A novel caveolin-1 biomarker for clinical outcome of sarcopenia

Sarcopenia, defined by the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People as leading to significantly decreased muscle mass and function, contributes to increased risk of adverse health outcomes among older people. Caveolin-1 (CAV1) is a main structural protein playing a regulatory role in signaling pathways and muscle normality. However, the role of CAV1 in the development of sarcopenia is largely unknown. In this study, we aimed to investigate the contribution of CAV1 genotype to sarcopenia in a Taiwanese population. We enrolled 175 patients with sarcopenia (56 pre-sarcopenia, 63 sarcopenia and 56 severe sarcopenia) and 327 age- and gender-matched controls in this community-based case control study. The associations of six single nucleotide polymorphisms of the CAV1 gene at C521A (rs1997623), G14713A (rs3807987), G21985A (12672038), T28608A (rs3757733), T29107A (rs7804372), and G32124A (rs3807992) with sarcopenia risk were evaluated. After grouping the sarcopenia patients together, the results showed that there was a significant differential distribution among the cases and controls in their CAV1 G14713A genotype (p=0.0235), and those carrying the AG and AA genotypes had 1.65- and 1.78-fold higher odds ratios for sarcopenia compared to those with the GG genotype (95% confidence interval=1.09-2.49 and 0.96-3.31, respectively). Furthermore, the carriers with CAV1 G14713A AG or AA genotype had a higher risk for sarcopenia and severe sarcopenia, but not pre-sarcopenia, compared to those with the GG genotype. Our findings suggest that Cav1 may play a critical role in the etiology of sarcopenia, and the A allele of Cav1 G14713A may serve as an early marker for detection of sarcopenia and severe sarcopenia.