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Serum lipocalin-2, cathepsin S and chemerin levels and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

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Abstract

Several novel circulating adipokines are associated with insulin resistance and inflammation. Little information exists in NAFLD about three recently recognized adipokines lipocalin-2, cathepsin S and chemerin. To assess the relationship between serum lipocalin-2, cathepsin S and chemerin levels and the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver in Chinese subjects, we measured serum lipocalin-2, cathepsin S and chemerin levels in 903 Chinese subjects by ELISA. Among the study population, 436 patients are with B-mode ultrasound-proven NAFLD and 467 controls. Levels of lipocalin-2, but not cathepsin S and chemerin, were significantly elevated in NAFLD versus control [lipocalin-2, 89.67 ± 4.47 vs. 68.70 ± 3.65 ng/mL (p < 0.001)]. After stepwise linear regression analysis adjusting for potential cofounders, further revealed that serum lipocalcin-2 was an independent predictor of NAFLD in whole cohort (standardized β = 0.114, t = 2.347, p = 0.02). Lipocalin-2 levels correlated with insulin resistance (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance) and inflammation (CRP) in whole cohorts and NAFLD, whereas cathepsin S and chemerin only correlated positively with insulin resistance and inflammation in whole cohorts. Our results indicated that circulating lipocalin-2, produced by adipocytes, are elevated and may contribute to the development of NAFLD. Serum lipocalin-2, which correlates with inflammation and insulin resistance, may have a direct pathogenic link to disease progression.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81000344, 81030014), Shanghai Science and Technology Commission (08dj1400605, 08JC1403200, 09DZ1950200), China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (20080440078), and Shanghai Postdoctoral Scientific Program (09R21411600).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Endocrinology and Diabetology at Fudan University, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200040, China

    Zi Ye, Min He, Shuo Zhang, Jie Wen, Qin Li, Ying Huang, Xuanchun Wang, Bin Lu, Zhaoyun Zhang & Renming Hu

  2. Department of Endocrinology, Clinical Geriatric Medicine, Henan Provincial People’s Hospital, Zhengzhou, 450003, China

    Suijun Wang

  3. Department of Endocrinology, Xinhua Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiaotong University, 1655 Kongjiang Road, Shanghai, China

    Zhen Yang, Weiwei Zhang & Qing Su

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  1. Zi Ye
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Correspondence to Zi Ye.

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Zi Ye and Suijun Wang have contributed equally to this work.

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Ye, Z., Wang, S., Yang, Z. et al. Serum lipocalin-2, cathepsin S and chemerin levels and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Mol Biol Rep 41, 1317–1323 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-013-2977-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-013-2977-5

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