Effect of liraglutide on lipids in patients with type 2 diabetes: a pilot study

• Published in: Endocrine Journal 2020, Vol.67(9), pp.957-962
• Main Authors: Aoki, Kazutaka, Kamiyama, Hiroshi, Takihata, Masahiro, Taguri, Masataka, Shibata, Eriko, Shinoda, Kazuaki, Yoshii, Taishi, Nakajima, Shigeru, Terauchi, Yasuo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cholesterol; Diabetes; Diabetes mellitus (non-insulin dependent); Glucagon; Glucagon-like peptide 1; High density lipoprotein; Lipids; Liraglutide; Low density lipoprotein; Patients; Statins; Type 2 diabetes
• ISSN: 0918-8959; 1348-4540
• DOI: 10.1507/endocrj.EJ19-0464

The mechanism for the cholesterol-lowering effect of glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) remains unknown in patients with type 2 diabetes. We evaluated the effect of liraglutide on serum lipid profiles, including cholesterol synthesis and absorption markers, during daily clinical practice in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes. We enrolled 38 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus who were not treated with a GLP-1 RA (≥20 years of age, HbA1c ≥6.5%). Liraglutide, a GLP-1 RA, was administered subcutaneously once a day for three months to these patients. Blood samples and body weights were collected at 0, 1, and 3 months. Total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) at 1 month, and non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) and calculated TC at 1 and 3 months, were decreased, while the cholesterol synthesis and cholesterol absorption markers were unchanged by this treatment. In patients with LDL-C levels over 100 mg/dL, LDL-C, non-HDL-C, TC, and calculated TC levels were decreased significantly by the treatment at 1 and 3 months, and the cholesterol absorption marker, campesterol, was decreased at 3 months. The administration of liraglutide for 3 months decreased non-HDL-C and calculated TC significantly, while the cholesterol synthesis and absorption markers were not changed by this treatment.