Endocrine Abstracts

Purpose: The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationships of apelin with the parameters of the carbohydrate metabolism in hypertensive patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and without T2D.

Methods: The study involved 93 patients with hypertension grades 2–3 combined with T2D or without it (45 men and 48 women) in age from 43 to 70 years old. The investigation complex included measuring levels of fasting blood glucose, fasting blood insulin with insulin resistance index calculation (HOMA), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c). The blood level of apelin was tested using an Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Two groups of patients were formed: 1. hypertensive patients with T2D (n=63), 2. hypertensive patients without T2D (n=30). The control group consisted of 14 practically healthy volunteers.

Results: The levels of apelin in both groups were significantly lower than in control group – 0,882(0,788;0,924) ng/ml in hypertensive patients with T2D and 0,886(0,846;0,937) ng/ml in hypertensive patients without T2D versus 1,097(0,944;1,171) ng/ml in healthy volunteers (P<0,001 and P<0,01 respectively). The significant difference in apelin levels between patients with T2D and without T2D has been not found (P>0,05). The hypertension patients with T2D had significant negative correlations of the apelin with HbA1c (r=−0,45, P<0,05), insulin (r=−0,48, P<0,05) and HOMA (r=−0,47, P<0,05). The patients without T2D had significant positive correlations of the apelin with insulin (r=0,71, P<0,001) and HOMA (r=0,76, P<0,001). The levels of apelin were significantly higher in the patients without T2D, but with the insulin resistant (HOMA>2,77), than in patients without T2D and normal HOMA - 0,937(0,916;1,112) ng/ml versus 0,851(0,839;0,884) ng/ml, P<0,001.

Conclusion: The presented data are confirmed the compensatory increasing of the antidiabetic apelin factor in the initial manifestations of carbohydrate metabolism disorders and its subsequent decline is associated with the development of the T2D.