Hepcidin is a useful biomarker to evaluate hyperferritinemia associated with metabolic syndrome

Abstract

Investigation of hyperferritinemia in metabolic syndrome patients represents a diagnostic challenge, but it is essential for the identification of individuals with iron overload. Hepcidin negatively regulates iron absorption and release. An increase in hepcidin occurs when iron levels are sufficient or in inflammatory states, conditions often associated with hyperferritinemia. Hemochromatosis causes hyperferritinemia due to iron overload, but frequently has low hepcidin levels. Our aim was to evaluate biochemical and molecular parameters related to iron metabolism in patients with metabolic syndrome. We evaluated 94 patients with metabolic syndrome according to the International Diabetes Federation criteria in a cross-sectional study. Anthropometric data and diagnostic criteria for metabolic syndrome, iron dosage, ferritin, transferrin saturation, hepcidin, and the C282Y and H63D mutations in the HFe hemochromatosis gene were evaluated. Prevalence of hyperferritinemia in the study population was 27.7% and was higher in males (46.2%) than in females (14.5%). Increase in transferrin saturation correlated with mutations in the hemochromatosis gene. Hyperferritinemia was associated to transferrin saturation and hepcidin after logistic regression analysis. In conclusion, hyperferritinemia is a frequent finding in metabolic syndrome patients, most frequently in men; and hepcidin assessment can be useful for the investigation of ferritin increase in those subjects.

H2O2 induces oxidative stress damage through the BMP‐6/SMAD/hepcidin axis

“…The regulation of Hepcidin expression in vivo is very complex. Ischemia and hypoxia, serum iron levels, the erythropoiesis rate, inflammation and other factors affect the expression of hepcidin (Rauber et al, ; Sheetz et al, ). The BMP‐SMAD pathway is considered the core pathway that regulates the basic expression of ferritin (Goh, Wallace, Hong, & Subramaniam, ).…”

Relation between erythropoietin resistance and metabolic syndrome in hemodialysis patients: A multicentric propensity score matched analysis

“…Although the present work did not assess hepcidin levels in the studied patients, it is interesting to know that MetS is also related to elevated hepcidin levels. 40,41 The role of hepcidin in EPO resistance was previously discussed. 10 The relation between hepcidin and ferritin levels in HD patients under EPO treatment may be more complicated than expected.…”