Component 3 was characterised by two dominant bipolar eigenvectors: (i) hsCRP, an acute phase protein produced by liver in response to elevated IL-6, has been the most consistently recognised predictor of cardiovascular events in several population-based studies [8] and (ii) (serum) albumin, a negative acute phase reactant, which decreases in older adults because of its increased catabolism and decreased synthesis during inflammation and malnutrition [28]. This evidence concerns the gene ALB and malnutrition.