Circulating adipokines in children with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: possible noninvasive diagnostic markers

Abstract

BackgroundThe growing obesity pandemic is the leading cause for increasing prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in children. Histopathological evaluation of the liver remains the gold standard for NAFLD diagnosis, but it is an invasive procedure with a low but real risk of morbidity and mortality. The current study evaluated circulating chemerin and adiponectin as possible noninvasive diagnostic markers for NAFLD in obese non-diabetic children.MethodsA prospective case-control study was conducted, which included 101 obese children with biopsy-proven NAFLD and 57 age- and sex-matched controls. The overall mean age of the children was 10.08±3.12 years. All underwent a full clinical assessment, routine laboratory investigation, and abdominal ultrasound. Homeostatic model assessment-insulin resistance was calculated and circulating chemerin and adiponectin were evaluated using ELISA.ResultsElevated serum chemerin and decreased serum adiponectin were significantly associated with an increased likelihood of exhibiting NAFLD. Receiver operator characteristic curve analysis for differentiation of NAFLD patients from those in the control group demonstrated that chemerin, at a cutoff value of 186.7 ng/mL, yielded a sensitivity and specificity of 56.44% and 87.72% respectively (P<0.001), whereas adiponectin, at a cutoff value of 2.4 µg/mL, had a sensitivity and specificity of 74.26% and 3.51% respectively (P<0.001). Furthermore, body mass index, aspartate transaminase, alanine transaminase, triglycerides, and gamma-glutamyl transferase had significant positive correlations with chemerin and significant negative correlations with adiponectin (P≤0.001).ConclusionCirculating chemerin and adiponectin could serve as simple noninvasive diagnostic markers for NAFLD in non-diabetic obese children.

Effects of low glycemic index diet on insulin resistance among obese adolescent with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a randomized controlled trial

“…Leptin, adipokines, such as adiponectin, and the newest one, chemerin, might have a role in the regulation of IR of obese children with NAFLD. 4,12,14 Leptin is one of the hormones which plays a significant role in sending the signals from the body fat to the brain. If the stored fat reaches the peak level, the leptin will send a signal to the brain.…”

“…Adiponectin was lower in obese children with NAFLD; meanwhile, chemerin is significantly higher in obese children with NAFLD as compared to the control group. 4 Based on the food recall data, subjects often consume foods with high GI during breakfast and dinner at their home. Since the family is not directly participating in the daily menu arrangement, it may result in an increase in IR.…”

“…The estimated prevalence of NAFLD in the child population is about 10%, and it can increase up to 40-70% among obese children. 4 A study conducted in Semarang showed that the prevalence of metabolic syndrome among the obese adolescents was 31.6%. 5 Homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) is one of the easiest ways to assess insulin resistance (IR).…”

The roles of vaspin, chemerin, and omentin in the determination of metabolic syndrome

“…were not able to show chemerin as a predictor of acute coronary syndrome [127]. Some studies showed a significant increase of chemerin level in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) patients [128,129]. It was implied that this increase is connected with obesity [130].…”

Histopathological Evaluation of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Mini-Review of Literature

“…Mohamed et al [26] Circulating adipokines in children with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: possible noninvasive diagnostic markers…”