title: Relation Between Circulating Inflammatory Chemokines and Vascular Characteristics in Healthy, Young Children.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Atherosclerosis begins in childhood with the occurrence of inflammatory vascular wall alterations that are detectable with B-mode ultrasound. Chemokines appear to be involved in the development of these alterations given that they occur early in the atherosclerotic pathway as mediators of vascular inflammation. However, this has not extensively been investigated. Therefore, we studied in healthy young children whether chemokines monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1), regulated on activation normal T-cell expressed and secreted (RANTES), and vascular and intercellular adhesion molecules (VCAM and ICAM) related to vascular characteristics of the carotid artery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We obtained demography, anthropometry, and overnight fasting plasma of 139 eight-year-old children of the Wheezing Illnesses Study Leidsche Rijn birth cohort. Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT), distensibility, and Young's Elastic Modulus (YEM) of the common carotid artery were measured sonographically. Chemokine plasma levels were assessed using a multiplex assay. We studied the relation between the chemokines and vascular characteristics using multivariable linear regression analyses with adjustments for sex, systolic blood pressure, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein- and high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol. Of the studied chemokines, RANTES related to common carotid distensibility and YEM. One standard deviation increase in RANTES level related to a 5.45-MPA(-1) (95% confidence interval [CI], -9.43, -1.39; P=0.01) decrease in distensibility and to a 5.55-kPa increase in YEM (95% CI, 0.40, 10.85; P=0.03). RANTES did not relate to CIMT. MCP-1, VCAM, and ICAM did not relate to any of the studied vascular characteristics.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  RANTES appears to be involved in the development of preatherosclerotic inflammatory vascular alterations already in healthy, young children. This may provide further insight into the early-life origins of atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (A.M.E.).
authors.forename: Anouk L M
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Eikendal
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (A.V.E., C.K.E.).
authors.forename: Annemieke M V
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Evelein
authors.affiliation: Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (C.M.U., M.L.B., G.W.D.).
authors.forename: Cuno S P M
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Uiterwaal
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (A.V.E., C.K.E.).
authors.forename: Cornelis K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: van der Ent
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Medicine, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (F.J.V.).
authors.forename: Frank L J
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Visseren
authors.affiliation: Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (C.M.U., M.L.B., G.W.D.).
authors.forename: Michiel L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Bots
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Cardiology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (I.E.H., H.M.R.).
authors.forename: Imo E
authors.initials: IE
authors.lastname: Hoefer
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Cardiology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (I.E.H., H.M.R.).
authors.forename: Hester M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: den Ruijter
authors.affiliation: Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (C.M.U., M.L.B., G.W.D.).
authors.forename: Geertje W
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Dalmeijer
mesh_terms: D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000209:etiology; D001794:Blood Pressure; D017536:Carotid Artery, Common / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D059168:Carotid Intima-Media Thickness; D015815:Cell Adhesion Molecules / Q000097:blood; D018932:Chemokine CCL2 / Q000097:blood; D018946:Chemokine CCL5 / Q000097:blood; D018925:Chemokines / Q000097:blood*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D008075:Lipoproteins, HDL / Q000097:blood; D008077:Lipoproteins, LDL / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood; D019010:Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: C111835:CCL2 protein, human; D015815:Cell Adhesion Molecules; D018932:Chemokine CCL2; D018946:Chemokine CCL5; D018925:Chemokines; D008075:Lipoproteins, HDL; D008077:Lipoproteins, LDL; D014280:Triglycerides; D019010:Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule-1
keywords: arteriosclerosis; inflammation; pediatrics; risk factors; ultrasonography