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Growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15) is a member of the TGFβ superfamily secreted by many cell types and found at higher blood concentrations as chronological age increases (1). Given the emergence of GDF-15 as a key protein associated with aging, it is important to understand the multitude of conditions with which circulating GDF-15 is associated. We pooled data from 1,174 randomly selected Health ABC Study (Health ABC) participants and 1,503 Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) participants to evaluate the risk of various conditions and age-related outcomes across levels of GDF-15. The primary outcomes were (1) risk of mobility disability and falls; (2) impaired cognitive function; (3) and increased risk of cardiovascular disease and total mortality. The pooled study cohort had a mean age of 75.4 +/-4.4 years. Using a Bonferroni-corrected threshold, our analyses show that high levels of GDF-15 were associated with a higher risk of severe mobility disability (HR: 2.13 1.64, 2.77), coronary heart disease (HR: 1.47 1.17, 1.83), atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (HR: 1.56 1.22, 1.98), heart failure (HR: 2.09 1.66, 2.64), and mortality (HR: 1.81 1.53, 2.15) when comparing the highest and lowest quartiles. For CHS participants, analysis of extreme quartiles in fully adjusted models revealed a 3.5-fold higher risk of dementia (HR: 3.50 1.97, 6.22). GDF-15 is associated with several age-related outcomes and diseases, including mobility disability, impaired physical and cognitive performance, dementia, cardiovascular disease, and mortality. Each of these findings demonstrates the importance of GDF-15 as a potential biomarker for many aging-related conditions.
Webber et al. (Thu,) studied this question.