Elevated Serum Advanced Glycation End Products and Poor Grip Strength in Older Community-Dwelling Women

Background. Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of diabetes, heart disease, and kidney failure and may potentially affect skeletal muscle. Whether AGEs are associated with poor muscle strength is unknown. Methods. Serum carboxymethyl-lysine (CML), a dominant AGE, circulating soluble form of receptor for advanced glycation end products (sRAGE), and endogenous secretory receptor for advanced glycation end product (esRAGE) and grip strength were measured in 559 moderately to severely disabled women, age 65 and older, in the Women's Health and Aging Study I in Baltimore, Md. Results. Mean (standard deviation) grip strength among women in the highest quartile of serum CML compared with women in the lower three quartiles was 18.6 and 20.0 kg, respectively (p = .002), adjusting for age, race, body mass index, cognitive dysfunction, depression, and diabetes. Serum sRAGE and esRAGE were not significantly associated with grip strength. Conclusions. Women with high serum AGEs have greater muscle weakness. Further studies are needed to determine whether AGEs, a potentially modifiable risk factor, are associated with physical performance and disability in older adults.