Is type 2 diabetes really resolved after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy? Glucose variability studied by continuous glucose monitoring

The study was carried out on type 2 diabetic obese patients who underwent laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG). Patients underwent regular glycemic controls throughout 3 years and all patients were defined cured from diabetes according to conventional criteria defined as normalization of fasting glucose levels and glycated hemoglobin in absence of antidiabetic therapy. After 3 years of follow-up, Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) was performed in each patient to better clarify the remission of diabetes. In this study, we found that the diabetes resolution after LSG occurred in 40% of patients; in the other 60%, even if they showed a normal fasting glycemia and A1c, patients spent a lot of time in hyperglycemia. During the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), we found that 2 h postload glucose determinations revealed overt diabetes only in a small group of patients and might be insufficient to exclude the diagnosis of diabetes in the other patients who spent a lot of time in hyperglycemia, even if they showed a normal glycemia (<140 mg/dL) at 120 minutes OGTT. These interesting data could help clinicians to better individualize patients in which diabetes is not resolved and who could need more attention in order to prevent chronic complications of diabetes

Increased plasma proneurotensin levels identify NAFLD in adults with and without type 2 diabetes

Context Neurotensin (NT), an intestinal peptide released by fat ingestion, promotes lipid absorption; higher circulating NT levels are associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D), obesity, and cardiovascular disease. Whether NT is related to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) has not been fully investigated. Objective To study the relationship between plasma proneurotensin 1 to 117 (pro-NT), a stable fragment of the NT precursor hormone, and the presence/severity of NAFLD/NASH and to unravel correlates of increased pro-NT levels. Design/Setting/Participants For this cross-sectional study, 60 obese individuals undergoing bariatric surgery for clinical purposes were recruited. The association between pro-NT and NAFLD was further investigated in 260 consecutive subjects referred to our outpatient clinics for metabolic evaluations, including liver ultrasonography. The study population underwent complete metabolic characterization; in the obese cohort, liver biopsies were performed during surgery. Main Outcome Measures Plasma pro-NT levels in relation to NAFLD/NASH. Results Obese subjects with biopsy-proven NAFLD (53%) had significantly higher plasma pro-NT than those without NAFLD (183.6 ± 81.4 vs 86.7 ± 56.8 pmol/L, P < 0.001). Greater pro-NT correlated with NAFLD presence (P < 0.001) and severity (P < 0.001), age, female sex, insulin resistance, and T2D. Higher pro-NT predicted NAFLD with an area under receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.836 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.73 to 0.94; P < 0.001]. Belonging to the highest pro-NT quartile correlated with increased NAFLD risk (odds ratio, 2.62; 95% CI, 1.08 to 6.40) after adjustment for confounders. The association between higher pro-NT and NAFLD was confirmed in the second cohort independently from confounders. Conclusions Increased plasma pro-NT levels identify the presence/severity of NAFLD; in dysmetabolic individuals, NT may specifically promote hepatic fat accumulation through mechanisms likely related to increased insulin resistance. © 2018 Endocrine Society

Effects of basic traditional Chinese diet on body mass index, lean body mass, and eating and hunger behaviours in overweight or obese individuals

Abstract Objective To compare the effects of a basic traditional Chinese diet with a Western standard diet on body mass index (BMI), lean body mass (LBD), and eating and hunger behaviours. Methods A sample of 284 patients were randomized into 2 groups: group A (n = 142) followed a basic traditional Chinese diet (BCTD) and group B (n = 142) followed a Western standard diet (WSD). Both diets were set at approximately 1200 calories. The patients enrolled were compared before treatment and 6 weeks after treatment, and then follow-ups were made at 1 year and 5 years. Results In the BCTD group, BMI decreased by 0.46 kg/m2 and LBM by 0.25 kg, versus respectively 0.28 kg/m2 and 0.41 kg in the WSD group. Findings of eating self-assessment, hunger measurement and psychophysical indices of health were also in favour of the BCTD. Conclusion Outcomes show that the BCTD has a better effect on BMI and LBM, as well as over the medium/long term, and provides stronger psychophysical support to obese patients

Effect of a basic Chinese traditional diet in overweight patients.

Abstract Objective To evaluate the effect of a basic Chinese traditional diet (BTCD) in overweight patients on body mass index (BMI), lean mass, sense of hunger, and eating behaviour. Methods A total of 694 enrolled subjects (218 male and 476 female) were divided into two groups: group A undergoing a 1200-Kcal BTCD, and group B undergoing a 1200-Kcal standard western diet. Results From T0 (before treatment) to T1 (6 weeks after treatment), BMI was lowered in group A from (32.33±5.51) to (31.96±5.56) kg/m2, and in group B from (31.62±6.29) to (31.36±6.47) kg/m2. After treatment, patients in group A lost more weight (0.37±0.52) kg than group B (0.26±0.79) kg (P=0.0044). From T0 to T1, the mean lean mass of group A decreased from (16.48±5.50) to (16.27±5.45) kg. In group B, mean lean mass decreased from (16.93 ±6.49) to (16.44±6.29) kg. The difference was significant (P=0.0078). Conclusion The two diets could lead to lower BMI, improve lean mass as well as eating behaviour and sense of hunger. However, the BTCD was significantly better than the western standard diet

Neurotensin is a lipid-induced gastrointestinal peptide associated with visceral adipose tissue inflammation in obesity

Neurotensin (NT) is a 13-amino acid peptide localized in the neuroendocrine cells of the small intestine, which promotes fat absorption and fatty acids translocation in response to lipid ingestion. NT-knock-out mice fed with a high-fat diet are protected from obesity, fatty liver, and the development of insulin-resistance. In humans, higher plasma levels of pro-NT, which is the stable circulating precursor of NT, predict obesity, type 2 diabetes (T2D), and cardiovascular disease. In obesity, the presence of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) inflammation leads to unfavorable metabolic outcomes and is associated with the development of T2D and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). In this study, we investigated the relationship between plasma pro-NT levels and the presence of VAT inflammation in biopsies from 40 morbidly obese subjects undergoing bariatric surgery. We demonstrated that higher proNT levels are significantly associated with greater macrophages infiltration, HIF-1&alpha;, WISP-1, and UNC5B expression in VAT (all p < 0.01) due to the diagnosis of T2D and NAFLD. The overall results show that, in obesity, pro-NT is a biomarker of VAT inflammation and insulin-resistance. Additionally, NT may be involved in the development of dysmetabolic conditions likely mediated by increased gut fat absorption and the presence of a proinflammatory milieu in the adipose tissue

Relation of epicardial fat and alanine aminotransferase in subjects with increased visceral fat

Background: Increased visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is a risk factor for an unfavorable cardio-metabolic profile and fatty liver. Individuals with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) can be associated with metabolic syndrome (MS) and higher visceral fat. However, the potential link between cardiac adiposity, emerging index of visceral adiposity, and fatty liver is still unexplored. Objective: To evaluate whether echocardiographic epicardial adipose tissue, index of cardiac adiposity, could be related to serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) activity, surrogate markers of fatty liver, in HIV-infected patients with (HIV+MS+) and without HAART-associated MS (HIV+MS-). Methods and Procedures: This was a cross-sectional observational study on 57 HIV+MS+ patients, 52 HIV+MS- and 57 HIV-negative subjects with MS (HIV-MS+), as control group. Epicardial fat thickness and intra-abdominal VAT were obtained by echocardiography and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), respectively. Serum ALT and AST activity, plasma adiponectin levels, and MS biochemical parameters were measured. Results: Echocardiographic epicardial fat thickness was correlated with MRI-VAT (r = 0.83, P < 0.01), AST/ALT ratio (r = 0.77, P < 0.01), ALT (r = 0.58, P < 0.01), AST (r = 0.56, P < 0.01), and adiponectin (r = -0.45, P < 0.01) in HIV+MS+. MRI-VAT and AST/ALT ratio were the best correlates of epicardial fat thickness (r(2) = 0.45, P < 0.01). Discussion: This study shows for the first time a clear relationship of epicardial fat, index of cardiac and visceral adiposity, and serum ALT and AST activity, markers of fatty liver, in subjects with increased visceral adiposity and cardio-metabolic risk. This correlation seems to be independent of overall adiposity and rather function of excess visceral adiposity

Gut microbiota markers in obese adolescent and adult patients: Age-dependent differential patterns

Obesity levels, especially in children, have dramatically increased over the last few decades. Recently, several studies highlighted the involvement of gut microbiota in the pathophysiology of obesity. We investigated the composition of gut microbiota in obese adolescents and adults compared to age-matched normal weight (NW) volunteers in order to assemble age- and obesity-related microbiota profiles. The composition of gut microbiota was analyzed by 16S rRNA-based metagenomics. Ecological representations of microbial communities were computed, and univariate, multivariate, and correlation analyses performed on bacterial profiles. The prediction of metagenome functional content from 16S rRNA gene surveys was carried out. Ecological analyses revealed a dissimilarity among the subgroups, and resultant microbiota profiles differed between obese adolescents and adults. Using statistical analyses, we assigned, as microbial markers, Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and Actinomyces to the microbiota of obese adolescents, and Parabacteroides, Rikenellaceae, Bacteroides caccae, Barnesiellaceae, and Oscillospira to the microbiota of NW adolescents. The predicted metabolic profiles resulted different in adolescent groups. Particularly, biosynthesis of primary bile acid and steroid acids, metabolism of fructose, mannose, galactose, butanoate, and pentose phosphate and glycolysis/gluconeogenesis were for the majority associated to obese, while biosynthesis and metabolism of glycan, biosynthesis of secondary bile acid, metabolism of steroid hormone and lipoic acid were associated to NW adolescents. Our study revealed unique features of gut microbiota in terms of ecological patterns, microbial composition and metabolism in obese patients. The assignment of novel obesity bacterial markers may open avenues for the development of patient-tailored treatments dependent on age-related microbiota profiles

Hypovitaminosis D is independently associated with metabolic syndrome in obese patients

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MS) and hypovitaminosis D represent two of the most diffuse condition worldwide, reaching pandemic proportions in industrialized countries, and are both strongly associated with obesity. This study set out to evaluate the presence of an independent association between hypovitaminosis D and MS in an adult population of obese subjects with/without MS. Methods: We recruited 107 consecutive obese subjects, 61 with MS (age(mean +/- SD) 45.3 +/- 13.3 years, BMI(mean +/- SD): 43.1 +/- 8.3 kg/m(2)) and 46 without MS (age: 41.8 +/- 11.5, p = n.s., BMI: 41.6 +/- 6.5 kg/m(2), p = n.s.) comparable for sex, BMI, waist circumference and body fat mass, evaluated by bioimpedentiometry. 25(OH) vitamin D-3 levels were measured by colorimetric method. Insulin resistance was estimated by fasting blood insulin, HOMA-IR and ISI. Results: Serum 25(OH) D3 levels were significantly lower in MS obese patients than in obese subjects without MS (median(range) 13.5(3.3-32) vs 17.4(5.1-37.4), p&lt;0.007). Low 25(OH)D-3 levels correlated with glycaemia (p&lt;0.007), phosphate (p&lt;0.03), PTH (p&lt;0.003) and the MS (p&lt;0.001). Multivariate model confirmed that low 25(OH)D-3 levels were associated with the diagnosis of MS in obese patients independently from gender, age, serum PTH and body fat mass. After stratifying the study population according to 25(OH)D-3 concentrations, patients in the lowest quartile showed a markedly increased prevalence of MS compared to those in the highest quartile (OR = 4.1, CI 1.2-13.7, p = 0.02). Conclusions: A powerful association exists between hypovitaminosis D and MS in obese patients independently from body fat mass and its clinical correlates. This indicates that the association between low 25(OH)D-3 levels and MS is not merely induced by vitamin D deposition in fat tissue and reinforces the hypothesis that hypovitaminosis D represent a crucial independent determinant of MS.Background:Metabolic syndrome (MS) and hypovitaminosis D represent two of the most diffuse condition worldwide, reaching pandemic proportions in industrialized countries, and are both strongly associated with obesity. This study set out to evaluate the presence of an independent association between hypovitaminosis D and MS in an adult population of obese subjects with/without MS.Methods:We recruited 107 consecutive obese subjects, 61 with MS (age(mean±SD) 45.3±13.3 years, BMI(mean±SD): 43.1±8.3 kg/m2) and 46 without MS (age: 41.8±11.5, p = n.s., BMI:41.6±6.5 kg/m2, p = n.s.) comparable for sex, BMI, waist circumference and body fat mass, evaluated by bioimpedentiometry. 25(OH) vitamin D3 levels were measured by colorimetric method. Insulin resistance was estimated by fasting blood insulin, HOMA-IR and ISI.Results:Serum 25(OH)D3 levels were significantly lower in MS obese patients than in obese subjects without MS (median(range) 13.5(3.3-32) vs 17.4(5.1-37.4), p&lt;0.007). Low 25(OH)D3 levels correlated with glycaemia (p&lt;0.007), phosphate (p&lt;0.03), PTH (p&lt;0.003) and the MS (p&lt;0.001). Multivariate model confirmed that low 25(OH)D3 levels were associated with the diagnosis of MS in obese patients independently from gender, age, serum PTH and body fat mass. After stratifying the study population according to 25(OH)D3 concentrations, patients in the lowest quartile showed a markedly increased prevalence of MS compared to those in the highest quartile (OR = 4.1, CI 1.2-13.7, p = 0.02).Conclusions:A powerful association exists between hypovitaminosis D and MS in obese patients independently from body fat mass and its clinical correlates. This indicates that the association between low 25(OH) D3 levels and MS is not merely induced by vitamin D deposition in fat tissue and reinforces the hypothesis that hypovitaminosis D represent a crucial independent determinant of MS. © 2013 Barchetta et al

Lack of effect of apolipoprotein C3 polymorphisms on indices of liver steatosis, lipid profile and insulin resistance in obese Southern Europeans.

RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are.BACKGROUND: Apolipoprotein C3 (APOC3) is a component of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins, and APOC3 rs2854116 and rs2854117 polymorphisms have been associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, hypertriglyceridaemia, and insulin-resistance. OBJECTIVE: To determine if the APOC3 variants alter the susceptibility of obese subjects to develop liver damage, hypertrigliceridaemia, and insulin-resistance. METHODS: The study was carried out on 585 unrelated obese Italians (median body mass index BMI = 41 kg/m2) who were genotyped for the rs2854116 and rs2854117 variants. All participants underwent oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT), with measurement of glucose, insulin, lipid parameters. Indices of insulin-resistance (HOMA and ISI) were calculated. Alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) were used as markers of liver injury. RESULTS: The study subjects were divided into two groups: those homozygous for the wild-type alleles at both SNPs (-482C and -455T alleles) and those who were carriers of at least one variant allele or both (-482T, -455C or both). Also each SNP was analysed independently. No significant differences were found in ALT and AST levels and in the lipid profile between the two groups. Insulin concentrations, glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity were similar in the two groups. CONCLUSION: We did not identify any significant association between APOC3 polymorphisms and fatty liver disease, lipids, and insulin-resistance in obese subjects, thus not confirming the suggested role of these APOC3 gene sequence variants

Glycated hemoglobin for the diagnosis of diabetes and prediabetes: Diagnostic impact on obese and lean subjects, and phenotypic characterization

Aims/Introduction Measurement of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) has been recommended for the diagnosis of diabetes and prediabetes. However, epidemiological studies have shown significant discordance between HbA1c and glucose-based tests. Of the factors that could influence agreement between HbA1c and the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), bodyweight has not been fully evaluated. The aims of the present study were to evaluate the impact of HbA1c criteria to diagnose diabetes and prediabetes compared with OGTT, and to examine HbA1c in relation to body mass index. Materials and Methods Two cohorts were studied, one from an obesity clinic (n = 592) and one from subjects undergoing screening for diabetes (n = 462). All underwent OGTT and HbA1c measurement. Results In the obese cohort, HbA1c ≥6.5% (≥48 mmol/mol) showed a sensitivity of 69.3% for diabetes, whereas HbA1c 5.7–6.4% (39–46 mmol/mol) did not identify prediabetes well (sensitivity 39.1%). In the diabetes screening cohort, HbA1c h