Low miR-222 expression in human visceral adipose tissue is associated with insulin resistance and PTEN and p53 mRNA levels

Introduction: The aim of this is study was to analyse the expression of miR-193b, miR-378, miR-Let7-d, and miR-222 in human visceral adipose tissue (VAT), as well as their association with obesity, insulin resistance (IR), and their role in the regulation of genes controlling adipose tissue homeostasis, including adipocytokines, the phosphatase and tension homologue (PTEN), and tumour protein 53 (p53). Material and methods: VAT was obtained from normal-weight (NW), overweight, and obese (OW/OB) subjects with and without IR. Stem-loop RT-qPCR was used to evaluate miRNA expression levels. miRTarBase 4.0, miRWalk, and DIANA-TarBase v8 were used for prediction of validated target gene of the miRNA analysed. A qPCR was used to evaluate PTEN, p53, leptin (LEP), and adiponectin (ADIPOQ) mRNA. Results: miR-222 was lower in IR subjects, and miR-222 and miR-378 negatively correlated with HOMA-IR. PTEN and p53 are miR-222 direct targets according to databases. mRNA expression of PTEN and p53 was lower in OW/OB subjects with and without IR, compared to NW group and its levels positively associated with miR-222. Additionally, p53 and PTEN are positively associated with serum leptin levels. On the other hand, miR-193b and miR-378 negatively correlated with serum leptin but not with mRNA levels. Moreover, miR-Let-7d negatively correlated with serum adiponectin but not with adiponectin mRNA levels. Conclusions: Lower miR-222 levels are associated with IR, and PTEN and p53 expression; the implication of these genes in adipose tissue homeostasis needs more research

Survival rates and worker compensation expenses in a national cohort of Mexican workers with permanent occupational disability caused by diabetes

Abstract Background Permanent occupational disability is one of the most severe consequences of diabetes that impedes the performance of usual working activities among economically active individuals. Survival rates and worker compensation expenses have not previously been examined among Mexican workers. We aimed to describe the worker compensation expenses derived from pension payments and also to examine the survival rates and characteristics associated with all-cause mortality, in a cohort of 34,014 Mexican workers with permanent occupational disability caused by diabetes during the years 2000–2013 at the Mexican Institute of Social Security. Methods A cross-sectional analysis study was conducted using national administrative records data from the entire country, regarding permanent occupational disability medical certification, pension payment and vital status. Survival rates were estimated using the Kaplan–Meier method. Multivariate Cox proportional hazard model was used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios (HR) and 95 % confidence intervals (95 % CI) in order to assess the cohort characteristics and all-cause mortality risk. Total expenses derived from pension payments for the period were accounted for in U.S. dollars (USD, 2013). Results There were 12,917 deaths in 142,725.1 person-years. Median survival time was 7.26 years. After multivariate adjusted analysis, males (HR, 1.39; 95 % CI, 1.29–1.50), agricultural, forestry, and fishery workers (HR, 1.41; 95 % CI, 1.15–1.73) and renal complications (HR, 3.49; 95 % CI, 3.18–3.83) had the highest association with all-cause mortality. The all-period expenses derived from pension payments amounted to $777.78 million USD (2013), and showed a sustained increment: from$58.28 million USD in 2000 to $111.62 million USD in 2013 (percentage increase of 91.5$ 777 million USD and showed an important increase from 2000 to 2013