Impact of smoking on cardiovascular risk and premature ageing: Findings from the STANISLAS cohort

Background and aims
Smoking may lead to premature ageing, but the impact on the cardiovascular system and circulating proteins needs further investigation. In the present study, we aim to understand the impact of smoking on heart and vessels and circulating biomarkers of multiple domains including cardiovascular damage, premature ageing and cancer-related pathways.

Methods
The STANISLAS Cohort is a longitudinal familial cohort with detailed cardiovascular examination and biomarker assessment. This study included all the participants enrolled in the fourth visit of the STANISLAS Cohort for whom information on smoking habits was available (n = 1696). We assessed pulse wave velocity, intima-media thickness, echocardiographic parameters and a total of 460 proteins to study the association of circulating plasma proteins with smoking status (never vs. past vs. current smoking) while adjusting for potential confounders.

Results
Current smokers were approximately 18 years younger but had higher LVMi and similar PWV, cIMT, frequency of hypertension, diabetes and carotid plaques compared to the much older never smokers. After multivariate selection, 25 proteins were independently associated with current or past smoking. Current smoking was strongly associated with higher levels of EDIL-3, CCL11, TNFSF13B, KIT, and lower levels of IL-12B and PLTP (p < 0.0001) while past smoking was associated with FGF-21, CHIT1, and lower levels of CXCL10, IL1RL2 and RAGE (p < 0.01). Conclusions Current smoking is associated with signs of early onset of cardiovascular ageing and protein biomarkers that regulate inflammation, endothelial function, metabolism, oncological processes and apoptosis.