The interplay between heart rate variability, inflammation, and lipid accumulation: Implications for cardiometabolic risk.

Publisher: published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American Physiological Society and The Physiological Society Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 101607800 Publication Model: Print Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 2051-817X (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 2051817X NLM ISO Abbreviation: Physiol Rep Subsets: MEDLINE

Original Publication: [Malden MA] : published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American Physiological Society and The Physiological Society, 2013-

Heart Rate*/physiology ; Inflammation*/physiopathology ; Inflammation*/metabolism ; Cardiovascular Diseases*/physiopathology ; Cardiovascular Diseases*/metabolism ; Lipid Accumulation Product* ; Lipid Metabolism*; C-Reactive Protein/metabolism ; Obesity/physiopathology ; Obesity/metabolism ; Humans ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Adiposity ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Body Mass Index ; Prospective Studies ; Cardiometabolic Risk Factors

Deleterious adiposity (e.g., obesity) is considered an inflammatory condition that increases risk for cardiovascular diseases. Lower heart rate variability (HRV), an independent predictor of cardiovascular disease risk, is linked with higher levels of adiposity and inflammation. However, indices of adiposity vary in their strength of association with disease risk. Body mass index (BMI) is a modest predictor of disease, while the lipid accumulation product (LAP) better predicts disease risk. The current investigation used cross-sectional and prospective designs to probe the differential associations between HRV and multiple measures of adiposity (e.g., LAP and BMI) and examine if inflammation (measured via C-reactive protein; CRP) mediated these associations. Study 1 showed that HRV was more strongly linked with LAP relative to other adiposity measures and that this link was mediated by CRP. Study 2 replicated Study 1 results and showed that this association remained significant 4 years later. Our novel findings are consistent with studies suggesting LAP may be a superior measure of cardiovascular disease risk relative to other measures of adiposity. Importantly, the strong link between HRV and LAP was mediated by inflammation, highlighting the key role of the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway in regulating obesity and associated health consequences.
(© 2025 The Author(s). Physiological Reports published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of The Physiological Society and the American Physiological Society.)

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Mannheimer Institute für Public Health, Sozial- und Präventivmedizin

Keywords: C‐reactive protein; body mass index; cardiovascular disease risk; heart rate variability; lipid accumulation product

9007-41-4 (C-Reactive Protein)

Date Created: 20250426 Date Completed: 20250426 Latest Revision: 20250428

20260130

PMC12032450

10.14814/phy2.70313

40285470