Serum total bilirubin concentrations are inversely associated with total white blood cell counts in an adult population

Bilirubin in metabolic syndrome and associated inflammatory diseases: New perspectives

Diabetes mellitus is one of the major global health issues, which is closely related to metabolic dysfunction and the chronic inflammatory diseases. Multiple studies have demonstrated that serum bilirubin is negatively correlated with metabolic syndrome and associated inflammatory diseases, including atherosclerosis, hypertension, etc. However, the roles of bilirubin in metabolic syndrome and associated inflammatory diseases still remain unclear. Here, we explain the role of bilirubin in metabolic syndrome and chronic inflammatory diseases and its therapeutic potential. Understanding the role of bilirubin activities in diabetes may serve as a therapeutic target for the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases in diabetic patients.

Serum bilirubin is negatively associated with white blood cell count

OBJECTIVE

Bilirubin is considered an important antioxidant, anti-inflammatory factor and immunomodulator. The current investigation aimed to explore the association between bilirubin and white blood cell (WBC) count in a large Chinese cohort.

METHODS

A total of 61091 participants (29259 males, 31832 females) were recruited from a Chinese tertiary hospital. Data were sorted by sex, and the association between bilirubin and WBC count was analyzed after dividing bilirubin levels into quartiles.

RESULTS

Most parameters (including age, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, alanine aminotransferase, total bilirubin, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, uric acid, triglycerides and WBC count) were significantly higher in men than in women. Bilirubin displayed significant negative relationships with most other measured variables. Linear logistic regression analysis further indicated their negative relationships. Females showed a significantly higher frequency of leucopenia than males. Significant associations of leucopenia with high bilirubin quartiles were shown in binary logistic regression models for both sexes, with a much closer association in men than in women. For instance, for men with bilirubin levels in quartile 4, the adjusted likelihood of leucopenia was 1.600-times higher than that of men with values in quartile 1. For women with bilirubin levels in quartile 4, the adjusted likelihood of leucopenia was 1.135-times higher than that of women with values in quartile 1.

CONCLUSION

Bilirubin is negatively related to WBC count. Significant associations exist between leucopenia and high bilirubin quartiles, and these associations are more obvious in men than in women.

The association between total bilirubin and serum triglyceride in both sexes in Chinese

OBJECTIVE

Dyslipidemia can cause some chronic diseases. Bilirubin is reported to have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties. We aimed to explore the relationship between triglyceride and total bilirubin (TB) in a large Chinese cohort.

METHODS

A total of 80,298 healthy Chinese (48,971 male, 31,327 female) enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Clinical data were collected from participants. Database was divided according to sex and age. The relationship between triglyceride and TB was analyzed by quartiles of TB. Levels of triglyceride were compared in different TB subgroups by one-way analysis of variance and independent sample's t-test. Crude and adjusted odds ratios of triglyceride for TB with 95% confidence intervals were analyzed by binary logistic regression models.

RESULTS

Overall, men showed higher levels of TB and triglyceride than women. In people older than 60 years, women had higher triglyceride levels than men. Linear logistic regression analyses showed a negative relationship between triglyceride and TB in both genders. Men showed significantly higher overall incidence of high triglyceride than women. Men less than 60 years old showed a higher incidence of high triglyceride. For women older than 60 years, the incidence of high triglyceride was higher. However, high TB showed no protective effects on both genders from high TG in the binary logistic regression models. TB showed a detrimental effect on high TG in model 2 which included TB as a covariate. But that effect disappeared after other confounding factors were included.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings showed no association between TB and triglyceride in Chinese.

Age and sex differences in the relationship between neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and chronic kidney disease among an adult population in Taiwan

BACKGROUND

This study investigated the association between systemic inflammation and chronic kidney disease (CKD), and whether this association changes with aging in adults, by using neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) as an inflammation marker.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 2954 adults (1815 men and 1139 women) who attended a health examination at a medical center in central Taiwan were included for the final cross-sectional analysis.

RESULTS

Compared with participants aged <60 years, participants aged ≥60 years had a markedly higher prevalence rate of CKD in both men (7.6% vs. 37.8%, p < .001) and women (3.8% vs. 28.0%, p < .001). In men aged <60 years, multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that, after adjusting for conventional CKD risk factors, higher NLR (per 1 unit increment) was independently associated with higher risk of CKD [adjusted OR = 1.48 (95% C.I.: 1.10 to 1.99, p = .009)]. There was no such association in both men and women aged ≧60 years, and woman aged <60 years.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study showed a differential effect that aging has on the relationship between NLR and CKD in men but not in women. Being inexpensive and readily available, NLR may potentially be used for CKD risk assessment in men younger than 60 years of age.

Genetic analysis of quantitative traits in the Japanese population links cell types to complex human diseases

Clinical measurements can be viewed as useful intermediate phenotypes to promote understanding of complex human diseases. To acquire comprehensive insights into the underlying genetics, here we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 58 quantitative traits in 162,255 Japanese individuals. Overall, we identified 1,407 trait-associated loci (P < 5.0 × 10^-8), 679 of which were novel. By incorporating 32 additional GWAS results for complex diseases and traits in Japanese individuals, we further highlighted pleiotropy, genetic correlations, and cell-type specificity across quantitative traits and diseases, which substantially expands the current understanding of the associated genetics and biology. This study identified both shared polygenic effects and cell-type specificity, represented by the genetic links among clinical measurements, complex diseases, and relevant cell types. Our findings demonstrate that even without prior biological knowledge of cross-phenotype relationships, genetics corresponding to clinical measurements successfully recapture those measurements' relevance to diseases, and thus can contribute to the elucidation of unknown etiology and pathogenesis.

Relationship Between Total Serum Bilirubin Levels and Carotid and Femoral Atherosclerosis in Familial Dyslipidemia

Objective—

Bilirubin is a potent antioxidant that has been inversely related to cardiovascular disease. There is little information on serum total bilirubin (TB) in relation to atherosclerosis in familial dyslipidemia. We assessed the association between TB and carotid and femoral atherosclerosis in this high-risk group.

Approach and Results—

We evaluated 464 individuals with familial dyslipidemia (56% men; median age, 48 years), 322 with familial hypercholesterolemia, and 142 with familial combined hyperlipidemia. Carotid and femoral arteries were imaged bilaterally with a standardized ultrasonographic protocol. Mean and maximum intima-media thickness and plaque presence (≥1.2 mm) and height were recorded. Cross-sectional associations between TB and atherosclerosis variables were investigated in multivariable-adjusted models, including lipid values and hypolipidemic drug use. Inflammatory markers (C-reactive protein, total leukocyte count, and lipoprotein[a]) were also determined. Increasing TB levels were associated with decreasing intima-media thickness of all carotid segments ( P <0.05, all). TB also related to carotid plaque, present in 78% of individuals, and to plaque burden (≥3 plaques), with odds ratios (95% confidence interval) 0.59 (0.36–0.98) and 0.57 (0.34–0.96) for each increase of 0.5 mg in TB, respectively. Findings were confirmed in a validation cohort of 177 subjects with nonfamilial dyslipidemia. Only the familial combined hyperlipidemia group, with higher inflammation-related markers, showed an inverse association between TB and femoral plaque height (β=−0.183; P =0.030).

Conclusions—

TB was inversely and independently associated with carotid plaque burden in familial and nonfamilial dyslipidemia. These findings support the use of TB as a biomarker of atherosclerosis in this high-risk group.