title: Could ADMA levels in young adults born preterm predict an early endothelial dysfunction?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Sporadic data present in literature report how preterm birth and low birth weight are risk factors for the development of cardiovascular diseases in later life. High levels of asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), a strong inhibitor of nitric oxide synthesis, are associated with the future development of adverse cardiovascular events and cardiac death.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  1) to verify the presence of a statistically significant difference between ADMA levels in young adults born preterm at extremely low birth weight (<1000 g; ex-ELBW) and those of a control group of healthy adults born at term (C) and 2) to seek correlations between ADMA levels in ex-ELBW and anthropometric and clinical parameters (gender, chronological age, gestational age, birth weight, and duration of stay in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit).
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-two ex-ELBW subjects (11 males [M] and 21 females [F], aged 17-29years, mean age 22.2 ± 2.3 years) were compared with 25 C (7 M and 18F). ADMA levels were assessed by high-performance liquid chromatography with highly sensitive laser fluorescent detection.
  
  
  RESULTS
  ADMA levels were reduced in ex-ELBW subjects compared to C (0.606+0.095 vs 0.562+0.101 μmol/L, p<0.05), and significantly correlated inversely with gestational age (r=-0.61, p<0.00001) and birth weight (r=-0.57, p<0.0002).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings reveal a significant decrease in ADMA levels of ex-ELBW subjects compared to C, underlining a probable correlation with preterm birth and low birth weight. Taken together, these results may underlie the onset of early circulatory dysfunction predictive of increased cardiovascular risk.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular and Neurological Sciences, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy. piercard@inwind.it
authors.forename: P P
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Bassareo
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Puddu
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Flore
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Deidda
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Manconi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Melis
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Fanos
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mercuro
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001120:Arginine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D052577:Infant, Extremely Low Birth Weight / Q000097:blood; D007230:Infant, Low Birth Weight / Q000097:blood*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D047928:Premature Birth / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology; D014652:Vascular Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: C018524:N,N-dimethylarginine; D001120:Arginine