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McDade TW, Giletta M, Miller AA, Krause KC, Michels N. Implementation of a minimally invasive cell culture system to measure the regulation of inflammation in a school-based sample of adolescents. Am J Hum Biol 2024; 36:e24077. [PMID: 38533793 DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.24077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2024] [Revised: 03/19/2024] [Accepted: 03/20/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Dysregulated inflammation underlies many human diseases, and measures of responsiveness to activation, and sensitivity to inhibition, provide important information beyond baseline assessments of chronic inflammation. This study implements a simplified cell culture protocol in a school-based setting, using finger stick capillary blood collected from 333 adolescents (age 11.4-15.6 years) incubated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Median cytokine responses for IL6, IL1β, and TNFα were 61.9, 26.2, and 11.2 pg/mL, respectively. Samples were also incubated with LPS and glucocorticoid (GC) to measure GC sensitivity. Median responses were reduced in the presence of GC inhibition for IL6 (20.3 pg/mL), IL1β (10.5 pg/mL), and TNFα (3.3 pg/mL). Minimally invasive cell culture protocols provide novel opportunities for measuring inflammatory phenotypes in a wide range of non-clinical settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas W McDade
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Matteo Giletta
- Department of Developmental, Personality and Social Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Aaron A Miller
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Keegan C Krause
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Nathalie Michels
- Department of Developmental, Personality and Social Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
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Vitzthum VJ, Thornburg J, McDade TW, Hicks KA, Miller A, Chester EM, Goodlett B, Caceres E, Spielvogel H. C-reactive protein (CRP) in high altitude Bolivian peri-urban adolescents varies by adiposity, current illness, height, socioeconomic status, sex, and menarcheal status: The potential benefits and costs of adipose reserves in arduous environments. Am J Hum Biol 2024:e24107. [PMID: 38828631 DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.24107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 06/05/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES In non-industrialized and low-income populations, adipose stores can serve as a valuable buffer against harsh conditions such as seasonal food scarcity. However, these reserves may incur costs due to adipocytes' production of pro-inflammatory cytokines; inflammation is associated with increased risk for cardiometabolic diseases later in life. Life history theory posits that, especially in populations with high juvenile mortality, higher adiposity may nonetheless be advantageous if its benefits in early life outweigh its later costs. Relatively little is known about adolescents' C-reactive protein concentration (CRP; an inflammation biomarker) in such environments. We investigated CRP and its associations with several hypothesized predictors in adolescents in an economically diverse peri-urban Andean community. METHODS We measured CRP in dried blood spots and collected data on anthropometrics, illnesses, socioeconomic status (SES), and menarcheal status in 59 female and 40 male adolescents ("Alteños", 11.0-14.9 years old) with normal vital signs in El Alto, Bolivia (~4150 m amsl). We used Cole's LMS method to standardize all anthropometrics for sex and age, and principal components analysis to construct a "fat-factor" variable loading on these standardized z-scores. We used multiple linear regression to assess the influence of fat-factor and other likely predictors on CRP rank. RESULTS Compared to a national Bolivian growth reference, Alteños were, on average, shorter and leaner; only 6% were classified as overweight and none were obese. Pre-menarche females were on average leaner than post-menarche females. The best-fitting model explained 24% of the variance in CRP rank. Significant predictors were fat-factor, SES, current illness for males and pre-menarche females, and z-height for females. CONCLUSIONS Our results are consistent with a tradeoff between investments in growth versus immune functioning, as might be expected in an environment with limited resources and high pathogen exposure (e.g., soil-transmitted helminths, poor sanitation). Thinner Alteños appear to maintain a minimum CRP concentration independent of fat-factor, while fatter (or less-thin) Alteños' CRP rises with fat-factor. Female Alteños appear to be trading off investment in immune response for investment in growth and maturation. Alteños' high rate of stunting and absence of obesity suggests chronic, presumably multifactorial, stress. Adipose stores likely buffer against some of these stressors and, in an environment such as this-in which many lack sufficient nutritious foods, potable water, adequate sewage, and health care-may confer a net lifetime benefit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Virginia J Vitzthum
- Department of Anthropology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA
- Department of Medicine, Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
- BKIS Orchards, Thetis Island, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Jonathan Thornburg
- BKIS Orchards, Thetis Island, British Columbia, Canada
- Center for Spacetime Symmetries, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA
| | - Thomas W McDade
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Kathryn A Hicks
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Aaron Miller
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
| | - Emily M Chester
- Department of Anthropology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA
| | - Baileigh Goodlett
- Human Biology Program, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA
| | | | - Hilde Spielvogel
- Instituto Boliviano de Biología de Altura (IBBA), La Paz, Bolivia
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