@article {1263, title = {Health and function of participants in the Long Life Family Study: A comparison with other cohorts.}, journal = {Aging (Albany NY)}, volume = {3}, year = {2011}, month = {2011 Jan}, pages = {63-76}, abstract = {

Individuals from families recruited for the Long Life Family Study (LLFS) (n= 4559) were examined and compared to individuals from other cohorts to determine whether the recruitment targeting longevity resulted in a cohort of individuals with better health and function. Other cohorts with similar data included the Cardiovascular Health Study, the Framingham Heart Study, and the New England Centenarian Study. Diabetes, chronic pulmonary disease and peripheral artery disease tended to be less common in LLFS probands and offspring compared to similar aged persons in the other cohorts. Pulse pressure and triglycerides were lower, high density lipids were higher, and a perceptual speed task and gait speed were better in LLFS. Age-specific comparisons showed differences that would be consistent with a higher peak, later onset of decline or slower rate of change across age in LLFS participants. These findings suggest several priority phenotypes for inclusion in future genetic analysis to identify loci contributing to exceptional survival.

}, keywords = {Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Aging, Blood Pressure, Cardiovascular Diseases, Cohort Studies, Female, Gait, Humans, Longevity, Male, Middle Aged, Psychomotor Performance, Research Design}, issn = {1945-4589}, doi = {10.18632/aging.100242}, author = {Newman, Anne B and Glynn, Nancy W and Taylor, Christopher A and Sebastiani, Paola and Perls, Thomas T and Mayeux, Richard and Christensen, Kaare and Zmuda, Joseph M and Barral, Sandra and Lee, Joseph H and Simonsick, Eleanor M and Walston, Jeremy D and Yashin, Anatoli I and Hadley, Evan} } @article {9917, title = {Association Between Cigarette Smoking~and Subclinical Markers of Cardiovascular Harm.}, journal = {J Am Coll Cardiol}, volume = {85}, year = {2025}, month = {2025 Mar 18}, pages = {1018-1034}, abstract = {

BACKGROUND: Cigarette smoking is a strong risk factor for cardiovascular harm.

OBJECTIVES: The study sought to explore the detailed relationships between smoking intensity, pack-years, and~time since cessation with inflammation, thrombosis, and subclinical atherosclerosis markers of cardiovascular harm.

METHODS: We included 182,364 participants (mean age 58.2 years, 69.0\% female) from 22 cohorts of the Cross Cohort Collaboration with self-reported smoking status, including smoking intensity and/or pack-years, and concurrent subclinical marker measurements. Markers were categorized into 3 domains: inflammation (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, glycoprotein acetylation), thrombosis (fibrinogen, D-dimer), and subclinical atherosclerosis (coronary artery calcium, carotid intima-media thickness, carotid plaque, and ankle-brachial index). Utilizing multivariate regression models and restricted cubic splines, we assessed associations of smoking status, intensity, pack-years, time since cessation, and subclinical markers.

RESULTS: A total of 15.3\% of participants currently smoke (mean 16.7 cigarettes/day, mean 30.0 pack-years), and 34.6\% of participants formerly smoked (median 19.0 years since quitting, mean 22.4 pack-years). Participants with a history of smoking showed higher levels of all subclinical markers compared with those who have never smoked, with stronger associations observed in those currently smoke. Among participants who currently smoke, smoking intensity showed a clear dose-response relationship with all markers, except for D-dimer, specifically with incremental 1\% to 9\% higher levels of subclinical markers per 10 cigarettes. After 20 cigarettes, the patterns appeared to plateau for blood markers, while they continued to increase for atherosclerosis markers. Among those who have ever smoked, robust dose-response relationships were observed for pack-years with all subclinical markers, with incremental 1\% to 9\% higher levels per 10 pack-years. The dose-response effects persisted after 20 pack-years for all markers, though with a milder slope. Among participants who smoked formerly, there were substantially lower levels of biomarkers with longer time since quitting, and most markers were not different compared with those who have never smoked by 30 years, except for the coronary artery calcium score, which remained 19\% higher even beyond quitting after 30 years.

CONCLUSIONS: Smoking-relevant parameters show strong and dose-response relationships across 3 domains of subclinical markers of cardiovascular harm. The sensitivity of the tested subclinical markers to small increments in cigarette exposure suggests potential value in the regulation of new and existing tobacco products.

}, keywords = {Aged, Atherosclerosis, Biomarkers, Cardiovascular Diseases, Carotid Intima-Media Thickness, Cigarette Smoking, Cohort Studies, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Risk Factors}, issn = {1558-3597}, doi = {10.1016/j.jacc.2024.12.032}, author = {Yao, Zhiqi and Tasdighi, Erfan and Dardari, Zeina A and Jha, Kunal K and Osuji, Ngozi and Rajan, Tanuja and Boakye, Ellen and Rodriguez, Carlos J and Matsushita, Kunihiro and Simonsick, Eleanor M and Lima, Jo{\~a}o A C and Widome, Rachel and Cohen, Debbie L and Appel, Lawrence J and Khera, Amit and Hall, Michael E and Judd, Suzanne E and Cole, Shelley A and Vasan, Ramachandran S and Benjamin, Emelia J and Lotufo, Paulo A and Bensenor, Isabela M and El Khoudary, Samar R and Barinas-Mitchell, Emma and Janssen, Imke and Psaty, Bruce M and Eaton, Charles B and Lamonte, Michael J and Cawthon, Peggy M and Orwoll, Eric S and Irvin, Marguerite R and Bhatnagar, Aruni and DeFilippis, Andrew P and El-Shahaway, Omar and Blaha, Michael J} }