Matrix Gla Protein Species and Risk of Cardiovascular Events in Type 2 Diabetic Patients

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship of circulating matrix Gla protein (MGP) species with incident cardiovascular disease (CVD) or coronary heart disease (CHD) in type 2 diabetic patients. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: EPIC-NL is a prospective cohort study among 40,011 Dutch men and women. At baseline (1993–1997), 518 participants were known to have type 2 diabetes. MGP levels were measured by ELISA techniques in baseline plasma samples. The incidence of fatal and nonfatal CVD and CVD subtypes—CHD, peripheral arterial disease (PAD), heart failure, and stroke—were obtained by linkage to national registers. Cox proportional hazard models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs), adjusted for sex, waist-to-hip ratio, physical activity, and history of CVD. RESULTS: During a median 11.2 years of follow-up, 160 cases of CVD were documented. Higher circulating desphospho-uncarboxylated MGP (dp-ucMGP) levels were significantly associated with higher risk of CVD, with an HR per SD (HR(SD)) of 1.21 (95% CI 1.06–1.38), PAD (HR(SD) 1.32 [95% CI 1.07–1.65]), and heart failure (HR(SD) 1.75 [95% CI 1.42–2.17]) after adjustment. Higher circulating dp-ucMGP levels were not related to risk of CHD (HR(SD) 1.12 [95% CI 0.94–1.34]) or stroke (HR(SD) 1.05 [95% CI 0.73–1.49]). Circulating desphospho-carboxylated MGP and circulating total-uncarboxylated MGP levels were not associated with CVD or CVD subtypes. CONCLUSIONS: High dp-ucMGP levels were associated with increased CVD risk among type 2 diabetic patients, especially with the subtypes PAD and heart failure, while other MGP species were not related to CVD risk. These results suggest that a poor vitamin K status is associated with increased CVD risk.