Niacin, Genetics, and Vascular Inflammation: New Study
Hi there,
A new study was recently published in Nature Medicine with what I thought were interesting results.
Researchers and doctors at the Cleveland Clinic conducted an extensive metabolomics study to discover underlying factors in heart disease, which led to interesting findings about higher levels of niacin (vitamin B3) and the metabolites produced.
The study found that a breakdown product from excess niacin (dietary or supplemental) increases inflammation in the lining of blood vessels. Higher levels of the niacin metabolite were associated with an increased risk of major adverse cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke. (Some of you are probably old enough to remember when niacin was regularly prescribed to lower LDL and prevent heart disease.)
Interestingly, there is a common genetic variant that causes higher levels of the niacin metabolite, especially when combined with higher niacin intake.
My latest article explains the niacin study in more detail, and the genotype report will show your data for the genetic link.
Stay curious!
Debbie
Niacin and Heart Disease: Genetic Interaction
Is niacin bad for your heart?
A new study in the journal Nature Medicine shows that higher levels of niacin consumption may increase the risk of heart disease, especially in people with certain genetic variants.
Why is this study important?
In the U.S., cereals and most flour-based foods are fortified with niacin. In addition, for decades, cardiologists prescribed high doses of niacin to lower cholesterol. While niacin is no longer recommended for heart disease prevention because large clinical trials showed that it didn't reduce risk, some people probably still take niacin because they think it’s good for their hearts.[ref][ref]
A little background on niacin:
Tryptophan is an amino acid that is used in the body in several ways, and one of the ways is to make niacin. Niacin (nicotinic acid) is a form of vitamin B, and when taken in large amounts causes the niacin flush. Niacinamide (nicotinamide) is a niacin derivative that is also available as a supplement.
What I've been reading:
1) Prevalence of persistent SARS-CoV-2 in a large community surveillance study
This new study shows that persistent SARS-CoV-2 infections (actively replicating virus sampled with nasal swabs) can exist for 60+ days. This was found ~0.1% of the population. Half of the people with persistent infections had long Covid symptoms. While the study was just published, the samples were taken from mid-2020 to mid-2022.
2) GestaltMatcher facilitates rare disease matching using facial phenotype descriptors
Some genetic disorders have specific facial characteristics. For example, the facial features of Down Syndrome are often readily recognized. This paper explains a new AI tool that can detect minor and major facial characteristics and match them to genetic mutations. It works with mutations that cause changes to facial features.