Guo-Chong Chen’s research while affiliated with First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University and other places

Background Evidence for a potential link between dietary inflammatory potential and inflammatory bowel disease is limited, and the moderating role of genetic susceptibility remains to be assessed. Objective To evaluate energy-adjusted dietary inflammatory index (E-DII) for the associations with incident Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) and the role of genetic susceptibility. Methods A total of 205,706 UK Biobank participants who were aged 39–72 years and had no known CD or UC at baseline (2006–2010) were included. The E-DII score was calculated based on energy-adjusted average intakes of 33 food or nutrient items derived from up to five 24-hour dietary recalls. Multivariable Cox regression models were used estimate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence interval (CI) for incident CD and UC. Results During a median 12.3 years of follow-up, 382 incident CD and 798 incident UC cases were ascertained. A higher E-DII score was not associated with risk of CD (HR Q4 VS. Q1 = 1.28, 95% CI: 0.94–1.74; P-trend = 0.09) or UC (HR Q4 VS. Q1 = 1.10, 95% CI: 0.90–1.36; P-trend = 0.17). There was an interaction between the E-DII and the polygenic risk score (PRS) for CD on incident CD (P-interaction = 0.023), with an association only among participants with a high PRS (HR Q4 VS. Q1 = 1.64, 95% CI: 1.03–2.61) (P-interaction = 0.023). As compared with the participants with a low PRS for CD and a low E-DII score, participants with high levels of both scores had a particularly higher risk of CD (HR = 3.12; 95% CI: 1.74–5.60). Conclusions The association of dietary inflammatory potential with incident CD appears to be amplified by high genetic susceptibility to CD.

Background Social isolation and loneliness have been recognized as important psychosocial factors affecting human health. We aimed to examine the relationships of social isolation and loneliness with the likelihood of healthy aging among older women and men. Methods The prospective study included 13,782 female and 11,838 male participants who were aged 64 years or older and had no major chronic diseases during recruitment of the UK Biobank (2006–2010). All participants were eligible to survive to age 80 before the latest follow-up (December 2021). Healthy aging was defined as survival to age 80 without major chronic diseases. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to evaluate the associations of social isolation, loneliness and their combination with the likelihood of healthy aging. Results A total of 9130 women (58.77%) and 6406 men (41.23%) achieved healthy aging. After adjusting for age and race/ethnicity, social isolation was associated with a significantly 20% and 14% lower likelihood of healthy aging among women and men, respectively, whereas among both sexes the associations for loneliness were similar but statistically non-significant. Among women, the association between loneliness and healthy aging varied by social isolation status (Pinteraction = 0.031), with an inverse association limiting to women who were socially isolated (OR = 0.61; 95% CI: 0.43–0.87). Women with both social isolation and loneliness had a 48% (OR = 0.52; 95% CI: 0.37–0.73) lower likelihood of healthy aging as compared with women with neither, and this association remained after adjusting for a wide arrange of sociodemographic, behavioral, biological, and female-specific risk factors (OR = 0.63; 95% CI: 0.44–0.90). Such a joint relationship was not observed among men. Conclusions A coexistence of social isolation and loneliness was associated with a substantially lower likelihood of healthy aging among women. Our findings highlight the importance of social support in extending women’s healthspan beyond the management of traditional risk factors.

Background: Limited evidence exists for the relationship between dietary advanced glycation end product (AGE) intake and allergic rhinitis (AR). Herein, the association between dietary AGEs and the risk of developing AR and whether genetic susceptibility influences the effects of dietary AGEs on AR were explored. Methods: In total, 125 276 participants without AR at baseline and having completed at least two 24-hour dietary recalls from the UK Biobank (2006-2010) were included. Dietary AGEs, specifically Nε-(1-carboxyethyl)-L-lysine (CEL), Nε-(carboxymethyl) lysine (CML), and Nδ-(5-hydro-5-methyl-4-imidazolone-2-yl) ornithine (MG-H1), were quantified by coupling 24-hour food assessments with a validated dietary AGE database. The incidence of allergic rhinitis was determined through hospital admissions. Multivariate Cox regression models were used to calculate the hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of the association between dietary AGE intake and the risk of AR. Results: During a median follow-up period of 12.4 years, 1171 individuals developed AR. In the fully adjusted model, higher dietary AGEs (HR: 1.27; 95% CI: 1.07, 1.50; P-trend = 0.006) and MG-H1 intake (HR: 1.19; 95% CI: 1.01, 1.41; P-trend = 0.046), especially the dietary AGEs derived from baked foods (HR: 1.23; 95% CI: 1.03, 1.46; P-trend = 0.020) and from nuts and legumes (HR: 1.24; 95% CI: 1.05, 1.47; P-trend = 0.013) were associated with an increased risk of AR. Among participants with a low genetic risk of AR, the HRs (95% CI) of AR were 1.32 (1.01, 1.73) and 1.37 (1.05, 1.79) for dietary AGE and MG-H1 intake, respectively. Conclusions: Dietary AGE intake was associated with an increased risk of AR, which was modified through genetic predisposition.

Background Individuals with type 2 diabetes are prone to dyslipidemia. The relationship of cumulative exposure to elevated remnant cholesterol (RC) with major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) remains unclear for individuals with type 2 diabetes, especially for those with intensive lipid-lowering treatment. Methods This study included 5143 participants with type 2 diabetes from the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes trial, who had at least four lipid measurements over the first three years of the trial and did not have MACEs across the measurements. Cumulative RC (cumRC) was calculated considering RC levels at each measurement and the between-measurement time interval. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate HRs and 95% CIs of MACEs associated with cumRC levels. Results During a median follow-up of 6.3 years, 472 participants developed MACEs, including 154 cardiovascular deaths, 211 with nonfatal myocardial infarction, and 148 with nonfatal stroke. After multivariable adjustment for conventional risk factors, higher levels of cumRC were associated with a higher risk of MACEs (HR Q4 vs. Q1 = 1.71, 95% CI: 1.31-2.22; P-trend <0.001), with similar associations for cardiovascular death (P-trend = 0.009) and nonfatal myocardial infarction (P-trend <0.001), but no association for nonfatal stroke (P-trend = 0.099). The association of cumRC with the risk of MACEs was consistent across age, sex, and lipid trial assignment groups and remained after further adjusting for baseline RC. Conclusion Among adults with type 2 diabetes, cumulative exposure to elevated RC is associated with a higher risk of MACEs, even in the context of intensive lipid management.

Background Women are known to be at higher risk for gallbladder disease than men, suggesting a role of female hormones in the pathogenesis of gallbladder disease. This study aimed to assess menopausal characteristics, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and their joint effect on long-term risk of cholecystectomy in women. Methods A total of 184,677 women were included from the UK Biobank. Multivariable Cox regression models were used to estimate the associations of menopausal characteristics and HRT with risk of cholecystectomy. The joint influence of HRT use and the status and type of menopause on incident cholecystectomy were further evaluated. Results During a median of 12.7 years of follow-up, 4,991 incident cases of cholecystectomy were identified. Natural menopause, regardless of menopausal age, was not associated with risk of cholecystectomy, while surgical menopause at a young age was associated with a higher risk of cholecystectomy. Ever use of HRT was associated with a higher risk of cholecystectomy. In particular, women who were surgically-menopausal and started HRT before menopause had the highest risk for cholecystectomy (hazard ratio = 2.28; 95% confidence interval: 1.70–3.04), when compared with women who were naturally-menopausal and never used HRT. Conclusions Early surgical menopause and ever use of HRT was independently associated with the risk of cholecystectomy.