Association between serum resistin, adiposity measures and inflammatory makers in women without cardiovascular diseases

Aims: The convergence of obesity and inflammation in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) has been recognized over the past decade. Resistin has emerged as a novel secreted protein with links to both insulin resistance and inflammation. We aimed to investigate the relationship between changes in serum resistin levels with metabolic parameters, including obesity and inflammatory markers in women free of CVD. Methods and results: A total of 200 apparently healthy women were consecutively recruited from the Out-patients Clinics at King Abdulaziz university Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. They were classified into 4 groups based on quartile for serum resistin. Anthropometric variables were measured in all study subjects. Fasting blood samples were collected for measurement of lipid profile, blood glucose and inflammatory markers. Study subjects within the upper quartile (Q4) had significantly higher body height (p < 0.0001), waist and hip circumferences (p < 0.05) and inflammatory markers (p < 0.0001) values than those in the lower quartile (Q1). Significant correlations were found between circulating resistin levels and systolic blood pressure, some anthropometric measures as well as inflammatory markers. Conclusion: Serum resistin levels were found to be increased in overweight and obese women. Resistin was also independently associated with hs-CRP in women free of CVD, suggesting that resistin may be related to low-grade inflammation among obese subjects in the absence of overt CVD.