Correlation of Homocysteine, Paraoxonase 1 and Malondialdehyde in Healthy Elderly Population: A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Introduction: There is rapid increase in the life expectancy worldwide. Altered metabolism and biochemical interactions between homocysteine, Paraoxonase 1 (PON1) and Malondialdehyde (MDA) result in development and worsening of various diseases of elderly population. Aim: To correlate the levels of homocysteine, PON1 and MDA in healthy elderly population with respect to age, Vitamin B12 and lipid profile. Materials and Methods: The present study was cross-sectional study and conducted in Bharati Vidyapeeth (Deemed to be University) Medical College and Hospital, Pune, Maharashtra, India between July 2013 to July 2014. Study group consisted of 61 participants (30 elderly and 31 young healthy volunteers). Serum Homocysteine and Vitamin B12 were estimated by Chemiluminescence Microparticle Immunoassay (CMIA) while PON1 and MDA by Spectrophotometry. Lipid profile was estimated by Biochemistry autoanalyser. Statistical analysis was done by Pearson’s correlation coefficient. Results: Homocysteine and PON1 levels were found to be lower in elderly participants than in young participants (p-value <0.05, <0.01). The levels of Vitamin B12 and MDA were higher in elderly participants than in young participants (p-value <0.01, <0.01). The levels of Total Cholesterol (TC) (p-value <0.01), High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) (p-value <0.05) and Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) (p-value <0.05) were statistically significantly high in elderly participants as compared to young participants. Statistically significant negative correlation of homocysteine with vitamin B12 levels in both elderly participants (p-value <0.01) as well as young participants (p-value <0.01) were observed. There was no statistically significant correlation between homocysteine and PON1 well as MDA in both the groups. There was statistically significant negative correlation between the levels of homocysteine and TC (p-value <0.05), HDL (p-value <0.05) and LDL (p-value <0.01) in elderly participants. Conclusion: Elderly population is not at the risk of developing diseases whose risk factor is homocysteine. Males are at higher risk of development of diseases because of homocysteine than females of any age group. Homocysteine is not pathogenic in old age even in the presence of other risk factors such as lipid peroxidation, decreased defense mechanisms to lipid peroxidation, raised levels of atherogenic lipids and overweight. Improvement in the vitamin B12 status can decrease the homocysteine levels.