Akira Sekikawa

Contributions to Public Health

• Unraveling the Low Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) Mortality in Japan: Our research revealed why Japan's CHD mortality is dramatically lower than in the US, despite higher lifetime exposure to traditional risk factors like cholesterol, blood pressure, and smoking. We disproved common theories like misclassification and genetic factors, identifying unique protective elements in the Japanese lifestyle and environment. These insights offer valuable strategies for global cardiovascular health improvements.

  • Sekikawa A, Li M, Niva J, Herbert B, Tilves C, Cui C, Gao S, Chang Y, Nakano Y, Sciurba F. Much lower prevalence and mortality of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in Japan than in the US despite higher smoking rates: A meta analysis/systematic review. J Epidemiol. 2024 July 20 PMID 39034109

  • Karaca F, Guney M, Agibayeva A, Otesh N, Kulimber M, Glushkova N, Chang Y, Sekikawa A, Davletov K. Cooking PM2.5 emissions in Kazakh household and their contribution to indoor levels. Engineering Reports 2024 (Accepted)

  • Sekikawa A, Miyamoto Y, Miura K, Nishimura K, Willcox BJ, Masaki KH, Rodriguez B, Tracy RP, Okamura T, Kuller LH. Continuous decline in mortality from coronary heart disease in Japan despite a continuous and marked rise in total cholesterol: Japanese experience after the Seven Country Study. Intl J Epidemiol 2015; 44: 1614-24 PMCID6086557

• Unlocking the Cardiovascular Benefits of Soy Isoflavones and Equol: My research reveals soy isoflavones' cardiovascular benefits may depend on equol production, a gut microbiome metabolite. While Asian studies show benefits, US trials did not. We discovered that blood equol levels, not dietary isoflavones, were linked to reduced atherosclerosis and smaller brain white matter lesions. These findings highlight equol's unique vascular health benefits and its potential for improving global cardiovascular health.

  • Zhang X, Fujiyoshi A, Kadota A, Kondo K, Torii S, Okami Y, Hisamatsu T, Yano Y, Barinas-Mitchell E, Magnani J, Miura K, Ueshima H, Sekikawa A. Cross-sectional association of equol producing status with aortic calcification in Japanese men aged 40-79 years. Scientific Report 2022 12:20114 PMID 36418419

  • Sekikawa A, Wharton W, Butts B, Veliky CV, Garfein J, Li J, Goon S, Fort A Li M, Hughes T. Potential protective mechanisms of S-equol, a metabolite of soy isoflavone by the gut microbiome, on cognitive decline and dementia. Int J of Mol Sci 2022 23: 11921 PMCID9570153

  • Sekikawa A, Higashiyama A, Lopresti B, Ihara M, Aizenstein H, Watanabe M, Chang Y, Kakuta C, Yu Z, Mathis C, Kokubo Y, Klunk W, Lopez O, Kuller LH, Miyamoto Y, Cui C. Associations of equol-producing status with white matter lesion and amyloid-β deposition in cognitively normal elderly Japanese Alzheimer & Dementia Translational Research and Clinical Interventions. 2020; 16:1402-11 PMCID7580022

• Fish Oil and Atherosclerosis Research: Our research shows that blood levels of fish oil in Japan are over 100% higher than in the US, significantly linked to reduced atherosclerosis risk. Our systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials confirm high-dose fish oil has strong anti-atherosclerotic effects. This groundbreaking research offers exciting opportunities for students passionate about international epidemiology and cardiovascular health, focusing on fish oil's benefits in preventing heart disease.

• Training Future Epidemiologists: As Director of the T32 Cardiovascular Epidemiology Training Program since 2018 (Co-director since 2013), I have guided 33 trainees (22 pre-doctoral, 11 post-doctoral, and 8 from under-represented groups) to success. Our trainees authored 600+ publications, delivered 200+ presentations, and secured prestigious funding. Beyond T32, I have mentored 8 doctoral, 16 master’s students, and 5 post-doctoral fellows, and served on 32 pre-doctoral committees, fostering the next generation of epidemiologists.

• International Collaborations: I have led collaborations with researchers in Japan and Kazakhstan, focusing on cardiovascular disease, dementia, and preventive strategies. These partnerships offer cross-cultural comparisons of subclinical atherosclerosis and cardiovascular health among Japanese, Japanese Americans, and Caucasian Americans. We conducted brain imaging study in older adults and are conducting metabolomics studies of cardiovascular disease in Japan. In Kazakhstan, we developed infrastructure for cognitive assessment and air pollution studies, enhancing global public health research.

  • Sekikawa A, Curb JD, Ueshima H, El-Saed A, Kadowaki T, Abbott RD, Evans RW, Rodriguez BL, Okamura T, Sutton-Tyrrell K, Nakamura Y, Masaki K, Edmundowicz D, Kashiwagi A, Willcox BJ, Takamiya T, Mitsunami K, Seto TB, Murata K, White RL, Kuller LH. Marine-derived n-3 fatty acids and atherosclerosis in Japanese, Japanese Americans, and Whites. J Am Coll Cardiol 2008; 52: 417-24 PMID: 18672160

  • Stewart TG, Rebolledo PA, Mourad A, Lindsell CJ, Boulware DR, et al. Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV)-6 Study Group and Investigators. Higher-Dose Fluvoxamine and Time to Sustained Recovery in Outpatients With COVID-19: The ACTIV-6 Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2023 330:2354-2363 PMCID10656670

  • Boulware DR, Lindsell CJ, Stewart TG, Hernandez AF, Collins S, et al. ACTIV-6 Study Group and Investigators. Inhaled Fluticasone Furoate for Outpatient Treatment of Covid-19. N Engl J Med. 2023;389:1085-1095 PMCID10597427

  • Cui C, Sekikawa A, Kuller LH, Lopez OL, Newman AB, Kuipers AL, Mackey RH. Aortic stiffness is associated with increased risk of incident dementia in older adults. J Alzh Dis 2018; 66: 297-306 PMCID6313252

  • Sekikawa A, Curb JD, Ueshima H, El-Saed A, Kadowaki T, Abbott RD, Evans RW, Rodriguez BL, Okamura T, Sutton-Tyrrell K, Nakamura Y, Masaki K, Edmundowicz D, Kashiwagi A, Willcox BJ, Takamiya T, Matsunami K, Seto TB, Murata K, White RL, Kuller LH. Marine-derived n-3 fatty acids and atherosclerosis in Japanese, Japanese Americans, and Whites. J Am Coll Cardiol 2008; 52: 417-24 PMCID2736602