Amino-terminal pro-C-type natriuretic peptide is associated with arterial stiffness, endothelial function and early atherosclerosis.
OBJECTIVE
C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) is a paracrine molecule with effects on endothelial integrity, vascular tone and atherosclerotic process. Arterial stiffness, wave reflections, endothelial dysfunction and carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) are predictors of cardiovascular events. We investigated whether CNP is related to arterial structure and function in men.


METHODS
We evaluated arterial structural and functional characteristics in 117 consecutive men (mean age 57.3 + or - 9.2 years), with and without cardiovascular risk factors, who had no established cardiovascular disease. Arterial elastic properties were evaluated with carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV), wave reflections with augmentation index (AIx), endothelial function with flow-mediated dilatation of the brachial artery (FMD) and early atherosclerosis with carotid IMT. Amino-terminal proCNP (NT-proCNP) was assessed in venous blood.


RESULTS
The number of cardiovascular risk factors was inversely related to levels of NT-proCNP (P<0.01) and there was a progressive increase in Framingham risk score according to decreasing tertiles of NT-proCNP (P<0.001). In multivariable regression analysis NT-proCNP exhibited significant negative associations with PWV and IMT and positive association with FMD (all P<0.05) that were independent of age, blood pressure, smoking habits, body mass index, blood glucose, total triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein and endothelin-1 or high-sensitivity C-reactive protein. There was no relation between NT-proCNP and AIx.


CONCLUSIONS
The present study is the first to demonstrate in a global arterial approach relationship between CNP and functional and early structural arterial changes. These findings elucidate pathophysiological links and may have important clinical implications for the estimation of cardiovascular risk in men.
Vlachopoulos
Charalambos
C
Peripheral Vessels Unit, 1st Department of Cardiology, Hippokration Hospital, Athens Medical School, Profiti Elia 24, Athens 14575, Greece. cvlachop@otenet.gr
Ioakeimidis
Nikolaos
N
Terentes-Printzios
Dimitrios
D
Aznaouridis
Konstantinos
K
Baou
Katerina
K
Bratsas
Athanasios
A
Lazaros
Georgios
G
Stefanadis
Christodoulos
C
D000368:Aged; D001158:Arteries / Q000473:pathology*; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000097:blood* / Q000473:pathology; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000473:pathology; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000473:pathology; D004548:Elasticity / Q000502:physiology; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020098:Natriuretic Peptide, C-Type / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D012307:Risk Factors; D017539:Tunica Intima / Q000473:pathology; D017540:Tunica Media / Q000473:pathology
D020098:Natriuretic Peptide, C-Type