Relationship among urinary advanced glycation-end products, skeletal muscle mass and physical performance in community-dwelling older adults

Advanced glycation end-products are important factors in muscle function and physical performance among older adults. However, the association between sarcopenia and urinary carboxymethyl-lysine (uCML) levels remains unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship among uCML levels, skeletal muscle mass, physical performance and sarcopenia among community-dwelling older adults.

This work was a community-based cross-sectional study. The participants were recruited from the Taichung Community Health Study-Elderly and were followed up until 2017. A total of 104 participants underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry examination, physical performance tests and measurement of uCML levels. After the natural log transformation of the uCML levels, Pearson's correlation coefficient and a general linear model were used for statistical analysis.

The mean uCML levels of older men and women were 1.34 μg/mg and 1.63 μg/mg creatinine, respectively. After multivariate adjustment, grip strength among older women significantly decreased as uCML levels increased. Participants with uCML levels and Timed Up and Go test values higher than the median had a 13.76-fold risk of acquiring sarcopenia compared with those whose corresponding variables were lower than the median after adjusting for age, sex, body fat percentage, and serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen levels.

uCML levels were negatively associated with grip strength among older women. The joint association of uCML and Timed Up and Go test values was correlated with the risk of acquiring sarcopenia among older adults. This finding suggests that uCML levels can be used as a biomarker for screening sarcopenia and as a strategy for treating sarcopenia. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2019; 19: 1017-1022.