Quo Vadis: Whither Homocysteine Research?
- 30 May 2009
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Cardiovascular Toxicology
- Vol. 9 (2), 53-63
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s12012-009-9042-6
Abstract
Four decades of research on the link between hyperhomocysteinemia and cardiovascular disease has led to a crossroads. Several negative studies on the role of homocysteine-lowering B-vitamin therapy in reducing the risk of atherothrombotic cardiovascular disease have dampened enthusiasm for this important field of research. In this review, we assess the present state of homocysteine research and suggest potential avenues that would help to clarify the purported link between the plasma homocysteine level and cardiovascular risk. We address several questions raised by the findings of various basic, epidemiological and clinical studies and attempt to construct a framework that we believe will allow us to address the fundamental unresolved issues in this controversial area, specifically focusing on the risk of coronary vascular disease and cardiac failure. This review should allow researchers to deconstruct this complex field into separate areas that, when addressed adequately, may lead to findings that elucidate the overall link between hyperhomocysteinemia and cardiovascular disease and allow the design of appropriate clinical trials.Keywords
This publication has 42 references indexed in Scilit:
- Cross-sectional relations of multiple biomarkers representing distinct biological pathways to plasma markers of collagen metabolism in the communityJournal of Hypertension, 2009
- Selenium supplementation improves antioxidant capacity in vitro and in vivo in patients with coronary artery disease: The SElenium Therapy in Coronary Artery disease Patients (SETCAP) StudyAmerican Heart Journal, 2008
- Mortality and Cardiovascular Events in Patients Treated With Homocysteine-Lowering B Vitamins After Coronary AngiographyJama-Journal Of The American Medical Association, 2008
- Effect of Folic Acid and B Vitamins on Risk of Cardiovascular Events and Total Mortality Among Women at High Risk for Cardiovascular DiseaseJAMA, 2008
- Homocysteine‐lowering therapy does not affect inflammatory markers of atherosclerosis in patients with stable coronary artery diseaseJournal of Internal Medicine, 2007
- Homocysteine-lowering trials for prevention of cardiovascular events: A review of the design and power of the large randomized trialsAmerican Heart Journal, 2006
- The induction of human superoxide dismutase and catalase in vivo: A fundamentally new approach to antioxidant therapyFree Radical Biology & Medicine, 2006
- Folate Therapy and In-Stent Restenosis after Coronary StentingThe New England Journal of Medicine, 2004
- Hyperhomocysteinemia and Cardiovascular Disease: New Mechanisms Beyond AtherosclerosisMetabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders, 2003
- Vascular Outcome in Patients With Homocystinuria due to Cystathionine β-Synthase Deficiency Treated ChronicallyArteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, 2001