Undercarboxylated osteocalcin as a biomarker of subclinical atherosclerosis in non-dialysis patients with chronic kidney disease

Abstract

Background: Studies in recent years have shown that undercarboxylated osteocalcin (uOC) not only maintains bone mineralization, but is also involved in the regulation of atherosclerosis. However, a correlation between uOC and carotid atherosclerosis in non-dialysis patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) has not been investigated. A total of 240 non-dialysis patients with CKD were included in the study. For these patients, the median estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was 20.05 (12.43-49.32) ml/min/1.73m 2. Serum uOC levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Carotid ultrasonography was performed to assess carotid atherosclerotic plaques and intima-media thickness (IMT) in an attempt to analyze the relationship between uOC level and carotid atherosclerosis. Results: The uOC levels of non-dialysis patients with CKD were significantly lower than those of healthy controls [28.16 (21.40-45.85) ng/mL vs. 36.42 (28.05-49.28) ng/mL, P∈