Protective role of osteocalcin in diabetes pathogenesis

In diabetes, metabolic, inflammatory, and stress-associated alterations conduce to ß-cell failure and tissue damage. Osteocalcin is a bone protein with several endocrine functions in different tissues. In this review, we gathered scientific evidence of how osteocalcin could modulate functional disorders that are altered in diabetes in an integrative way. We include adipose tissue, pancreatic function, and oxidative stress aspects. In the first section, we focus on the role of inflammatory mediators and adiponectin in energy homeostasis and insulin sensitivity. In the following section, we discuss the effect of osteocalcin in metabolic and pancreatic function and its association in insulin signaling and in ß-cell proliferation. Finally, we focus on osteocalcin action in oxidative and endoplasmic reticulum stress, and in antioxidant regulation, since ß-cells are well known by its vulnerability to stress damage. These evidences support the notion that osteocalcin could have an important role in diabetes treatment.

Association between obesity and adipokines levels in saliva and gingival crevicular fluid: A systematic review and meta-analysis

AIM

This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to compare adipokines' levels in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) and saliva between individuals with obesity and individuals without obesity.

METHODS

Computerized searches were conducted in four electronic databases (PubMed, Medline via Ovid, Web of Science, and Scopus). Manual searches and a Google Scholar search, limiting the search to the first 100 hits, were also conducted. Two calibrated authors performed the study selection, data extraction, and quality assessment of included articles. The quality of the included articles was evaluated using the University of Adelaide Tool.

RESULTS

The electronic searches retrieved 929 titles/abstracts. Following the removal of duplicated references, 613 titles/abstracts were assessed. Thirty-four articles were included. Meta-analysis demonstrated that tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) concentration in saliva was statistically increased in individuals with obesity compared with individuals without obesity (P < 0.05). By contrast, the meta-analysis showed no difference in the concentrations of resistin, adiponectin, leptin, ghrelin, and interleukin 6 in saliva and of resistin, adiponectin, leptin, interleukin 6, interleukin 8, tumor necrosis factor α, and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 in GCF between individuals with and without obesity (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Individuals with obesity presented higher levels of TNF-α in saliva than individuals without obesity. TNF-α in saliva sampling may be a helpful marker for obesity. For the other adipokines, no difference was observed, but the limited availability and heterogeneity of data do not allow us to assertively state whether changes of adipokines in GCF and saliva are associated with obesity.

Association between adiponectin rs17300539 and rs266729 gene polymorphisms with serum adiponectin level in an Iranian diabetic/pre-diabetic population

OBJECTIVE

Adiponectin is an adipokine that is mostly secreted from adipose tissues and has a significant role in the improvement of insulin resistant and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). This study is conducted to examine the association of rs17300539 and rs266729 with T2DM and serum adiponectin level in Iranian population.

METHOD

A case-control study was conducted on 80 individuals with fasting plasma glucose (FPG) >100 (mg/dl) as diabetic-pre-diabetic group, and 80 individuals with fasting plasma glucose 70-100 (mg/dl) as control group. DNA extraction was done on samples and genotyping method was performed by PCR-RFLP.

RESULT

The frequency of GA genotype in rs17300539 (diabetic/pre-diabetic 35.5%, control 11.3%, (OR [95%CI]=4.18[1.8-9.6]; p=0.001) and allele A (diabetic/pre-diabetic 31%, control 9%, (OR [95% CI]=4.67[2-10.7]) was significantly more in diabetic/pre-diabetic group compared to control group. The difference in the genotype frequency for rs266729 in diabetic group compared to that in control was not significant. The levels of adiponectin in diabetic cases had no difference compared to the control group in both polymorphisms. The rs266729 was not associated with any metabolic parameter except waist circumference (p=0.03), however, rs17300539 shows association only with fasting plasma glucose, triglyceride, and total cholesterol (p=0.007, 0.039, 0.0032, respectively).

CONCLUSION

Our findings showed that there is an association between rs17300539 with the increase of T2DM but rs266729 showed no association with the risk of T2DM. Allele A of rs17300539 increased the risk of diabetes. There is no association between adiponectin level and both polymorphisms.

Intergenerational differences in the body build of women

Background: This study analyzed generational differences in body build of woman. Aim of the study: The aim of the study was to examine the intergenerational differences in the body build of women. Material and methods: 90 women (30 female physiotherapy students, their mothers and grandmothers) were examined. Their heights, weights, waist circumferences, and waist and hip circumferences were measured. Their Body mass index (BMI) and Waist to Hip Ratio (WHR) were calculated. Their frequency of underweight, overweight and obesity were estimated. WHO criteria were applied. The results were subjected to statistical analysis. Descriptive statistics were calculated. The Shapiro-Wilk test for testing the normal distribution was used. The Kruskal-Wallis test and post-hoc test were used. A significance level alpha of 0.05 was assumed. Statistica 13.1 was used for calculations. Results: The median body height of the female students was 166.8 cm, their mothers 160.8 cm, and grandmothers 158.0 cm. Their median body masses were, respectively: 59.4 kg, 70.1 kg and 72.5 kg. Their median BMIs were 21.4 kg/m2, 26.3 kg/m2, and 29.2 kg/ m2, and their WHRs were 0.80, 0.86, and 0.87, respectively. Underweight was only seen in students (13%). The prevalence of overweight female students (BMI ≥30) was 10%, their mothers 33% and their 13% grandmothers, whereas obesity was 7%, 30% and 50%, respectively. Conclusions: There were intergenerational differences in the body structure of women. In subsequent generations, the size of the body increased, and height of the body decreased. There were differences between mothers and offspring. From an early age, body growth should be monitored to prevent obesity development with age.

Metabolomic Salivary Signature of Pediatric Obesity Related Liver Disease and Metabolic Syndrome

Pediatric obesity-related metabolic syndrome (MetS) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are increasingly frequent conditions with a still-elusive diagnosis and low-efficacy treatment and monitoring options. In this study, we investigated the salivary metabolomic signature, which has been uncharacterized to date. In this pilot-nested case-control study over a transversal design, 41 subjects (23 obese patients and 18 normal weight (NW) healthy controls), characterized based on medical history, clinical, anthropometric, and laboratory data, were recruited. Liver involvement, defined according to ultrasonographic liver brightness, allowed for the allocation of the patients into four groups: obese with hepatic steatosis ([St+], n = 15) and without hepatic steatosis ([St–], n = 8), and with (n = 10) and without (n = 13) MetS. A partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) model was devised to classify the patients’ classes based on their salivary metabolomic signature. Pediatric obesity and its related liver disease and metabolic syndrome appear to have distinct salivary metabolomic signatures. The difference is notable in metabolites involved in energy, amino and organic acid metabolism, as well as in intestinal bacteria metabolism, possibly reflecting diet, fatty acid synthase pathways, and the strict interaction between microbiota and intestinal mucins. This information expands the current understanding of NAFLD pathogenesis, potentially translating into better targeted monitoring and/or treatment strategies in the future.