Cholesterol efflux from macrophages is influenced differentially by plasmas from overweight insulin-sensitive and -resistant subjects

• Published in: International Journal of Obesity 2012-03, Vol.36 (3), p.407-413
• Main Authors: Nestel, P, Hoang, A, Sviridov, D, Straznicky, N
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis; Apolipoproteins; Arteriosclerosis; Atherosclerosis; ATP Binding Cassette Transporter 1; ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters - metabolism; Australia - epidemiology; Biological and medical sciences; Biological Transport; Blood cholesterol; Blood diseases; Body mass index; Body weight; Cardiorespiratory; Cardiovascular disease; Cardiovascular diseases; Cholesterol; Cholesterol - metabolism; Cholesterol Ester Transfer Proteins - metabolism; Cholesteryl ester transfer protein; Coronary Artery Disease - metabolism; Coronary vessels; Diabetes; Disorders of blood lipids. Hyperlipoproteinemia; Epidemiology; Female; Glucose tolerance; Glucose Tolerance Test; Health aspects; Health Promotion and Disease Prevention; Health risks; High density lipoprotein; Hormones; Human subjects; Humans; Insulin; Insulin - blood; Insulin Resistance; Internal Medicine; Leptin; Leptin - blood; Lipids; Lipoproteins; Macrophages; Macrophages - metabolism; Male; Mathematical models; Measurement; Medical sciences; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Metabolic Diseases; Metabolic disorders; Metabolic syndrome; Metabolic Syndrome - complications; Metabolic Syndrome - epidemiology; Metabolic Syndrome - metabolism; Middle Aged; Miscellaneous; Obesity; Obesity - complications; Obesity - epidemiology; Obesity - metabolism; original-article; Other metabolic disorders; Overweight; Overweight persons; Physiological aspects; Plasma; Public Health; Risk Factors; Vein & artery diseases; Women
• ISSN: 0307-0565; 1476-5497
• DOI: 10.1038/ijo.2011.170

Objective: In vitro measurements of cholesterol efflux from macrophages have recently been shown to associate with cardiovascular risk. We investigated whether cholesterol efflux from macrophages incubated with plasmas from overweight/obese subjects with metabolic syndrome was influenced by the presence of insulin resistance. Methods: Plasmas were obtained from 47 men and women with metabolic syndrome, of whom 25 were found to be insulin resistant (IR) and 22 insulin sensitive (IS) (Matsuda, De Fronzo equation based on oral glucose tolerance test). Activated human macrophage THP-1 cells in which cholesterol had been radiolabelled were incubated with the subjects’ plasmas to allow calculation of % cholesterol efflux. Results: Body mass index and waist measurements, as well as plasma lipid levels, did not differ between the two groups. Homeostatic model assessment-insulin resistance value as well as plasma insulin and leptin concentrations were higher in IR subjects. Cholesterol efflux was found to be significantly greater with plasmas from IR subjects (9.1%) than from IS subjects (6.7%) ( P =0.005). Further, cholesterol efflux was significantly inversely associated with insulin sensitivity index ( P