Basal and postprandial change in serum fibroblast growth factor-21 concentration in type 1 diabetic mellitus and in healthy controls

• Published in: Endocrine 2015-04, Vol.48 (3), p.848-855
• Main Authors: Zibar, Karin, Blaslov, Kristina, Bulum, Tomislav, Ćuća, Jadranka Knežević, Smirčić-Duvnjak, Lea
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Blood Glucose - metabolism; Cross-Sectional Studies; Diabetes; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 - blood; Endocrinology; Female; Fibroblast Growth Factors - blood; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Insulin - blood; Internal Medicine; Lipids - blood; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Middle Aged; multidisciplinary; Original Article; Postprandial Period - physiology; Science; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1355-008X; 1559-0100
• DOI: 10.1007/s12020-014-0413-9

Fibroblast growth factor-21 (FGF-21) appears to have an important role in glucose and lipid metabolism. FGF-21 secretion is mainly determined by nutritional status. The aim of this study was to measure basal and postprandial FGF-21 and postprandial change of FGF-21 concentration in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) patients and in healthy controls, and to investigate the differences between the groups. The cross-sectional study included 30 C-peptide negative T1DM patients, median age 37 years (20–59), disease duration 22 years (3–45), and nine healthy controls, median age 30 years (27–47). Basal and postprandial FGF-21 concentrations were measured by ELISA. The associations of FGF-21 with glucose, lipids, and insulin were analyzed. Individuals with T1DM showed significantly lower basal FGF-21 concentration ( P  = 0.046) when compared with healthy controls (median value 28.2 vs 104 pg/mL) and had significantly different postprandial change (∆ 30′−0′) of FGF-21 ( P  = 0.006) in comparison with healthy controls (median value −1.1 vs −20.5 pg/mL). The glucose and lipid status did not correlate with FGF-21. In healthy controls, postprandial insulin level correlated with basal FGF-21 ( ρ  = 0.7, P  = 0.036). Multiple regression analysis showed that they are independently associated after adjustment for confounding factors ( β  = 1.824, P  = 0.04). We describe the pathological pattern of basal and postprandial change of FGF-21 secretion not associated with glucose, lipid levels, or insulin therapy in patients with T1DM. Since FGF-21 has numerous protective metabolic effects in the experimental model, the lower basal FGF-21 concentration in T1DM patients opens the question about the potential role of recombinant FGF-21 therapy.