Adipokines and inflammatory markers in elderly subjects with high risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease

Inflammation plays a significant role in pathogenesis of diabetes and atherosclerosis. Increased adiposity with an upregulation of cytokines in prediabetes has been associated with vascular inflammation and considered a leading causal factor for type 2 diabetes (T2D). Information on adipokines and inflammatory markers in prediabetes, defined by hemoglobin A1C (HbA1c) 5.7–6.4% in addition to impaired fasting glucose (IFG) and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), are sparse. We conducted a population–based cross-sectional study (part of a follow-up study) of inhabitants of Oulu, Finland, born in 1935. Inflammatory markers and traditional risk markers of 367 subjects were measured. The glucose status was determined by an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and HbA1c. Inflammatory markers and glycemic levels were analysed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). Of the participants, 193 were normoglycemic, 82 had prediabetes and 40 T2D. Inflammatory cytokines were significantly higher in subjects with prediabetes as compared to normoglycemic subjects: IL-4 (14.9 vs 5.9 pg/ml, p = 0.041), IP-10 (251 vs 209 pg/ml, p = 0.05), TNF-α (10.4 vs 6.9 pg/ml, p = 0.027), RANTES (43.3 vs 33.1 pg/ml, p = 0.009), CD40L (3708 vs 1671 pg/ml, p = 0.010) and VEGF (269 vs 174 pg/ml, p = 0.013). These inflammatory cytokines remained significant even after adjustment for waist circumference. The differences in inflammatory markers in prediabetic and T2D subjects were not statistically significant. Prediabetes was associated with low-grade inflammation with increased inflammatory cytokine levels, while the levels in prediabetic subjects were comparable to those in T2D subjects. The associations were independent of visceral adiposity.