Leptin serum levels in cachectic heart failure patients: Relationship with tumor necrosis factor-α system

• Published in: International journal of cardiology 2000-11, Vol.76 (2), p.117-122
• Main Authors: Filippatos, Gerasimos S, Tsilias, Karmelos, Venetsanou, Koula, Karambinos, Elias, Manolatos, Dimitris, Kranidis, Athanasios, Antonellis, John, Kardaras, Fotis, Anthopoulos, Lambros, Baltopoulos, George
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Biological and medical sciences; Cachexia - blood; Cachexia - physiopathology; Carchiac cachexia; Cardiology. Vascular system; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; fas Receptor - blood; Heart; Heart Failure - blood; Heart Failure - physiopathology; Heart failure, cardiogenic pulmonary edema, cardiac enlargement; Humans; Interleukin-1 - blood; Leptin; Leptin - blood; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Receptors, Leptin; Statistics, Nonparametric; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - metabolism; Tumor necrosis factor-α
• ISSN: 0167-5273; 1874-1754
• DOI: 10.1016/S0167-5273(00)00397-1

Cachexia is a strong predictor for mortality in patients with congestive heart failure. To investigate the role of leptin and regulators of apoptosis in cardiac cachexia we compared leptin concentrations and their relation to the TNF system, interleukin 1-beta (IL-1b), and soluble Fas in patients with heart failure with and without cachexia. Patients with cardiac cachexia have increased levels of interleukin-1b compared to non-cachectic heart failure patients [mean(S.E.)=1.11(0.62) vs. 0.02(0.02), P=0.01] and decreased concentrations of leptin [10.79(3.93) vs. 23.24 (8.35), P=0.1]. Leptin levels correlate with TNF-RI in cachectic heart failure patients ( r=0.58, P=0.018). The TNF-RI levels were also correlated with Fas, both in all the patients taken together ( r=0.5, P=0.006) and in those with cachexia ( r=0.52, P=0.036). Our data indicate that more prospective studies are needed to clarify the role of leptin in the pathophysiology of heart failure cachexia.