High levels of saturated very long-chain fatty acid (hexacosanoic acid; C26:0) in whole blood are associated with metabolic syndrome in Japanese men.
OBJECTIVE
Hexacosanoic acid (C26:0) is a saturated very long-chain fatty acid and high levels of C26:0 in red blood cells are reported to be closely related with risk factors of atherosclerosis. However, the relationship between absolute levels of C26:0 in whole blood and metabolic syndrome (MS) has not been determined.


METHODS
We divided 218 consecutive apparently healthy male subjects into an MS group (n=78) and a non-MS group (n=140) according to the definition of the International Diabetes Federation. The levels of C26:0 in whole blood were measured by gas liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.


RESULTS
The MS group had significantly higher levels of C26:0 than the non-MS group (2.42+/-0.31mug/ml vs. 2.25+/-0.29mug/ml, P=0001). There was a significant association between the levels of C26:0 and the number of factors of MS. The levels of C26:0 positively correlated with age, blood pressure, triglyceride and fasting plasma glucose. Multivariate analysis revealed that the level of C26:0 is still an independent variable for the presence of MS after adjustment for age and each criterion of MS.


CONCLUSIONS
The absolute levels of C26:0 in whole blood appear to be associated with MS independent of its component parts.
Kume
Atsumi
A
Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Juntendo University School of Medicine, 2-1-1Hongo Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan.
Miyazaki
Tetsuro
T
Kitamura
Yohei
Y
Oshida
Kyoichi
K
Yanagisawab
Naotake
N
Takizawa
Hirotaka
H
Fujii
Kiyotaka
K
Kiyanagi
Takashi
T
Sumiyoshi
Katsuhiko
K
Ohmura
Hirotoshi
H
Mokuno
Hiroshi
H
Shimada
Kazunori
K
Daida
Hiroyuki
H
D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001794:Blood Pressure; D001827:Body Height; D001835:Body Weight; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000097:blood*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012016:Reference Values
D015415:Biomarkers; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D005227:Fatty Acids; D008055:Lipids; C017364:hexacosanoic acid