Fat Distribution Within the Pancreas According to Diabetes Status and Insulin Traits

Abstract

Growing body of evidence suggests that intra-pancreatic fat is associated with diabetes but whether distribution of intra-pancreatic fat across the regions of the pancreas has a pathophysiologic role is unknown. The study aimed to investigate the differences in intra-pancreatic fat deposition between the head, body, and tail of the pancreas, as well as the relationship between regional intra-pancreatic fat deposition and diabetes status and insulin traits. A total of 368 adults from the general population underwent magnetic resonance imaging on a 3 T scanner and intra-pancreatic fat was manually quantified in duplicate. Statistical models were adjusted for age, sex, ethnicity, body mass index, and liver fat. Intra-pancreatic fat deposition in the head, body, and tail of the pancreas did not differ significantly in adjusted models, in both the overall cohort and the three subgroups based on diabetes status. HOMA-IR and fasting insulin were significantly positively associated with fat in the tail and body of the pancreas. There was no significant association between regional intra-pancreatic fat and HOMA-β. The association of increased intra-pancreatic fat deposition in the tail and body regions with increased insulin resistance may have an important role in the early identification of patients at risk for developing insulin resistance and diseases that stem from it.

Association between Intrapancreatic Fat Deposition and Lower High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol in Individuals with Newly Diagnosed T2DM

“…Secondly, due to the lack of relevant data for the OGTT, we were unable to calculate the disposition index and further assess the β -cell function in the context of insulin resistance. Thirdly, due to the inhomogeneous distribution and different mechanisms of ectopic fat in the various pancreatic compartments [ 24 , 25 ], this MRI study performed a volumetric evaluation of IPFD, which failed to accurately determine the complex pathological influence. Lastly, information on the history of physical activity of participants was lacking, which might affect HDL-C levels.…”

Metabolic traits affecting the relationship between liver fat and intrapancreatic fat: a mediation analysis

“…This cross-sectional study, with the enrolment of four individual cohorts [ 27 ], was conducted at the University of Auckland (Auckland, New Zealand) and received ethical approval by the New Zealand Health and Disability Ethics Committee (13/STH/182, 16/STH/23, 17/NTA/172, 18/NTB/1). People aged >18 years residing in Auckland were recruited following written informed consent.…”

Remnant cholesterol, but not low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, is associated with intra‐pancreatic fat deposition

“…This was a cross-sectional study conducted at the University of Auckland, whose study population was described in detail elsewhere. 22,25 In brief, participants were from the general population of Auckland (New Zealand), aged at least 18 years, and had no history of acute infectious or inflammatory disorders requiring medical care in the previous 6 months. All participants provided informed written consent for undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the abdomen.…”

“…All participants underwent abdominal MRI on the same 3.0-Tesla MAG-NETOM Skyra scanner VE 11A (Siemens, Erlangen, Germany) at the Center for Advanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging at the University of Auckland, and the same imaging protocol was used for all participants. 25,26 A modified version of the "MR-opsy" technique was used to quantify total and regional IPFD. 27 This involved the placement of regions of interest in the head, body, and tail of the pancreas, close to the respective regional diameters (Figure 1).…”