Advanced glycation end products are associated with arterial stiffness in type 1 diabetes

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and arterial stiffness (AS) in subjects with type 1 diabetes without clinical cardiovascular events. A set of 68 patients with type 1 diabetes and 68 age-and sex-matched healthy subjects were evaluated. AGEs were assessed using serum concentrations of N-carboxymethyl-lysine (CML)andusingskinautofluorescence.ASwasassessedbyaortic pulsewavevelocity (aPWV), using applanation tonometry. Patients with type 1 diabetes had higher serum concentrations of CML (1.18 vs 0.96 μg/ml; P=0.008) and higher levels of skin autofluorescence (2.10 vs 1.70; P<0.001) compared with controls. These differences remained significant after adjustment for classical cardiovascular risk factors. Skinautofluorescencewas positively associated with aPWV in type 1 diabetes (r=0.370; P=0.003). No association was found between CML and aPWV. Skin autofluorescence was independently and significantly associated with aPWV in subjects with type 1 diabetes (β=0.380; P<0.001) after adjustment for classical cardiovascular risk factors. Additional adjustments forHbA1c, disease duration,and low-gradeinflammationdid not change these results. In conclusion, skin accumulation of autofluorescent AGEs is associatedwith AS in subjects with type 1 diabetes and no previous cardiovascular events. These findings indicate that determination of tissue AGE accumulationmay be a useful marker for AS in type 1 diabetes. © 2014 Society for Endocrinology.