Solar ultraviolet radiation and variations in systemic immune and inflammation markers

Abstract The characterization of the effects of solar UVR on a broad set of circulating markers in systemic immunity and inflammation may provide insight into the mechanisms responsible for the UVR-associations observed for several benign and malignant diseases. We examined the associations between exposure to solar UVR and circulating levels of 78 markers among 1,819 individuals aged 55-74 years who participated in the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial using multiplex assays. Solar UVR was derived by linking the geocoded locations of 10 screening centers across the continental United States and the date of blood draw to the National Solar Radiation Database from 1993 to 2005. We assessed associations between ambient solar UVR with dichotomized marker levels using adjusted weighted logistic regression models and applied a 5% false discovery rate criterion to P-values. UVR exposure was associated (p