Salivary Hormones Leptin, Ghrelin, Glucagon, and Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 and Their Relation to Sweet Taste Perception in Diabetic Patients

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most common diseases worldwide. DM may disrupt hormone regulation. Metabolic hormones, leptin, ghrelin, glucagon, and glucagon-like peptide 1, are produced by the salivary glands and taste cells. These salivary hormones are expressed at different levels in diabetic patients compared to control group and may cause differences in the perception of sweetness. This study is aimed at assessing the concentrations of salivary hormones leptin, ghrelin, glucagon, and GLP-1 and their correlations with sweet taste perception (including thresholds and preferences) in patients with DM. A total of 155 participants were divided into three groups: controlled DM, uncontrolled DM, and control groups. Saliva samples were collected to determine salivary hormone concentrations by ELISA kits. Varying sucrose concentrations (0.015, 0.03, 0.06, 0.12, 0.25, 0.5, and 1 mol/l) were used to assess sweetness thresholds and preferences. Results showed a significant increase in salivary leptin concentrations in the controlled DM and uncontrolled DM compared to the control group. In contrast, salivary ghrelin and GLP-1 concentrations were significantly lower in the uncontrolled DM group than in the control group. In general, HbA1c was positively correlated with salivary leptin concentrations and negatively correlated with salivary ghrelin concentrations. Additionally, in both the controlled and uncontrolled DM groups, salivary leptin was negatively correlated with the perception of sweetness. Salivary glucagon concentrations were negatively correlated with sweet taste preferences in both controlled and uncontrolled DM. In conclusion, the salivary hormones leptin, ghrelin, and GLP-1 are produced either higher or lower in patients with diabetes compared to the control group. In addition, salivary leptin and glucagon are inversely associated with sweet taste preference in diabetic patients.