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Observational Study
. 2022 Sep;21(3):477-486.
doi: 10.1007/s42000-022-00387-6. Epub 2022 Jul 13.

Association between lower plasma adiponectin levels and higher liver stiffness in type 2 diabetic individuals with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: an observational cross-sectional study

Alessandro Mantovani  1 , Chiara Zusi  1   2 , Alessandro Csermely  1 , Gian Luca Salvagno  3 , Antonio Colecchia  4 , Giuseppe Lippi  3 , Claudio Maffeis  2 , Giovanni Targher  5
Affiliations
Observational Study

Association between lower plasma adiponectin levels and higher liver stiffness in type 2 diabetic individuals with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: an observational cross-sectional study

Alessandro Mantovani et al. Hormones (Athens). 2022 Sep.

Abstract

Purpose: Little is known about the association between plasma adiponectin levels and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). We examined whether there is an association between lower plasma adiponectin levels and the presence/severity of NAFLD in people with T2DM.

Methods: We cross-sectionally recruited 79 men with non-insulin-treated T2DM and no known liver diseases, who had consecutively attended our diabetes outpatient service over a 6-month period and who underwent both ultrasonography and Fibroscan-measured liver stiffness (LSM). Nine single nucleotide polymorphisms (PNPLA3 rs738409 and other genetic variants) associated with NAFLD were investigated.

Results: Among the 79 participants included (mean age 67 ± 10 years, BMI 27.7 ± 4 kg/m2), 28 did not have NAFLD, 32 had steatosis alone, and 19 had NAFLD with coexisting significant fibrosis (LSM ≥ 7.0 kPa by Fibroscan®). Compared to those without NAFLD, patients with hepatic steatosis alone and those with hepatic steatosis and coexisting significant fibrosis had lower high-molecular-weight adiponectin levels (5.5 [IQR 2.3-7.6] vs. 2.4 [1.8-3.7] vs. 1.6 [1.0-2.9] µg/mL; p < 0.001). After adjustment for age, body mass index, insulin resistance, and the PNPLA3 rs738409 variant, lower plasma adiponectin levels were found to be associated with increased odds of both steatosis alone (adjusted-odds ratio [OR] 2.44, 95% CI 1.04-5.56, p = 0.042) and NAFLD with coexisting significant fibrosis (adjusted-OR 3.84, 95% CI 1.23-10.0, p = 0.020). Similar findings were observed after adjustment for the other eight genotyped NAFLD-related polymorphisms.

Conclusion: Lower plasma adiponectin levels are closely associated with the presence and severity of NAFLD in men with T2DM, pointing to a role of adiponectin in NAFLD development and progression.

Keywords: Hypoadiponectinemia; Liver fibrosis; NAFLD; NASH; Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis; Type 2 diabetes.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Univariable linear correlation between liver stiffness measurement (LSM) (by using Fibroscan®) and plasma high-molecular-weight adiponectin levels in men with T2DM. Both LSM and plasma adiponectin values were logarithmically transformed before analysis
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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