Nutrients 2017, 9(9), 1036; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu9091036
Red Blood Cell Eicosapentaenoic Acid Inversely Relates to MRI-Assessed Carotid Plaque Lipid Core Burden in Elders at High Cardiovascular Risk
Núria Bargalló 1,2, Rosa Gilabert 1, Edwin-Saúl Romero-Mamani 3, Montserrat Cofán 4,5
, Philip C. Calder 6,7, Montserrat Fitó 4,8, Dolores Corella 4,9, Jordi Salas-Salvadó 4,10, Miguel Ruiz-Canela 4,11, Ramon Estruch 3,4, Emilio Ros 4,5,† and Aleix Sala-Vila 4,5,†,*
, Philip C. Calder 6,7, Montserrat Fitó 4,8, Dolores Corella 4,9, Jordi Salas-Salvadó 4,10, Miguel Ruiz-Canela 4,11, Ramon Estruch 3,4, Emilio Ros 4,5,† and Aleix Sala-Vila 4,5,†,*
1
Radiology Department, Clinical Diagnostic Imaging Centre, Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August i Sunyer, Hospital Clínic, 08036 Barcelona, Spain; bargalloclinic.ub.es (N.B.)
2
Magnetic Resonance Image Core Facility, Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August i Sunyer, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
3
Department of Internal Medicine, Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August i Sunyer, Hospital Clínic, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
4
Ciber Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición , Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28039 Madrid, Spain
5
Lipid Clinic, Department of Endocrinology and Nutrition, Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August i Sunyer, Hospital Clínic, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
6
Human Development and Health Academic Unit, University of Southampton, Southampton SO16 6YD, UK
7
NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre, University Hospital Southampton NHS Fundation Trust, Southampton SO16 6YD, UK
8
Institut Hospital del Mar d'Investigacions Mèdiques, Barcelona Biomedical Research Park, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
9
Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Valencia, 46010 Valencia, Spain
10
Human Nutrition Department, Hospital Universitari Sant Joan, Institut d'Investigació Sanitaria Pere Virgili, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, 43201 Reus, Spain
11
Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Navarra, 31080 Pamplona, Spain
†
These authors contributed equaly to this paper.
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 5 July 2017 / Revised: 6 September 2017 / Accepted: 11 September 2017 / Published: 20 September 2017
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Health)
Abstract
Supplemental marine omega-3 eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) has an anti-atherosclerotic effect. Clinical research on EPA supplied by the regular diet and atherosclerosis is scarce. In the framework of the PREvención con DIeta MEDiterránea (PREDIMED) trial, we conducted a cross-sectional study in 161 older individuals at high vascular risk grouped into different stages of carotid atherosclerosis severity, including those without ultrasound-detected atheroma plaque (n = 38), with plaques <2.0 mm thick (n = 65), and with plaques ≥2.0 mm (n = 79). The latter were asked to undergo contrast-enhanced 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and were subsequently grouped into absence (n = 31) or presence (n = 27) of MRI-detectable plaque lipid, a main feature of unstable atheroma plaques. We determined the red blood cell (RBC) proportion of EPA (a valid marker of long-term EPA intake) at enrolment by gas chromatography. In multivariate models, EPA related inversely to MRI-assessed plaque lipid volume, but not to maximum intima-media thickness of internal carotid artery, plaque burden, or MRI-assessed normalized wall index. The inverse association between EPA and plaque lipid content in patients with advanced atherosclerosis supports the notion that this fatty acid might improve cardiovascular health through stabilization of advanced atheroma plaques. View Full-TextKeywords:
atherosclerosis; diet; fish; imaging; omega-3
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Bargalló, N.; Gilabert, R.; Romero-Mamani, E.-S.; Cofán, M.; Calder, P.C.; Fitó, M.; Corella, D.; Salas-Salvadó, J.; Ruiz-Canela, M.; Estruch, R.; Ros, E.; Sala-Vila, A. Red Blood Cell Eicosapentaenoic Acid Inversely Relates to MRI-Assessed Carotid Plaque Lipid Core Burden in Elders at High Cardiovascular Risk. Nutrients 2017, 9, 1036.
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