High Tyrosol and Hydroxytyrosol Intake Reduces Arterial Inflammation and Atherosclerotic Lesion Microcalcification in Healthy Older Populations

Nada Zoubdane; Redha-Alla Abdo; Michel Nguyen; M'hamed Bentourkia; Eric E Turcotte; Hicham Berrougui; Tamas Fulop; Abdelouahed Khalil

doi:10.3390/antiox13010130

High Tyrosol and Hydroxytyrosol Intake Reduces Arterial Inflammation and Atherosclerotic Lesion Microcalcification in Healthy Older Populations

Antioxidants (Basel). 2024 Jan 22;13(1):130. doi: 10.3390/antiox13010130.

Authors

Nada Zoubdane¹, Redha-Alla Abdo¹, Michel Nguyen², M'hamed Bentourkia³, Eric E Turcotte⁴, Hicham Berrougui¹, Tamas Fulop¹, Abdelouahed Khalil¹

Affiliations

¹ Geriatrics Unit, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC J1H 4N4, Canada.
² Cardiology Unit, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC J1H 4N4, Canada.
³ Department of Nuclear Medicine and Radiobiology, University of Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC J1K 2R1, Canada.
⁴ Sherbrooke Molecular Imaging Center (CIMS), 3001, 12th Ave N., Sherbrooke, QC J1H 5NY, Canada.

Abstract

Aging is an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and convincing data have shown that chronic low-grade inflammation, which develops with advanced age, contributes significantly to cardiovascular risk. The present study aimed to use ¹⁸F-FDG/¹⁸F-NaF-PET/CT imaging to, respectively, gauge arterial inflammation and microcalcification in a healthy elderly population and to assess the potential benefits of a tyrosol- and hydroxytyrosol-rich diet on these two markers of atherosclerotic plaque fragility. Eleven healthy participants (mean age 75 ± 5.67 years) were supplemented for 6 months with high polyphenol-rich extra virgin olive oil (HP-EVOO), extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), or refined olive oil (ROO). The participants underwent PET/CT imaging with ¹⁸F-FDG and ¹⁸F-NaF radiotracers at baseline and after 6 months. ¹⁸F-FDG and ¹⁸F-NaF uptakes were quantified using standardized uptake values (SUV) and were categorized based on artery calcification and olive oil type. A total of 324 slices of the aortas of the imaged participants were analyzed for arterial inflammation and 327 slices were analyzed for microcalcification. ¹⁸F-FDG uptake was significantly higher in the non-calcified segments than in the calcified segments (SUVmax = 2.70 ± 0.62 and SUVmax = 2.54 ± 0.44, respectively, p < 0.042). Conversely, the non-calcified segments displayed significantly lower ¹⁸F-NaF uptake than the calcified segments (SUVmax = 1.90 ± 0.37 and 2.09 ± 0.24, respectively, p < 0.0001). The 6-month supplementation with HP-EVOO induced a significant reduction in ¹⁸F-FDG uptake in both the non-calcified (2.93 ± 0.23 to 2.75 ± 0.38, p < 0.004) and calcified segments of the aortas (2.25 ± 0.29 to 2.15 ± 0.19, p < 0.02). ¹⁸F-NaF uptake was also significantly lower in patients supplemented with HP-EVOO (SUVmax = 1.98 ± 0.33 at baseline compared to 1.85 ± 0.28, after the 6-month supplementation, p < 0.004), whereas no significant effect was observed with EVOO. Conversely, participants supplemented with ROO displayed a significant increase in ¹⁸F-NaF uptake (SUVmax = 1.78 ± 0.34 to 1.95 ± 0.34, p < 0.0001). The present study confirmed that a phenolic-compound-rich diet reduces both arterial inflammation and atherosclerotic lesion microcalcification and demonstrated that ¹⁸F-FDG/¹⁸F-NaF-PET/CT imaging is a valuable approach for assessing age-related arterial damage.

Keywords: 18F-FDG/18F-NaF; aging; atherosclerosis; hydroxytyrosol; positron emission tomography; tyrosol; vascular inflammation.

Grants and funding

PJT162366/CAPMC/ CIHR/Canada