Long-term association of serum selenium levels and the diabetes risk: Findings from a case-control study nested in the prospective Jinchang Cohort

Zhiyuan Cheng; Yuanyuan Li; Jamie L Young; Ning Cheng; Chenhui Yang; George D Papandonatos; Karl T Kelsey; John Pierce Wise Sr; Kunchong Shi; Tongzhang Zheng; Simin Liu; Yana Bai

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.151848

Long-term association of serum selenium levels and the diabetes risk: Findings from a case-control study nested in the prospective Jinchang Cohort

Sci Total Environ. 2022 Apr 20:818:151848. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.151848. Epub 2021 Nov 22.

Authors

Zhiyuan Cheng¹, Yuanyuan Li², Jamie L Young³, Ning Cheng⁴, Chenhui Yang², George D Papandonatos⁵, Karl T Kelsey⁶, John Pierce Wise Sr⁷, Kunchong Shi⁶, Tongzhang Zheng⁶, Simin Liu⁶, Yana Bai⁸

Affiliations

¹ School of Public Health and Emergency Management, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Street, Shenzhen 518055, China.
² Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministries of Education and Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubation), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 13 Hangkong Street, Wuhan, Hubei, 430030, China.
³ Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Medicine, University of Louisville, 505 South Hancock Street, Louisville, KY 40202, USA.
⁴ School of Basic Medical Science, Lanzhou University, 199 Donggang West Street, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, China.
⁵ Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Brown University, 121 South Main Street, Providence, RI 02901, USA.
⁶ Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Brown University, 121 South Main Street, Providence, RI 02901, USA.
⁷ Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Medicine, University of Louisville, 505 South Hancock Street, Louisville, KY 40202, USA; Wise Laboratory of Environmental and Genetic Toxicology, University of Louisville, 500 S. Preston St., 55A, Room 1422, Louisville, KY 40202, USA.
⁸ Department of Epidemiology and Statistics, School of Public Health, Lanzhou University, 199 Donggang West Street, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, China. Electronic address: baiyana@lzu.edu.cn.

Abstract

An increasing body of evidence implicates high levels of selenium intake in the development of diabetes, although prospective studies remain sparse. We conducted a nested case-control study of 622 diabetes incident cases and 622-age, sex, and follow-up time-matched controls in the prospective Jinchang cohort of 48,001 participants with a median of 5.8 years of follow-up. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was used to measure all 622 case-control pairs' baseline serum levels of selenium (Se), which were then categorized into quartiles based on the frequency distribution among the controls. Multivariable adjusted conditional logistic regression and restricted cubic splines (RCS) models were applied to evaluate independent odds ratios (OR) as estimates for relative risks (RR) of diabetes according to quartiles (Q) of selenium levels. Compared to the lowest quartile (Q1 as reference), significantly greater diabetes risks (with 95% confidence interval) were observed in Q3 (OR = 1.62, 1.17-2.35) and Q4 (OR = 1.79, 1.21-2.64). Sub-analyses showed these increased risks of diabetes by serum levels of Se. appeared to differ by sex, age, BMI status, history of hypertension, and dyslipidemia. Further, application of RSC models showed that serum Se levels between 95 and 120 μg/L were significantly and positively associated with diabetes risk whereas no apparent relation exists when Se levels were under 95 μg/L in this cohort population.

Keywords: A case-control study nested in prospective cohort; Diabetes; Incidence; Risk factor; Selenium.

MeSH terms

Case-Control Studies
Child, Preschool
Diabetes Mellitus* / epidemiology
Humans
Odds Ratio
Prospective Studies
Risk Factors
Selenium*

Substances

Selenium

Grants and funding

R01 ES029082/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/United States