title: Differential association of docosahexaenoic and eicosapentaenoic acids with carotid intima-media thickness.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Recent studies reported the differential effect of docosahexaenoic (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acids (EPA). We examined the differential association of DHA and EPA with carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) in Japanese individuals in Japan and in U.S. white individuals and explored whether DHA or EPA contributes to the difference in IMT between the two groups.
  
  
  METHODS
  A population-based cross-sectional study in 608 Japanese and U.S. white men aged 40 to 49 was conducted to assess IMT, serum DHA, EPA, and other cardiovascular risk factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Japanese compared to U.S. whites had significantly lower IMT (mean±SD, 618±81 and 672±94 μm for Japanese and whites, respectively; P<0.001) and had >2-fold higher levels of DHA and EPA. DHA, but not EPA, had an inverse association with IMT in both Japanese and U.S. whites. The inverse association remained only in Japanese men after adjusting for risk and other factors. The significant difference in multivariable-adjusted IMT became nonsignificant after further adjusting for DHA (mean difference, 17 μm; 95% CI, -8 to 43; P=0.177) but not EPA. In this multivariable-adjusted model, DHA but not EPA was a significant predictor of IMT (P=-0.032 versus 0.863, respectively).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data suggest that DHA may have a more potent antiatherogenic effect than EPA, especially in levels observed in the Japanese, independent of risk factors.
authors.affiliation: Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, 130 North Bellefield Avenue, Suite 546, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. akira@pitt.edu
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sekikawa
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kadowaki
authors.forename: Aiman
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: El-Saed
authors.forename: Tomonori
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Okamura
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sutton-Tyrrell
authors.forename: Yasuyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Rhobert W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Evans
authors.forename: Ken-Ichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mitsunami
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Edmundowicz
authors.forename: Yoshihiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nishio
authors.forename: Katsumi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakata
authors.forename: Aya
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kadota
authors.forename: Teruo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Otake
authors.forename: Katsuyuki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Miura
authors.forename: Jina
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Choo
authors.forename: Robert D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Abbott
authors.forename: Lewis H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Kuller
authors.forename: J David
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Curb
authors.forename: Hirotsugu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ueshima
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D044466:Asian People; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D002340:Carotid Artery Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids / Q000097:blood*; D015118:Eicosapentaenoic Acid / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010414:Pennsylvania; D012307:Risk Factors; D017539:Tunica Intima / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D017540:Tunica Media / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D044465:White People
chemical_list: D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids; D015118:Eicosapentaenoic Acid