Mercury, Selenium, and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in Women and Men

描述（由申请人提供）：长期接触汞，一种高度活性的重金属，可能增加心血管疾病（CVD）的风险。由于汞的主要环境暴露来自鱼类摄入，否则可能会对心血管产生重大益处，并且由于充分的数据对有关汞污染物的现行政策决定至关重要，因此阐明汞与心血管疾病风险之间的关系具有重大的科学和公共卫生重要性。然而，先前的研究结果不一致，并且先前的研究排除了女性，并且没有评估中风，这是心血管疾病发病率和死亡率的主要原因。硒是一种必需的膳食微量元素，在抗氧化防御系统中起着重要作用，可以预防心血管疾病和汞的毒性作用。这种保护作用将直接影响到关于最佳硒摄入量的建议，以及评估富含硒的人群中鱼类摄入汞污染的潜在影响。然而，汞、硒和心血管风险之间可能的相互作用尚未得到证实。本应用的目的是评估汞和硒暴露与女性和男性冠心病（CHD）和中风风险之间的关系。假设：1。在女性和男性中，慢性汞暴露与心血管疾病（冠心病和中风）的高风险相关。2. 硒的摄入与心血管疾病的风险降低有关。3. 汞含量与心血管疾病风险之间的关系取决于硒的摄入量。这些目标将采用前瞻性巢式病例对照设计，在参与两项大型美国队列研究的女性和男性中进行调查，包括6470例心血管疾病病例。暴露情况将通过储存的脚趾甲屑来确定，这是一种可靠的慢性汞和硒摄入的生物标志物。本研究为评估汞和硒摄入量对女性和男性心血管风险的重要性提供了一个独特且具有成本效益的机会。这项研究将极大地阐明鱼类摄入、汞暴露和硒摄入对心血管疾病预防的潜在风险和益处，实现NIH追求人类健康和疾病基础知识的使命，并将这些知识应用于延长健康寿命，减少死亡和残疾的负担。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Chronic exposure to mercury, a highly reactive heavy metal, may increase cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Because the major environmental exposure to mercury is from fish intake, which may otherwise have significant cardiovascular benefits, and because adequate data are critical to ongoing policy decisions regarding mercury contaminants, elucidating the relationship between mercury and CVD risk is of great scientific and public health importance. However, results of prior studies have been inconsistent, and prior studies excluded women and did not evaluate stroke, a major cause of CVD morbidity and mortality. Selenium, an essential dietary trace element, plays an important role in antioxidant defense systems and may protect against both CVD and toxic effects of mercury. Such a protective effect would have direct implications for recommendations regarding optimal selenium intake and for assessing the potential impact of mercury contamination from fish intake in selenium-replete populations. However, the possible interaction between mercury, selenium, and cardiovascular risk is not well-established. The objectives of this application are to assess the associations between mercury and selenium exposure and risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke in women and men. It is hypothesized that: 1. Chronic mercury exposure is associated with higher risk of CVD (CHD and stroke) in women and men. 2. Selenium intake is associated with lower risk of CVD. 3. The relation between mercury levels and CVD risk varies depending on intake of selenium. These aims will be investigated using a prospective nested case-control design among women and men participating in two large U.S. cohort studies, including 6,470 incident CVD cases. Exposures will be ascertained using stored toenail clippings, a reliable biomarker of chronic mercury and selenium intake. This study provides a unique and cost-efficient opportunity to evaluate the importance of mercury and selenium intake for cardiovascular risk in women and men. This research will greatly clarify the potential risks and benefits offish intake, mercury exposure, and selenium intake for cardiovascular disease prevention, fulfilling the NIH's mission to pursue fundamental knowledge about human health and illness and the application of that knowledge to extend healthy life and reduce burdens of death and disability.