Homocysteine level may be linked to AMD

An amino acid that is a biomarker for cardiovascular disease may also be linked to the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration, researchers have found. People with elevated levels of the amino acid homocysteine in their blood may have an increased risk of developing AMD, their study suggests.

Johanna M. Seddon, MD, and colleagues assessed the relationship between homocysteine and AMD by measuring the fasting plasma homocysteine levels of 934 people, of whom 547 had AMD and 387 were controls. All participants were already enrolled in an ancillary study to the Age-Related Eye Disease Study, according to a press release from Harvard University, where some of the research was done.

“We found that elevated homocysteine in the blood may be another biomarker for increased risk of AMD,” said Dr. Seddon, MD, director of epidemiology at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School, in the press release. “Homocysteine can be reduced by dietary intake of vitamins B6, B12 and folate, so the relationship between this amino acid and AMD deserves further study.”

Median homocysteine values were higher among people with advanced stages of AMD than in people without the disease, the release said. Levels considered high in a clinical setting, 12 mmol/L and above, were also associated with a higher risk of AMD.

The study is published in the January issue of the American Journal of Ophthalmology.