👤 Marlien Pieters

A fibre rich diet is linked to a healthier cardiometabolic profile and may promote fatty acid oxidation to lower acylcarnitine accumulation. This study aimed to determine whether total dietary fibre intake was related to cardiometabolic risk markers as well as acylcarnitine levels in apparently healthy adults, which concurrently may be related to blood pressure (BP). This study included 983 adults from the African-PREDICT study (aged 24 ± 3 years). Total fibre intake was determined using 24-hr dietary recalls, and 24-hr ambulatory BP was measured. Acylcarnitines were analysed in spot urine samples using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry-based metabolomics. Lower dietary fibre intake was related to a higher waist circumference (WC) and body mass index (BMI) as well as higher total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), triglycerides, Apo-lipoprotein-B, C-reactive protein (CRP), free carnitine, and short-chain acylcarnitine (C2-, C4- and C5-carnitine) levels (all p trend <0.05). Concurrently, all traditional cardiometabolic risk markers (WC, BMI, total cholesterol, LDL-C, triglycerides, Apo-B, and CRP) correlated positively with 24-hr BP. In multiple regression analyses, 24-hr SBP was associated with WC (β = 0.44; p < 0.001) and total energy intake (β = 0.096; p = 0.002), while 24-hr DBP was associated with WC (β = 0.283; p < 0.001), triglyceride levels (β = 0.085 p = 0.008), dietary fibre intake (β = -0.120; p < 0.001) and total energy intake (β = 0.128; p < 0.001). There was no relationship between acylcarnitine levels and 24-hr BP. We demonstrate that participants consuming a higher fibre diet had a more favourable metabolic profile than those consuming a low fibre diet, which was ultimately associated with lower BP. Show less

Case-control, intervention and laboratory studies have demonstrated a link between apolipoprotein B (ApoB)-containing lipoproteins and clot structure and thrombosis. There is, however, limited evidence on a population level. We determined the cross-sectional relationship between lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and ApoB with fibrinogen and plasma clot properties in 1462 Black South Africans, a population with higher fibrinogen and Lp(a) levels compared with individuals of European descent. Data were obtained from participants in the South African arm of the Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiology study. Clot properties analyzed included lag time, slope, maximum absorbance, and clot lysis time (turbidity). Lp(a) was measured in nM using particle-enhanced immunoturbidimetry. General linear models (GLM) were used to determine the associations between ApoB and ApoB-containing lipoproteins with fibrinogen and plasma clot properties. Stepwise regression was used to determine contributors to clot properties and Lp(a) variance. GLM and regression results combined, indicated fibrinogen concentration and rate of clot formation (slope) had the strongest association with Lp(a); clot density associated positively with both Lp(a) and LDL-C; time to clot formation associated negatively with ApoB; and clot lysis time (CLT) demonstrated strong positive associations with both ApoB and LDL-C, while its association with Lp(a) was fibrinogen concentration dependent. These findings suggest that ApoB and the lipoproteins carrying it contribute to prothrombotic clot properties in Africans on an epidemiological level and highlight potential novel prothrombotic roles for these (apo)lipoproteins to be considered for the development of targeted therapeutic approaches to address thrombotic conditions related to clot properties. Show less