Plasma protein biomarkers of the geriatric syndrome of frailty

Abstract

Frailty is a geriatric syndrome associated with physical decline with aging. Using a proteomics-based screening method to screen plasma for potential biomarkers, we previously found infammatory glycoproteins to be increased with frailty. The purpose of this study was to confrm if plasma levels of these glycoproteins, as well as of interleukin-6, are increased with frailty in a larger sample (n = 65) of community-dwelling older adults. Plasma levels of transferrin, fbrinogen, haptoglobin, and interleukin-6 were determined with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Differences in protein concentrations by frailty status were determined using analysis of variance. Higher levels of transferrin (p