Total glycosaminoglycans in the plasma of adults: effects of age and gender, and relationship to plasma lipids: a preliminary study.

Plasma glycosaminoglycans and lipids have been measured in the plasma of 92 fasted males and females. In the males, glycosaminoglycans correlated significantly with age (r = 0.39), triglycerides (r = 0.44), and cholesterol (r = 0.30). When the effect of age was allowed for, the significance of the correlation between glycosaminoglycans and triglycerides was maintained (r = 0.36). Glycosaminoglycan levels are higher in females than in males. The correlation of glycosaminoglycans with age in women was only marginally significant. In both men and women the effect of age is attributable principally to an increase in glycosaminoglycan concentration in those over 54 years. The only lipid fraction correlating with glycosaminoglycans in females was VLDL cholesterol (r = 0.34) and by stepwise linear regression allowing for the effect of age, this significance was retained (beta = 0.34).