October - December 2014, Volume 10, Issue 4

Gu PY, Kang DM, Wang WD, Chen Y, Zhao ZH, Zheng H, Ye SD

Serum Oteocalcin Level is Independently Associated with the Carotid Intima-Media Thickness in Men with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Acta Endo (Buc) 2014, 10 (4): 559-569
doi: 10.4183/aeb.2014.559

The role of osteocalcin in atherogenesis is unclear. We investigated the association between osteocalcin and carotid atherosclerosis in Chinese middle-aged and elderly male adults and further determined whether osteocalcin is independently associated with the carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in hyperglycemia subgroups. Subjects and methods. A total of 84 male participants (mean age, 59.13 years) were enrolled in groups of normal glucose tolerance (NGT), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) according to the oral glucose tolerance test. A standard interview, anthropometric measurements and laboratory analyses were performed for each participant. Bilateral carotid intima–media thicknesses (CIMT) were measured using ultrasonography. The circulating osteocalcin was measured using quantitative enzyme immunoassay. Results. Both IGT and newly diagnosed T2DM groups had significantly lower osteocalcin levels compared with the NGT group (5.01 ± 0.68 μg/L, and 6.173 ± 0.68 ng/mL vs. 11.55 ± 0.57 μg/L, respectively). Multivariate linear stepwise regression analysis demonstrated that waisthip ratio(WHR) (standardized β = -0.408, P = 0.000), 2 hour plasma glucose after glucose load, (PPG) (standardized β = -0.235, P = 0.025), homeostasis model of assessment for insulin resistance index(HOMA-IR) (standardized β = -0.287, P = 0.004), and Glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) (standardized β = -0.250, P = 0.015) were independently and inversely associated with serum osteocalcin in hyperglycemia subgroups; PPG(standardized β = -0.476, P = 0.015), osteocalcin(standardized β = -0.486, P = 0.001) were negatively associated with CIMT, while TG (standardized β = 0.647, P = 0.000) was positively associated with CIMT in T2DM. Conclusion. These results showed that osteocalcin is independently associated with carotid atherosclerosis in men with T2DM. It is tempting to suggest that osteocalcin may be implicated atherosclerosis.

Keywords: metabolic parameters, glucose tolerance, carotid intima-media thickness, osteocalcin.

Correspondence: Pengying Gu MD, Department of Geriatric Medicine, Anhui Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230001, Anhui, China, E-mail: cxyhfut@126.com