocopherol were significant predictors of nerve conduction velocity independently of the potential confounding effect of age, sex, sex x age interaction term, height, lymphocytes, neutrophils number, alpha1 and alpha2-globulin serum protein.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings are consistent with the hypothesis that inflammation and inadequate antioxidant defenses are associated with accelerated decline of nerve conduction velocity over the aging process.
Di Iorio
Angelo
A
Laboratory of Clinical Epidemiology, Department of Medicine and Sciences of Aging, University G. D'Annunzio, Via dei Vestini 5, 66013 Chieti Scalo, Italy. a.diiorio@unich.it
Cherubini
Antonio
A
Volpato
Stefano
S
Sparvieri
Eleonora
E
Lauretani
Fulvio
F
Franceschi
Claudio
C
Senin
Umberto
U
Abate
Giuseppe
G
Paganelli
Roberto
R
Martin
Antonio
A
Andres-Lacueva
Cristina
C
Ferrucci
Luigi
L
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D015415:Biomarkers; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D016207:Cytokines / Q000097:blood; D004558:Electric Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D004576:Electromyography / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000378:metabolism*; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009431:Neural Conduction / Q000502:physiology*; D017933:Peripheral Nervous System / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D012737:Sex Factors; D014810:Vitamin E / Q000378:metabolism*
D015415:Biomarkers; D016207:Cytokines; D014810:Vitamin E