Resistin induces rat insulinoma cell RINm5F apoptosis

Psoriasis in Obese Adolescents with Diabetes-From Common Molecular Background to Vicious Circle of Metabolic Syndrome-Case Report and Review of Literature

Psoriasis and type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) are chronic autoimmune diseases sharing common immunological pathways, particularly the involvement of interleukin 17 (IL-17), driving Th17-mediated inflammation. This review explores the overlap between psoriasis, obesity, T1DM, and necrobiosis lipoidica (NL), a skin condition associated with diabetes. Obesity exacerbates inflammation through immune cell activation in adipose tissue and the release of proinflammatory adipokines, such as leptin, resistin, and IL-18, which enhance autoimmune responses and insulin resistance. Leptin promotes the differentiation of Th1 and Th17 cells, which are central to autoimmune responses in both psoriasis and T1DM. The coexistence of psoriasis, T1DM, and insulin resistance further complicates metabolic control, increasing the risk of complications like diabetic nephropathy and cardiovascular disease. Biologic treatments targeting IL-17A and IL-17F offer promising therapeutic options for managing both skin and metabolic symptoms. The early identification and management of metabolic risk factors, along with personalized interventions, are essential to improve clinical outcomes in patients with psoriasis and T1DM, particularly in obese individuals. This case report and review highlight the complex interplay of these conditions and emphasize the need for integrated treatment strategies.

Research advances in understanding crosstalk between organs and pancreatic β-cell dysfunction

Obesity has increased dramatically worldwide. Being overweight or obese can lead to various conditions, including dyslipidaemia, hypertension, glucose intolerance and metabolic syndrome (MetS), which may further lead to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Previous studies have identified a link between β-cell dysfunction and the severity of MetS, with multiple organs and tissues affected. Identifying the associations between pancreatic β-cell dysfunction and organs is critical. Research has focused on the interaction between the liver, gut and pancreatic β-cells. However, the mechanisms and related core targets are still not perfectly elucidated. The aims of this review were to summarize the mechanisms of β-cell dysfunction and to explore the potential pathogenic pathways and targets that connect the liver, gut, adipose tissue, muscle, and brain to pancreatic β-cell dysfunction.

The Interplay of Adipokines and Pancreatic Beta Cells in Metabolic Regulation and Diabetes

The interplay between adipokines and pancreatic beta cells, often referred to as the adipo-insular axis, plays a crucial role in regulating metabolic homeostasis. Adipokines are signaling molecules secreted by adipocytes that have profound effects on several physiological processes. Adipokines such as adiponectin, leptin, resistin, and visfatin influence the function of pancreatic beta cells. The reciprocal communication between adipocytes and beta cells is remarkable. Insulin secreted by beta cells affects adipose tissue metabolism, influencing lipid storage and lipolysis. Conversely, adipokines released from adipocytes can influence beta cell function and survival. Chronic obesity and insulin resistance can lead to the release of excess fatty acids and inflammatory molecules from the adipose tissue, contributing to beta cell dysfunction and apoptosis, which are key factors in developing type 2 diabetes. Understanding the complex interplay of the adipo-insular axis provides insights into the mechanisms underlying metabolic regulation and pathogenesis of metabolic disorders. By elucidating the molecular mediators involved in this interaction, new therapeutic targets and strategies may emerge to reduce the risk and progression of diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and its associated complications. This review summarizes the interactions between adipokines and pancreatic beta cells, and their roles in the pathogenesis of diabetes and metabolic diseases.

Circulatory Adipokines and Incretins in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis: A Pilot Study

Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is a three-dimensional malformation of the spine of unknown cause that develops between 10 and 18 years old and affects 2-3% of adolescents, mostly girls. It has been reported that girls with AIS have a taller stature, lower body mass index (BMI), and bone mineral density (BMD) than their peers, but the causes remain unexplained. Energy metabolism discrepancies, including alterations in adipokine and incretin circulatory levels, could influence these parameters and contribute to disease pathophysiology. This pilot study aims to compare the anthropometry, BMD, and metabolic profile of 19 AIS girls to 19 age-matched healthy controls. Collected data include participants' fasting metabolic profile, anthropometry (measurements and DXA scan), nutritional intake, and physical activity level. AIS girls (14.8 ± 1.7 years, Cobb angle 27 ± 10°), compared to controls (14.8 ± 2.1 years), were leaner (BMI-for-age z-score ± SD: -0.59 ± 0.81 vs. 0.09 ± 1.11, p = 0.016; fat percentage: 24.4 ± 5.9 vs. 29.2 ± 7.2%, p = 0.036), had lower BMD (total body without head z-score ± SD: -0.6 ± 0.83 vs. 0.23 ± 0.98, p = 0.038; femoral neck z-score: -0.54 ± 1.20 vs. 0.59 ± 1.59, p = 0.043), but their height was similar. AIS girls had higher adiponectin levels [56 (9-287) vs. 32 (7-74) μg/mL, p = 0.005] and lower leptin/adiponectin ratio [0.042 (0.005-0.320) vs. 0.258 (0.024-1.053), p = 0.005]. AIS participants with a Cobb angle superior to 25° had higher resistin levels compared to controls [98.2 (12.8-287.2) vs. 32.1 (6.6-73.8), p = 0.0013]. This pilot study suggests that adipokines are implicated in AIS development and/or progression, but more work is needed to confirm their role in the disease.

Artemisia annua L. Extracts Improved Insulin Resistance via Changing Adiponectin, Leptin and Resistin Production in HFD/STZ Diabetic Mice

Objectives

Insulin resistance (IR) is major cause of type 2 diabetes (T2D), and adipokines (e.g., adiponectin, leptin, and resistin) play an important role in insulin sensitivity. Medicinal plants are frequently used for T2D treatment. This study investigates the effect of Artemisia annua L. (AA) extracts on adipokines in mice with high-fat-diet (HFD)/streptozotocin (STZ)-induced T2D.

Methods

We divided 60 mice into 12 groups (n = 5 per group) control, untreated T2D, treated T2D, and 9 other groups. T2D was induced in all groups, except controls, by 8 weeks of HFD and STZ injection. The treated T2D group was administered 250 mg/kg of metformin (MTF), while the nine other groups were treated with 100, 200, and 400 mg/kg of hot-water extract (HWE), cold-water extract (CWE), and alcoholic extract (ALE) of AA (daily oral gavage) along with 250 mg/kg of MTF for 4 weeks. The intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test (IPGTT) was performed, and the homeostasis model assessment of adiponectin (HOMA-AD) index and blood glucose and serum insulin, leptin, adiponectin, and resistin levels were measured.

Results

Similar to MTF, all three types of AA extracts (HWEs, CWEs, and ALEs) significantly (p < 0.0001) decreased the area under the curve (AUC) of glucose during the IPGTT, the HOMA-AD index, blood glucose levels, and serum insulin, leptin, and resistin levels and increased serum adiponectin levels in the MTF group compared to the T2D group (p < 0.0001). The HWEs affected adipokine release, while the CWEs and ALEs decreased leptin and resistin production.

Conclusion

Water and alcoholic AA extracts have an antihyperglycemic and antihyperinsulinemic effect on HFD/STZ diabetic mice. In addition, they decrease IR by reducing leptin and resistin production and increasing adiponectin secretion from adipocytes.

Adipose Tissue Secretion Pattern Influences β-Cell Wellness in the Transition from Obesity to Type 2 Diabetes

The dysregulation of the β-cell functional mass, which is a reduction in the number of β-cells and their ability to secure adequate insulin secretion, represents a key mechanistic factor leading to the onset of type 2 diabetes (T2D). Obesity is recognised as a leading cause of β-cell loss and dysfunction and a risk factor for T2D. The natural history of β-cell failure in obesity-induced T2D can be divided into three steps: (1) β-cell compensatory hyperplasia and insulin hypersecretion, (2) insulin secretory dysfunction, and (3) loss of β-cell mass. Adipose tissue (AT) secretes many hormones/cytokines (adipokines) and fatty acids that can directly influence β-cell function and viability. As this secretory pattern is altered in obese and diabetic patients, it is expected that the cross-talk between AT and pancreatic β-cells could drive the maintenance of the β-cell integrity under physiological conditions and contribute to the reduction in the β-cell functional mass in a dysmetabolic state. In the current review, we summarise the evidence of the ability of the AT secretome to influence each step of β-cell failure, and attempt to draw a timeline of the alterations in the adipokine secretion pattern in the transition from obesity to T2D that reflects the progressive deterioration of the β-cell functional mass.

[Adipocytokines: modern definition, classification and physiological role]

Adipose tissue is an endocrine organ which produces a large number of secretory bioactive substances also known as adipocytokines affecting directly insulin resistance (IR), glucose and lipid metabolism, angiogenesis and inflammation. The studies show a close connection between the imbalance of adipocytokines formed as a result of excessive deposit of adipose tissue in the course of the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular diseases. In the present review, we summarize current data on the effect of the adipocytokines on the liver, skeletal muscles, adipose tissue, endothelial cells and inflammatory processes, as well as attempt to define the term «adipocytokines» and classify adipocytokines according to their influence on metabolic processes and pro-inflammatory status. Some of adipocytokines (adiponectin, omentin, leptin, resistin, tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-6) are divided into two groups: adipocytokines reducing IR, and adipocytokines increasing IR.

The mechanisms linking adiposopathy to type 2 diabetes

Obesity is defined as excessive accumulation of body fat in proportion to body size. When obesity occurs, the functions of adipose tissue may be deregulated, which is termed as adiposopathy. Adiposopathy is an independent risk factor for many diseases, including diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. In overweight or obese subjects with adiposopathy, hyperlipidemia exerts lipotoxicity in pancreatic islet and liver and induces pancreatic β cell dysfunction and liver insulin resistance, which are the decisive factors causing type 2 diabetes. Moreover, adipokines have been shown to play important roles in the regulation of glucose homeostasis. When adiposopathy occurs, abnormal changes in the serum adipokine profile correlate with the development and progression of pancreatic β cell dysfunction and insulin resistance in peripheral tissue. The current paper briefly discusses the latest findings regarding the effects of adiposopathy-related lipotoxicity and cytokine toxicity on the development of type 2 diabetes.

Role of adipocytokines and its correlation with endocrine pancreatic function in patients with pancreatic cancer

INTRODUCTION

Some authors suggest that adipocytokines contribute to the induction of pancreatic carcinogenesis as well as the development of endocrine insufficiency.

AIMS

We evaluate the circulating concentrations of leptin, resistin and visfatin in patients with newly diagnosed pancreatic cancer (PC) and relationship between serum adipocytokines level and clinicopathological features of PC. Moreover the usefulness of those adipocytokines as possible biomarkers of endocrine pancreatic function in PC has been assessed.

METHODS

The pilot study group consisted of 45 individuals (mean age 65.6 ± 11.5 years, BMI 21.8 ± 3.4 kg/m(2)) with newly diagnosed PC (within last 1-3 months) and 13 healthy individuals with age, gender and BMI matched to the study group. Among PC patients 18 (40%) had recently diagnosed diabetes. Fasting plasma leptin, resistin, visfatin concentrations were determined with ELISA (R&D Systems, Phoenix Pharmaceuticals) and insulin by RIA (DakoCytomation).

RESULTS

Patients with PC as compared to controls had significantly lower plasma leptin (40.6 ± 21.3 vs 63.2 ± 16.3 pg/mL; p < 0,0008). In contrast PC patients showed more than six fold higher level of resistin (126.2 ± 143.2 vs 18.9 ± 7.2 ng/mL; p < 0.009) than controls. The median plasma visfatin was 2.8 ± 1.8 ng/mL, which was not significantly different from the controls (3.8 ± 1.1 ng/mL). When PC patients with and without diabetes were considered separately, plasma leptin concentrations among nondiabetic patients were slightly, but not significantly higher (44.6 ± 21.0) as compared to diabetics (34.5 ± 20.7). Moreover there was no difference between visfatin and resistin level in PC, among patients with and without diabetes. No significant differences between serum level of leptin, visfatin and resistin and age, gender, BMI, smoking status, tumor localization, distant metastases and pain has been found.

CONCLUSION

The results of this study confirm previous findings that patients with newly diagnosed pancreatic cancer are characterized with lower level of leptin. This pilot study showed significantly higher resistin concentrations in patients with PC in comparison to healthy controls, which may be helpful in PC early diagnosis. Changes in leptin and resistin level in PC are not likely related to endocrine disorders.

Molecular cloning, tissue distribution and ontogenetic expression of Xiang pig chemerin and its involvement in regulating energy metabolism through Akt and ERK1/2 signaling pathways

Chemerin, as a new member of adipokines family, is highly expressed in adipose tissue in rodent and its expression increases with obesity. Moreover, chemerin has been reported to have significant relationship with metabolic syndrome and insulin sensitivity. Here, the gene encoding chemerin from Xiang pig was cloned. The open reading frame of this cDNA encodes 163 deduced amino acid residues. The putative protein has a N-terminal signaling peptide and a nuclear localization signal profile which are highly conserved among the vertebrate orthologs. Both chemerin and chemerinR are highly expressed in lung, kidney and small intestine in adult Xiang pig. Besides these tissues, chemerin is abundant in liver and backfat, and chemerinR is abundant in spleen and skeletal muscle. We also investigated the age-dependent expression of chemerin in suckling Xiang piglets in various tissues, which showed an interaction between age and segments in abundance of chemerin and chemerinR from day 1 to day 21. For chemerinR, it was abundant in skeletal muscle of both adult and fetal Xiang pig. Further, we treated differentiated C2C12 cells with chemerin. The result showed that chemerin regulated energy metabolism partly through Akt and ERK1/2 signaling pathway. Taken together, our findings provide basic molecular information for the deeper investigation on the function of chemerin.

Insulin resistance in obesity as the underlying cause for the metabolic syndrome

The metabolic syndrome affects more than a third of the US population, predisposing to the development of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The 2009 consensus statement from the International Diabetes Federation, American Heart Association, World Heart Federation, International Atherosclerosis Society, International Association for the Study of Obesity, and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute defines the metabolic syndrome as 3 of the following elements: abdominal obesity, elevated blood pressure, elevated triglycerides, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and hyperglycemia. Many factors contribute to this syndrome, including decreased physical activity, genetic predisposition, chronic inflammation, free fatty acids, and mitochondrial dysfunction. Insulin resistance appears to be the common link between these elements, obesity and the metabolic syndrome. In normal circumstances, insulin stimulates glucose uptake into skeletal muscle, inhibits hepatic gluconeogenesis, and decreases adipose-tissue lipolysis and hepatic production of very-low-density lipoproteins. Insulin signaling in the brain decreases appetite and prevents glucose production by the liver through neuronal signals from the hypothalamus. Insulin resistance, in contrast, leads to the release of free fatty acids from adipose tissue, increased hepatic production of very-low-density lipoproteins and decreased high-density lipoproteins. Increased production of free fatty acids, inflammatory cytokines, and adipokines and mitochondrial dysfunction contribute to impaired insulin signaling, decreased skeletal muscle glucose uptake, increased hepatic gluconeogenesis, and β cell dysfunction, leading to hyperglycemia. In addition, insulin resistance leads to the development of hypertension by impairing vasodilation induced by nitric oxide. In this review, we discuss normal insulin signaling and the mechanisms by which insulin resistance contributes to the development of the metabolic syndrome.

The neuronal pentraxin II gene (NPTX2) inhibit proliferation and invasion of pancreatic cancer cells in vitro

The neuronal pentraxin II gene (NPTX2) is expressed in numerous tissues, such as the pancreas and the liver. While its activity in the brain is known to be regulated by neuronal activity, its function in the pancreas is unclear. In this study, we investigated the impact of NPTX2 on the proliferation, migration, invasion, apoptosis, and cell cycle of the pancreatic cancer cells. The expression levels of NPTX2 and their relation to the methylation level of the NPTX2 gene promoter in five pancreatic cancer cell lines were observed. The lower expression of NPTX2 in the cells was restored after the treatment of DNA methyltransferase inhibitor (5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine). Additionally, a full-length NPTX2 cDNA was transfected into pancreatic cancer cells (PANC-1) and we obtained the stably transfected cells (PANC-1-NPTX2). The ectopic NPTX2 expression significantly promoted G0-G1 arrest and cell apoptosis, and reduced cell proliferation, migration and invasion. Notably, the pro-apoptotic gene bax expression was significantly up-regulated while pro-survival gene bcl-2 did not significantly change in the stably transfected cells. Meanwhile, Cyclin D1 was significantly down-regulated. This study suggests that NPTX2, as a tumor-suppressor, plays an anti-tumor effect on pancreatic cancer and its low expression, due to promoter hypermethylation, may play a role in the tumorigenesis of pancreatic cancer.

Cytokines in the Progression of Pancreatic β-Cell Dysfunction

The dysfunction of pancreatic β-cell and the reduction in β-cell mass are the decisive events in the progression of type 2 diabetes. There is increasing evidence that cytokines play important roles in the procedure of β-cell failure. Cytokines, such as IL-1β, IFN-γ, TNF-α, leptin, resistin, adiponectin, and visfatin, have been shown to diversely regulate pancreatic β-cell function. Recently, islet-derived cytokine PANcreatic DERived factor (PANDER or FAM3B) has also been demonstrated to be a regulator of islet β-cell function. The change in cytokine profile in islet and plasma is associated with pancreatic β-cell dysfunction and apoptosis. In this paper, we summarize and discuss the recent studies on the effects of certain important cytokines on pancreatic β-cell function. The imbalance in deleterious and protective cytokines plays pivotal roles in the development and progression of pancreatic β-cell dysfunction under insulin-resistant conditions.

The role of resistin as a regulator of inflammation: Implications for various human pathologies

Resistin was originally described as an adipocyte-secreted peptide that induced insulin resistance in rodents. Increasing evidence indicates its important regulatory roles in various biological processes, including several inflammatory diseases. Further studies have shown that resistin in humans, in contrast to its production by adipocytes in mice, is synthesized predominantly by mononuclear cells both within and outside adipose tissue. Possible roles for resistin in obesity-related subclinical inflammation, atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, rheumatic diseases, malignant tumors, asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, and chronic kidney disease have already been demonstrated. In addition, resistin can modulate several molecular pathways involved in metabolic, inflammatory, and autoimmune diseases. In this review, current knowledge about the functions and pathophysiological implications of resistin in different human pathologies is summarized, although there is a significant lack of firm evidence regarding the specific role resistin plays in the "orchestra" of the numerous mediators of inflammation.