Is the Leptin/Adiponectin Ratio a Better Diagnostic Biomarker for Insulin Resistance than Leptin or Adiponectin Alone in Adolescents?

• Main Authors: César Agostinis-Sobrinho (Author), Sofia E. de Castro Ferreira Vicente (Author), Sigute Norkiene (Author), Alona Rauckienė-Michaelsson (Author), Justina Kievisienė (Author), Viney Prakash Dubey (Author), Arturas Razbadauskas (Author), Luís Lopes (Author), Rute Santos (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: MDPI AG, 2022-08-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 10.3390/children9081193; 2227-9067
• Keywords: leptin; adiponectin; fatness; youth; Pediatrics; RJ1-570
• Source: Children, Vol 9, Iss 8, p 1193 (2022)

Background: Recently, the leptin/adiponectin (L/A) ratio has been suggested as a novel predictor of cardio-metabolic and other chronic diseases. Aim: To evaluate the ability of leptin (L), adiponectin (A), and the L/A ratio in identifying high risk of insulin resistance IR in adolescents, adjusted by cardiorespiratory fitness, adherence to the Mediterranean diet, and body fat percentage. Subjects and methods: This is a cross-sectional analysis with 529 adolescents aged 12-18 years-old. Blood samples were taken to analyze glucose, insulin, leptin, and adiponectin levels. IR (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) was estimated from fasting serum insulin and glucose). Results: Adiponectin, leptin, and L/A ratio were accurate to predict IR among adolescents. The optimal L/A cut-off value to indicate risk of IR development was >0.35 in boys and >0.97 in girls. Logistic analyses showed that the suggested cut-off points for adiponectin (girls: OR: 2.87 (1.26-6.53); <i>p</i> = 0.012); leptin (boys: OR: 5.23 (1.16-7.14) <i>p</i> = 0.006; girls: OR: 2.99 (1.10-8.09) <i>p</i> = 0.031), and the L/A ratio (boys: OR: 8.38 (2.6-26.8) <i>p</i> < 0.001; girls: OR: 6.1 (2.1-17.0) <i>p</i> < 0.001), were significant predictors of IR, after adjustments for age, pubertal stage, adherence to the Mediterranean diet, cardiorespiratory fitness, and body fat percentage. Conclusion: Leptin and L/A ratio were associated with IR risk, after adjustments for confounders in both sexes and adiponectin in girls. The L/A ratio seems to have a higher diagnostic accuracy to identify IR risk than adiponectin or leptin, in both sexes.