Serum zonulin levels in type 2 diabetes patients with diabetic kidney disease

Introduction: Recent data have shown that diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is associated with abnormal gut microbiota composition. Zonulin is a physiological tight junction modulator and an intestinal permeability marker. In this study we aimed to investigate serum levels of zonulin and interleukin 6 (IL-6) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and different levels of albuminuria. Material and methods: Ninety patients with T2DM and 30 healthy controls (HC) aged between 18 and 65 years were enrolled in the study. T2DM patients were divided into three groups as patients with normoalbuminuria (n = 30), microalbuminuria (n = 30), and macroalbuminuria (n = 30). Serum zonulin and IL-6 levels were measured by ELISA method. Results: There was no significant difference between groups in terms of age, gender, serum ALT, LDL-C, HDL-C, and zonulin levels (p > 0.05). Significant differences between groups were present for the duration of diabetes (p < 0.001), body mass index (p < 0.001), fasting blood glucose (p < 0.001), creatinine (p < 0.001), uric acid (p = 0.037), triglyceride (p = 0.003), total cholesterol (p < 0.001), glycated haemoglobin (p < 0.001), and IL-6 (p < 0.001) levels. IL-6 levels were significantly increased in the microalbuminuria and macroalbuminuria groups compared to the HC group, but no significant difference was determined between the HC and normoalbuminuria group. In patients with diabetic kidney disease, a significant positive correlation was found between zonulin with IL-6 and proteinuria (rho = 0.296, p = 0.008; rho = 0.190, p < 0.047, respectively). The serum IL-6 level was positively correlated with microalbuminuria and proteinuria (rho = 0.451, p < 0.001; rho = 0.425, p < 0.001, respectively).  Conclusions: We suggest that the serum zonulin level is not a promising biomarker to assess the severity of DKD in patients with long-standing T2DM

Plasma 8-Isopgf2 Alpha and Serum Melatonin Levels in Patients with Minimal Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer Disease

Background/aim: F2 alpha-isoprostane is accepted as an oxidative stress indicator and melatonin shows neuroprotective effects by antioxidative and antiamyloidogenic influences. By measuring these in patients diagnosed with minimal cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer-type dementia, we intended to demonstrate whether the measurement of these markers contributes to early diagnosis of Alzheimer disease (AD) in the MCI stage or not. Materials and methods: Three groups (n = 63) were created: the AD group, MCI group, and control group. Serum melatonin levels were measured by radioimmunoassay method, and plasma total 8-isoPGF2 alpha levels were measured by enzyme immunoassay method. Results: Significant differences were observed in the melatonin levels between the MCI group and AD group (P = 0.009), and in 8-isoPGF2 alpha levels between the AD group and control group (P = 0.022). A negative correlation between mini-mental state examination (MMSE) scores and 8-isoPGF2 alpha levels (r = -0.459, P < 0.001) and positive correlation between MMSE scores and melatonin levels (r = 0.317, P = 0.011) were found. Conclusion: Although the plasma 8-isoPGF2 alpha and serum melatonin levels in MCI were not found to be good early diagnostic markers to indicate risk of AD, results were found to support the role of oxidative stress in AD.WoSScopu