SERUM OSTEOCALCIN LEVEL IS INDEPENDENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH THE CAROTID INTIMA-MEDIA THICKNESS IN MEN WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS

Background. The role of osteocalcin in atherogenesis is unclear. We investigated the association between osteocalcin and carotid atherosclerosis in Chinese middle-aged and elderly male adults and further determined whether osteocalcin is independently associated with the carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in hyperglycemia subgroups. Subjects and methods. A total of 84 male participants (mean age, 59.13 years) were enrolled in groups of normal glucose tolerance (NGT), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) according to the oral glucose tolerance test. A standard interview, anthropometric measurements and laboratory analyses were performed for each participant. Bilateral carotid intima media thicknesses (CIMT) were measured using ultrasonography. The circulating osteocalcin was measured using quantitative enzyme immunoassay. Results. Both IGT and newly diagnosed T2DM groups had significantly lower osteocalcin levels compared with the NGT group (5.01 +/- 0.68 mu g/L, and 6.173 +/- 0.68 ng/mL vs. 11.55 +/- 0.57 mu g/L, respectively). Multivariate linear stepwise regression analysis demonstrated that waisthip ratio(WHR) (standardized 13 = -0.408, P = 0.000), 2 hour plasma glucose after glucose load, (PPG) (standardized beta = -0.235, P = 0.025), homeostasis model of assessment for insulin resistance index(HOMA-IR) (standardized beta = -0.287, P = 0.004), and Glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) (standardized beta = -0.250, P = 0.015) were independently and inversely associated with serum osteocalcin in hyperglycemia subgroups; PPG(standardized beta = -0.476, P = 0.015), osteocalcin(standardized beta = -0.486, P = 0.001) were negatively associated with CIMT, while TG (standardized beta = 0.647, P = 0.000) was positively associated with CIMT in T2DM. Conclusion. These results showed that osteocalcin is independently associated with carotid atherosclerosis in men with T2DM. It is tempting to suggest that osteocalcin may be implicated atherosclerosis.