Association between bilirubin and biomarkers of metabolic health and oxidative stress in the MARK-AGE cohort

• Published in: iScience 2024-07, Vol.27 (7), p.110234, Article 110234
• Main Authors: Schoissengeier, Vanessa, Maqboul, Lina, Weber, Daniela, Grune, Tilman, Bürkle, Alexander, Moreno-Villaneuva, Maria, Franceschi, Claudio, Capri, Miriam, Bernhard, Jürgen, Toussaint, Olivier, Debacq-Chainiaux, Florence, Weinberger, Birgit, Gonos, Efstathios S., Sikora, Ewa, Dollé, Martijn, Jansen, Eugène, Slagboom, P. Eline, Hervonnen, Antti, Hurme, Mikko, Breusing, Nicolle, Frank, Jan, Bulmer, Andrew C., Wagner, Karl-Heinz
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: human metabolism; pathology; public health
• ISSN: 2589-0042; 2589-0042
• DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.110234

Recent studies have shown that elevated concentrations of unconjugated bilirubin (UCB) may be a protective host factor against the development of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), whereas low levels of UCB are associated with the opposite effect. The results of this European study, in which 2,489 samples were tested for their UCB concentration using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and additional data from the MARK-AGE database were used for analysis, provide further evidence that elevated UCB concentrations are linked to a lower risk of developing NCDs and may act as a predictive marker of biological aging as individuals with elevated UCB concentrations showed favorable outcomes in metabolic health and oxidative-stress-related biomarkers. These findings underline the significance of studying individuals with moderate hyperbilirubinemia and investigate UCB routinely, also in the setting of aging, since this condition affects millions of people worldwide but has been underrepresented in clinical research and practice until now. [Display omitted] •Slightly elevated UCB is a protective host factor against the development of NCDs•Humans with elevated UCB had better metabolic health and oxidative stress markers•UCB may act as a predictive biomarker of biological aging Pathology; Public health; Human metabolism.