Original ContributionGender-dependent impacts of body mass index and moderate alcohol consumption on serum uric acid—an index of oxidant stress status?
Section snippets
Study protocol
Subjects in this study were participants in a survey collected for establishing reference intervals for common laboratory parameters in Nordic countries and, therefore, they partially overlap with our previous study on γ-glutamyl transferase (GGT) [15]. Subjects were recruited following the rules of the Nordic Reference Interval project (NORIP protocol) [16]. The study population consisted primarily of hospital personnel and their relatives or acquaintances, of whom 97% were Scandinavians and
Results
Serum uric acid concentrations in male moderate drinkers were significantly higher (p < 0.01), and in female moderate drinkers lower (p < 0.01), than those in the corresponding groups of abstainers (Fig. 1). When the study population was further classified according to BMI, the highest concentrations were found in overweight and obese individuals (Fig. 2). Interestingly, significantly higher uric acid concentrations in male moderate drinkers (335 ± 62 μmol/L) compared to abstainers (313 ± 52 μmol/L)
Discussion
This cross-sectional survey among a large population of apparently healthy abstainers and moderate drinkers indicates distinct gender-dependent impacts of increased body weight and alcohol drinking on serum uric acid, which has recently been closely linked with oxidant stress status in humans [1], [5]. The concentration of serum uric acid is influenced by nitric oxide (NO) and peroxynitrite production and plays a pivotal role in the human antioxidant defense systems through its ability to
Conclusions
This study indicates significant interactions between gender, BMI, alcohol consumption, and serum uric acid, which may be associated with the status of oxidative stress in such individuals. Future population studies addressing the prognostic and clinical implications of such responses and whether it might be necessary to formulate BMI-based recommendations for uric acid normal ranges seem warranted.
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to Professor Pål Rustad, Fürst Medical Laboratory, Oslo, Norway, for providing data from the Nordic NORIP survey on reference intervals.
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