[Anti-aging klotho protein content in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (pilot study).]

The Klotho protein has become known as a biomarker of aging through experimental studies in mice. In recent years, many studies have been conducted on the role of this protein in the development of various age-related diseases. However, there are very few studies on the effect of the Klotho protein on sleep disorders. We conducted a cross-sectional comparative study in which we examined the levels of Klotho protein in 27 men with severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The average age of the patients was 54 [43; 59] years. The control group included 15 men selected according to the «copy-pair» principle. We used standard polysomnography to objectively assess the quantitative characteristics of sleep and respiration. Severe OSA was 0diagnosed if the apnea/hypopnea index exceeded 30 events per hour and was accompanied by significant desaturation. To determine the protein level, we used enzyme immunoassay with a commercial SEH757Hu kit manufactured by «Cloud-Clone Corp.» (USA). The data is presented as a median, upper and lower quartiles. The Mann-Whitney U-test was used to compare the indicators between the groups. When comparing groups based on qualitative characteristics, the chi-square (χ2) criterion was used, with the Yates' correction for continuity applied. In the case of a small number of observation units (0 to 5, inclusive, in one of the compared groups), the Fisher's exact test was applied. The results showed that patients with severe OSA had significantly lower levels of klotho protein compared to the control group.