Volume 1 number 1 Summer 2003
Special issue for the abstracts of the 7th Pan Arab Conference on Diabetes
PACD7 , 25 – 28 March 2003 Cairo

Abstract Number : 27
SERUM LEVELS OF ENDOTHELIN-1 IN OBESE AND NON-OBESE
PATIENTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS

LA.Mogylnytska1, BN Mankovsky2, Kmelnizky Regional Hospital1, Institute of Endocrinology, Kiev, Ukraine2

BACKGROUND AND AIM: 
Endothelial dysfunction is implicated in the pathogenesis of metabolic syndrome and diabetic complications. Endothelin-1 is the potent endothelium-derived vasoconstrictive factor. However, an association between endothelin-1 production and obesity in diabetic patients remains not fully understood. Therefore, the aim of the study was to investigate serum levels of endothelin-1 in obese and non-obese patients with type 2 diabetes.

Materials and Methods: 
We studied 48 patients with type 2 diabetes - 24 with obesity (age: 56.8+2.2 years, BMI: 35.3+0.8 kg/m2; waist/hip ratio (WHR) - 0.98+0.03; data everywhere are presented as mean+SEM), 24 patients without obesity (age: 52.1+1.6 years, BMI: 24.2+0.8 kg/m2; WHR-0.88+0.02), and 40 non-diabetic subjects - 20 obese (age: 52.8+2.1 years, BMI: 33.9+0.6 kg/m2; WHR-0.89+0.02), and 20 non-obese (age: 47.4+1.4 years, BMI: 24.0+0.6 kg/m2; WHR- 0.84+0.02). Serum endothelin-1 levels were determined by immunoenzyme assay. Statistical analysis was performed by Student's paired and Pearson's correlation tests. 

Results: 
We found a significant increase of serum endothelin-1 levels in obese patients with diabetes compared to obese non-diabetic subjects - 8.09+0.51 vs. 5.8+0.45 pmol/L, respectively, p<0.001. Endothelin-1 levels were also higher in non-obese patients with diabetes compared to control non-obese subjects without diabetes - 6.67+0.38 and 4.38+0.31 pmol/L, respectively, p<0.05. Moreover, it was a significant elevation of serum endothelin-1 levels in those with obesity compared to non-obese subjects either in people with or without diabetes mellitus. In-patients with diabetes it was significant correlation between fasting glucose, BMI and endothelin-1 levels (r=0.51, p<0.05 and r=0.68, p<0.05, respectively). Conclusions: The revealed changes of endothelin-1 serum levels could reflect an endothelial dysfunction in type 2 diabetic patients, which is the most pronounced in those with obesity. Hyperglycemia and obesity appear to be significant factors contributing to elevation of endothelin-1 production in-patients with diabetes.

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