ORIGINAL ARTICLES   

Minerva Endocrinologica 2016 September;41(3):302-13

Copyright © 2016 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Leucine and lysine intakes are highly associated with serum adiponectin levels in asymptomatic adults

Nina MOHORKO ¹, Zala JENKO-PRAŽNIKAR ², Ana PETELIN ² ✉

¹ Science and Research Centre, University of Primorska, Koper, Slovenia; ² Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Primorska, Izola, Slovenia

BACKGROUND: Adiponectin has anti-inflammatory, antiatherosclerotic properties and it is involved in metabolic regulation, especially by sensitizing tissues for insulin. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet has been shown to have a positive effect on adiponectin levels. Therefore, our aim was to assess asymptomatic general population of the Mediterranean part of Slovenia and to evaluate the correlations between serum adiponectin levels (SALs) and diet components, dietary habits, lifestyle parameters, metabolic syndrome (MetS) components and inflammatory markers.
METHODS: Healthy adults aged 25-49 participated in the cross-sectional study. Linear correlation analyses were used to examine SALs on diet components, dietary habits, lifestyle parameters and all risk factors.
RESULTS: A positive correlation between the ratio of leucine:lysine intake and adiponectin and a negative correlation between adiponectin and presence of already two components of MetS were found. Moreover, we confirmed the negative correlations between adiponectin and C-reactive protein (CRP), but found a negative correlation between adiponectin and visfatin. Furthermore, hierarchical multiple regression analyses confirmed that besides lower homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), CRP, homocysteine and BMI, also higher ratio of leucine:lysine contributes to the prediction of higher level of adiponectin.
CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that high leucine:lysine intake ratio may promote the increase in SALs in clinically asymptomatic adults. On the other hand, lower SALs are due to obesity, inflammation and presence of already 2 components of metabolic syndrome.