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Comparative Study
. 2008 Jun;23(6):1439-46.
doi: 10.1093/humrep/den097. Epub 2008 Mar 29.

Greek hyperinsulinemic women, with or without polycystic ovary syndrome, display altered inositols metabolism

Affiliations
Comparative Study

Greek hyperinsulinemic women, with or without polycystic ovary syndrome, display altered inositols metabolism

Jean-Patrice Baillargeon et al. Hum Reprod. 2008 Jun.

Abstract

BACKGROUND We have shown that American women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have decreased glucose-stimulated release of a putative mediator of insulin action, D-chiro-inositol (DCI)-containing inositolphosphoglycan (DCI-IPG), and increased urinary clearance of DCI (uCl(DCI)), which was associated with hyperinsulinemia.

Methods: DCI levels and the release of insulin and DCI-IPG during an oral glucose tolerance test (AUCs) were assessed in 27 Greek PCOS and 10 normal Greek women.

Results: PCOS women were heavier than controls (BMI = 28.4 versus 23.7 kg/m(2), P = 0.05) with higher waist-to-hip ratios (WHR = 0.78 versus 0.71, P = 0.009) and increased free testosterone (P = 0.048) and AUC(insulin) (P = 0.04). In PCOS women, incremental AUC(DCI-IPG) was significantly decreased by 59% (2158 versus 5276%.min, P = 0.01), even after correction for BMI and WHR. Finally, increased uCl(DCI) (r = 0.35, P = 0.04) and decreased AUC(DCI-IPG) (r = 0.46, P = 0.004) were significantly associated with hyperinsulinemia in all women together, even after correction for BMI and WHR (Ps = 0.02 and 0.007), and regardless of PCOS status.

Conclusions: Greek women, with or without PCOS, display increased uCl(DCI) and decreased AUC(DCI-IPG) in association with higher insulin levels but independent of adiposity. Increased clearance of inositols might reduce tissue availability of DCI and decrease the release of DCI-IPG mediator, which could contribute to insulin resistance and compensatory hyperinsulinemia in Greek women, as previously described in American women.

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Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Correlations between glucose-stimulated insulin levels (AUCinsulin) and uClDCI (A) or glucose-stimulated DCI-containing inositolphosphoglycan (AUCDCI-IPG) bioactivity (B) in Greek women with PCOS (•) and Greek control women (○). After pooling data from this study and a previously published PCOS study (Baillargeon et al., 2006)), C and D illustrate correlations between AUCinsulin and uClDCI (C) or AUCDCI-IPG (D) in Greek PCOS (•) and control (○) women, as well as American PCOS (▪) and control (□) women. Results are represented back transformed in their original units, on log scales. P = 0.02 or §P ≤ 0.007 when adjusted for BMI and WHR

References

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