Objective. This study examined the prevalence of thinness, overweight, and obesity in Cameroon children ranging from 8 to 15 years old using several published references as evaluation tools. Methods. A stratified sample was used with eleven schools randomly selected, and data from 2689 children (52.2% girls) ranging from 8 to 15 years were analyzed. Weight and height were recorded and BMI was calculated. BMI cutoffs used to define nutritional status grades included two international and three national published indices which were compared to our database-derived cutoffs. Results. A prevalence of 9.5% thinness and 12.4% overweight including 1.9% obesity according to international references was detected. A 2.2% low-weight-for-age, 5.7% low-height-for-age, and 5.2% low-weight-for-height were identified. Overall, there were significant differences using calculations based on our database versus published reference values and between boys versus girls. Conclusions. This study demonstrates that prevalence of thinness, overweight, and obesity is similar to that of other leading-emerging countries reported within the last decade, yet it is still lower than prevalence in developed countries. Ethnic background and social environment have impact on prevalences, highlighting the importance of evaluating the Cameroon population based on locally derived database.

Objective: Childhood obesity is increasing worldwide and is increasingly associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS). Our aim was to examine acylation stimulating protein (ASP) and its precursor complement C3, in normal, overweight, and obese Chinese children and adolescents, and the relationships with body size, blood parameters, pubertal development, family environment, and MetS. Methods: Children and adolescents (nZ1603) from 6 to 18 years, boys (nZ873) and girls (nZ730), including normal weight (nZ603), overweight (nZ291) and obese (nZ709) were assessed for body size parameters, pubertal development, blood lipids, glucose, insulin, ASP, and C3. Results: ASP levels were increased in overweight and obese versus normal weight (P!0.001), while C3 showed little variation. This effect of overweight/obesity remained throughout early stages when boys and girls were separated by pubertal development or age, although age and pubertal status itself had no effect. Separation based on ASP quintiles demonstrated significant associations with blood cholesterol, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-Chol), glucose, insulin, and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance in boys, and LDL-Chol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and glucose in girls. A positive correlation with mother's body mass index in boys and girls (PZ0.002 and PZ0.014 respectively) as well as birth weight (P!0.001) was noted. MetS was strongly associated with increased ASP, the presence of a single MetS factor (especially hypertension, central obesity, or hyperglycemia) was associated with increased ASP. Conclusion: Changes in the plasma adipokine ASP in early obesity are associated with blood lipid and glucose modifications, family environment, and distinct MetS risk factors. European Journal of Endocrinology 159 781-790

PurposeVaspin (visceral-adipose-tissue-derived-serine-protease-inhibitor) is a recently identified adipokine with putative insulin-sensitizing properties. Plasma vaspin responses to surgery-induced weight loss are sparse and contradictory.Design and ParticipantsWe evaluated changes in vaspin levels and relationship to post-operative outcomes in men (n = 22) and women (n = 55) undergoing biliopancreatic-diversion/duodenal-switch bariatric surgery. Body composition and plasma parameters were measured at baseline, acutely (1 and 5 days) and medium-term (6 and 12 months) post-surgery.ResultsFasting preoperative vaspin concentrations were comparable in men vs women. The distribution was biphasic (both men and women) with a nadir of 2.5 ng/ml. Subjects were divided into high (≥2.5 ng/mL, HI-group) and low (<2.5 ng/mL, LO-group) vaspin level. Both groups had comparable sex distribution, age and BMI, but the HI-vaspin group had lower insulin, HOMA, and triglyceride and higher HDL-cholesterol, acylation stimulating protein (ASP) and IL-6 levels (all p<0.05). Post-operatively, both groups decreased BMI comparably over 12 months; the HI-vaspin group maintained high vaspin levels, while the LO-vaspin group gradually increased their levels with weight loss over 12 months. The HI-vaspin group maintained a better glucose, insulin, HOMA, fructosamine, HDL-cholesterol, and triglyceride profile throughout. The HI-vaspin group also had higher gamma-glutamyltransferase and ASP profiles. Finally, baseline vaspin level inversely correlated significantly with baseline and 12-month insulin, HOMA, triglyceride and positively correlated with HDL and ASP. Twelve-month vaspin also correlated similarly, including an inverse correlation with BMI.ConclusionGlobally, this study supports the concept of vaspin as a beneficial adipokine in obesity, which may potentially lead to possible therapeutic targets.