Bone-Related Markers of Cardiovascular Disease

Abstract

A growing body of evidence describes a strict relationship between bone and cardiovascular disease (CVD), with several physiological and pharmacological implications. Advances in our understanding of the pathophysiology of osteoporosis and vascular calcifications indicate that these two processes share common pathogenetic mechanisms, suggesting the existence of a bone–vascular axis. Indeed, the hypothesis that calcium deposition in arteries may be an active process of extracellular matrix mineralisation and of ectopic ossification is advancing. In this regard, molecular markers of osteogenic activity can be found in all arterial calcified segments. Nevertheless, the panel of bone-related markers of CVD is still unclear. This review focusses on molecules serving well-defined roles as bone markers (namely osteocalcin, osteoprotegerin, sclerostin, osteopontin, and klotho) and on which possible novel roles may exist as markers of CVD. A detailed understanding of novel bone-related markers of CVD is necessary to address the unmet clinical needs of an increasingly aged and dysmetabolic population.

Keywords

• bone markers
• bone–vascular axis
• cardiovascular disease (cvd)
• diabetes
• osteoporosis
• vascular calcification