title: Adiponectin and carotid intima-media thickness in the northern Manhattan study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Adiponectin is an insulin-sensitizing plasma protein expressed in adipose tissue and suggested to play a role in atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. Data are lacking on the relationship between adiponectin and carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) in ethnically heterogeneous populations. We examined the relationship between adiponectin and IMT, a marker of atherosclerosis, in a multiethnic cohort study of stroke risk factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were from the Northern Manhattan Study (N=1522, mean age 66±9 years, 60% female, 20% black, 18% white, 60% Hispanic). Adiponectin was measured from baseline plasma samples and IMT was assessed by high-resolution B-mode carotid ultrasound. Regression models were used to examine the association between adiponectin, assessed continuously and in quartiles, and IMT controlling for demographics and vascular risk factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean adiponectin level was 10.3±5.2 μg/mL (median, 9.2 μg/mL; range, 2.3-53.3 μg/mL), and the mean IMT was 0.91±0.08 mm. Adiponectin was inversely associated with IMT, even after controlling for demographics and vascular risk factors. Individuals in the first quartile of adiponectin had mean IMT that was on average 0.02 mm greater than those in the top quartile. The relationship between adiponectin and IMT appeared to be stronger among those with diabetes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings suggest that low adiponectin is associated with increased IMT in a multiethnic cohort and support a protective role for adiponectin in atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA. hgardener@med.miami.edu
authors.forename: Hannah
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Gardener
authors.forename: Charlotte
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sjoberg
authors.forename: Milita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Crisby
authors.forename: Ronald
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Goldberg
authors.forename: Armando
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mendez
authors.forename: Clinton B
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.forename: Mitchell S V
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Elkind
authors.forename: Ralph L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Sacco
authors.forename: Tatjana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Rundek
mesh_terms: D052242:Adiponectin / Q000097:blood*; D000368:Aged; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000097:blood* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D059168:Carotid Intima-Media Thickness; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008955:Models, Cardiovascular; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D020521:Stroke / Q000097:blood* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*
chemical_list: C499918:ADIPOQ protein, human; D052242:Adiponectin; D015415:Biomarkers