Strengths of our study
declines in renal functions, CKD
HYPERTENSION, ENDOTHELIAL DYSFUNCTION
Our study has made new contributions to the field. First, to our knowledge, this is the first study of its kind in Chinese adults with hypertension, a high-risk population for developing CKD. It showed an inverse association between plasma Se and the risk of declines in renal functions. If further confirmed, these findings could have important clinical and public health implications. Second, this study offers important new insights regarding the interplay of folate and Se on renal functions. We found that folate status was a significant modifier: a stronger inverse association between Se and renal function declines was found among participants receiving folic acid treatment or with baseline folate ≥ 9.0 ng/mL. This finding is biologically plausible. It has been reported that in addition to its effect on tHcy levels, folate has direct antithrombotic and antioxidant effects, and can ameliorate endothelial dysfunction and nitrate tolerance (