Chronic emotional stress and mediating role of Interleukine-6 in the association with cardiometabolic disorders in a multiethnic middle-aged and older US-population

IntroductionChronic emotional stress is a well-recognized risk factor for psychiatric and cardiometabolic disorders. The mediating role of low-grade inflammation in older, ethnically diverse populations has never been studied. MethodsThe multiethnic [&ge;] 50-year-old study population is a subset of the Health and Aging Brain Study: Health Disparities (HABS-HD) study. Adjusted logistic and linear regression were used to assess associations. Statistical mediation analysis with non-parametric bootstrapping was used to determine the intermediate role of Interleukine-6 (IL-6). ResultsThe study included 2,173 participants (50-92 years). Hispanic and Black participants disclosed higher chronic stress levels than White participants. Having a chronic stress total score [&ge;] six points is associated with 53% higher odds of disclosing concomitant cardiovascular disease (CVD) (adj.OR=1.53 [1.1-2.53]), 31% of Type-2 diabetes (T2DM) (adj.OR=1.31[1.06-1.62]), 23% of hypertension (adj.OR=1.23 [1.02-1.49]), and 30% obesity (adj.OR=1.3[1.09-1.55]). These associations were statistically mediated by IL-6 (12% (p-valueFDR=0.012) of the association with CVD, 17% T2DM (p-valueFDR<0.001), 18% hypertension (p-valueFDR<0.001), and 29% obesity (p-valueFDR=0.005)). ConclusionsThe study highlights a further aspect of the pathophysiological mechanisms involved in brain-body communication. While IL-6 partially explains statistical associations between chronic emotional stress and major cardiometabolic disorders, potential causal effects need to be explored in larger longitudinal studies.