Aim:Moderate alcohol consumption appears to confer some protection against coronary heart disease, which is related to an increase in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). The genotype of aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) is closely related to alcohol metabolism but a relationship between ALDH2 genotypes and HDL-C levels has not been proven. We undertook a large-scale correlation study between HDL-C levels and ALDH2 genotype among Japanese non-drinkers to investigate the possibility that HDL-C levels could be associated with ALDH2 genotype.
Methods:We examined a population-based sample of Japanese subjects who do not consume alcohol (n=1,736) to investigate the relationship between ALDH2 genotypes and lipid or lipoprotein concentrations in serum. We also investigated whether an association between ALDH2 genotype and HDL-C levels might be found in another Japanese sample.
Results:In an independent population of non-drinkers from a different geographical region of Japan, HDL-C levels were associated with the same ALDH2 genotypes.
Conclusions:The results of the present study suggested that genetic variation in the ALDH2 gene can influence HDL-C levels, independent of alcohol consumption.

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Several lines of evidence have demonstrated that C-reactive protein (CRP) is associated with oxidative stress; however, the precise co-localization between CRP and oxidative stress markers in atherosclerotic lesions is not fully established. In this study, we focused on two oxidative stress markers, dityrosine (DY) and N^ε-(hexanoyl)lysine (HEL), which had not previously been investigated in relation to CRP in atherosclerotic lesions.
Aim: We investigated the production and localization of DY, HEL, and CRP in early-stage and moderately progressed fatty lesions of cholesterol-fed rabbits by immunohistochemistry using specific monoclonal antibodies to examine the co-localization between CRP and oxidative stress in atherosclerotic lesions.
Methods: Rabbit atherosclerotic specimens were obtained from New Zealand White rabbits fed a diet containing 1.0% cholesterol for 12 weeks. All specimens were fixed in formalin for histological examinations.
Results: CRP-positive cells in rabbit early-stage and moderately progressed fatty lesions were detected mostly in the macrophage-derived foam cell-rich areas. Both DY and HEL were also detected in foam cell-rich areas in both lesions, where they were primarily co-localized with CRP-positive cells.
Conclusion: Our results suggest that the generation of oxidative stress markers, DY and HEL, may be mediated by CRP in atherosclerotic lesions, and that CRP may be associated with oxidative stress in rabbit atherosclerotic lesions.

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Aim: The aim of this study is to develop a simple method for estimating visceral fat area (VFA) using medical examination data.
Methods: The study subjects were 100 males who had undergone medical examinations and computed tomography (CT) at the umbilicus level. Multiple regression analysis was conducted to estimate VFA. The Bland & Altman Method was used to examine the tendency for mean difference between VFA observed by CT and VFA estimated by medical examination data. We calculated cross-validation and sensitivity and specificity at VFA ≥ 100 cm².
Results: As a result of multiple regression analysis, the waist-height ratio (WHtR) and triglyceride (TG) were taken as independent variables (r=0.910). The Bland & Altman Method showed 0.00±63.88 cm². The cross-validation regression equation was r=0.889. Sensitivity was 0.833 and specificity was 0.900.
Conclusion: WHtR is a simple index used to diagnose the accumulation of VFA. It has been reported that TG, which increases with accumulating VFA, is a factor in hyperlipidemia; therefore, we consider the obtained independent variables to be appropriate. In addition, the regression equation showed high correlation and good results by cross-validation, the Bland & Altman Method, sensitivity, and specificity. We assert that VFA can be estimated using this method.

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Aim: We investigated postprandial changes of apolipoprotein (apo) B48 in type 2 diabetics at different stages of diabetic nephropathy in order to explore non-traditional lipid abnormalities in diabetic nephropathy.
Methods: Twenty-two healthy controls and 56 type 2 diabetics with normoalbuminuria (NA), microalbuminuria (MA), and overt albuminuria (OA) were enrolled. Blood samples were taken at 0, 1, 2, 4, 6 h after the ingestion of Test meal A (460 Kcal, 18 g fat). The maximal increase of triglyceride (TG) was 40% above baseline in controls and 17% above baseline in diabetics. The incremental area under the curve (iAUC) of TG, however, was comparable among controls and diabetics with NA, MA, and OA. The maximal increase of apoB48 was 92% above baseline in controls and 56-88% above baseline in diabetics. Apo B48-iAUC was significantly higher in diabetics than in controls, and diabetics with OA exhibited the highest apoB48-iAUC among the diabetic subgroups. Small dense low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) was elevated in diabetic nephropathy, and apoB48-iAUC was positively associated with the level of sd-LDL-C.
Conclusions: ApoB48 is a sensitive marker for postprandial lipemia, a condition which is significantly increased in diabetic nephropathy and associated with an increase of potent atherogenic sd- LDL particles.

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Aim: High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) is a predictor of cardiovascular events. Although oxidative stress may also be related to cardiovascular disease, there are few studies comparing the two. We therefore examined the association of hsCRP, serum lipids, and derivatives of reactive oxygen metabolites (D-ROMs) in coronary artery disease.
Methods: We measured the levels of serum lipids, hsCRP, plasma brain natriuretic peptides (BNP) and D-ROMs in 131 consecutive patients undergoing cardiac catheterization. We divided these subjects into three groups according to their levels of hsCRP.
Results: In group C (hsCRP>3.0 mg/L), mean levels of serum D-ROMs were significantly higher than in groups A (hsCRP<1.0 mg/L) and B (hsCRP 1.0 to 3.0 mg/L). Serum levels of D-ROMs and log (hsCRP) correlated in the total population (r=0.479, p<0.0001), and D-ROMs, HDL-C, LDL-C and log-transformed plasma BNP were independent predictors of hsCRP (p<0.0001).
Conclusion: We concluded that oxidative stress increases in patients at high risk for cardiovascular events based on their hsCRP.

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Aim: We investigated the parameters related to the progression of common carotid artery intima media thickness (IMT) in hemodialysis (HD) patients.
Methods: IMT was examined in 85 patients by ultrasonography at baseline and after 12 months. The difference in IMT between these two time points was calculated (ΔIMT). We defined ΔIMT≤0.00 as ‘progression’, and ΔIMT0.00 as ‘stable’. Body fat distribution was calculated on computed tomography. Total adiponectin (T-Ad) and high molecular weight adiponectin (H-Ad) were measured by ELISA.
Results: There were no significant differences between the two groups in all profiles except for the ratio of H-Ad to T-Ad (HMWR) at baseline. In the ‘progression’ group, IMT increased from 1.56±0.89 to 1.77±0.94 mm (p<0.001) and visceral fat area (60.3±30.7 to 69.2±37.5, cm²; p<0.01) increased. In the ‘stable’ group, HMWR increased from 31.3±5.4 to 37.6±7.3% (p<0.001). Multiple logistic regression analysis selected ΔHMWR (p=0.031, odds ratio=0.928) independently of IMT progression. The correlation coefficient was -0.254 (p=0.019) between ΔIMT and ΔHMWR.
Conclusions: We found that an increase in HMWR was related to the stable state of IMT in HD patients.

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