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Context. Low levels of systemic F2-isoprostanes (F2-IsoP) increase the risk of diabetes and weight gain and were found in African Americans. Low F2-IsoPs could reflect an unfavorable metabolic characteristic, namely, slow mitochondrial metabolism in individuals with African ancestry.Objective. To examine differences in plasma F2-IsoPs in three groups with a priori different proportion of African ancestry: non-Hispanic Whites (NHWs), US-born African Americans (AAs), and West African immigrants (WAI).Design. Cross-sectional study.Setting. Georgia residents recruited from church communities.Participants. 218 males and females 25–74 years of age, who are self-identified as NHW (n=83), AA (n=56), or WAI (n=79).Main Outcome Measure(s). Plasma F2-IsoPs quantified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.Results. After adjustment for age, gender, obesity, and other comorbidities, WAI had lower levels of plasma F2-IsoP than AA (beta-coefficient = −9.8,p<0.001) and AA had lower levels than NHW (beta-coefficient = −30.3,p<0.001). Similarly, among healthy nonobese participants, F2-IsoP levels were lowest among WAI, followed by AA, and the highest levels were among NHW.Conclusion. Plasma F2-IsoPs are inversely associated with African ancestry gradient. Additional studies are required to test whether optimization of systemic F2-IsoP levels can serve as means to improve race-specific lifestyle and pharmacological intervention targeted to obesity prevention and treatment.

Adiponectin, a protein secreted by adipose tissue, has been associated with renal dysfunction. However, these observations have not been adequately investigated in large epidemiological studies of healthy individuals in general and in African populations in particular. Hence, we designed this study to evaluate the relationship between adiponectin and renal function in a large group of nondiabetic West Africans. Total adiponectin was measured in 792 participants. MDRD and Cockroft-Gault (CG-) estimated GFR were used as indices of renal function. Linear and logistic regression models were used to determine the relationship between adiponectin and renal function. Adiponectin showed an inverse relationship with eGFR in univariate (BetaMDRD=-0.18,BetaCG=-0.26) and multivariate (BetaMDRD=-0.10,BetaCG=-0.09) regression analyses. The multivariate models that included age, sex, BMI, hypertension, smoking, HDL-C, LDL-C, triglycerides, and adiponectin explained 30% and 55.6% of the variance in GFR estimated by MDRD and CG methods, respectively. Adiponectin was also a strong predictor of moderate chronic kidney disease (defined as eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2). We demonstrate that adiponectin is associated with renal function in nondiabetic West Africans. The observed relationship is independent of age and serum lipids. Our findings suggest that adiponectin may have clinical utility as a biomarker of renal function.