The Association of Circulating Serum Irisin Levels With Glucose and Lipid Metabolism in Chinese Adolescents Aged 12∼18 Years

Abstract

Objective: Irisin is an exercise-regulated myokine inducing browning of white adipose tissue and has gained interest as a potential new strategy to combat type 2 diabetes mellitus and dyslipidemia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible relationships between circulating serum irisin levels with glucose and lipid metabolism in Chinese adolescents. Design and method: This cross-sectional study included 1219 adolescents aged 12 to 18 years. Serum irisin levels were evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and all participants’ fasting blood glucose (FBG) and lipids,including totalcholesterol(TC),triglyceride(TG),low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C) were measured. Multiple linear regression was used to study the effect of irisin on glucose and lipid metabolism. Results: There were several significant negative correlations between circulating irisin and FBG (r = -0.120, P<0.001), TC(r = -0.091, P<0.001), LDL-C(r = -0.088, P = 0.002) and HDL-C(r = -0.094, P<0.001) across the study. In multivariate linear regression analysis, after controlling for potential confounders such as gender, age and BMI, irisin levels were independently associated with FBG( = -0.115, P<0.001), TC( = -0.078, P = 0.003), LDL-C( = -0.073, P = 0.005) and HDL-C(r = -0.087, P = 0.001). Conclusions: We found that serum irisin levels were inversely correlated with glucose and lipid metabolic parameters including FPG, TC, LDL-C and HDL-C,suggesting that irisin may play a crucial role in glucose and lipid metabolism from an early age.