Evaluation of irisin and visfatin levels in very low birth weight preterm newborns compared to full term newborns—A prospective cohort study

Premature infants represent one of the groups with increased risk for metabolic syndrome. Our study is the first one to evaluate irisin and visfatin levels, associated with the metabolic syndrome, both in blood of preterm and full-term infants, as well as in the breastmilk of their mothers. A total of 72 newborns was enrolled in the study, including 53 very low birth weight preterm infants and a control group of 19 term infants. The levels of irisin and visfatin were determined by a commercial enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay both in the baby serum and maternal milk twice, first during the 1(st) week of life and then 4 weeks later. Preterm infants had significantly lower serum irisin levels compared to the term infants. Overall, serum irisin level during the 1(st) week of life was positively correlated with several anthropometric measurements at birth, as well as during 5(th) weeks of age. In contrast, serum visfatin levels during 5(th) week of life were negatively correlated with z-scores of birth weight, weight and head circumference during 5(th) week of age. We found a strong negative correlation between serum irisin and serum visfatin levels at both analyzed time points. The level of milk visfatin was significantly higher in the mothers of the preterm group during 5(th) week of life. In conclusion, our results provide further evidence that irisin and visfatin may play physiologic roles in development of both preterm and full-term newborns during their first month after birth. Observed differences in irisin and visfatin serum and breastmilk concentrations during the earliest stages of life may contribute to development of catch up growth, but also, they might eventually lead to a higher risk for metabolic syndrome in prematurely born children in later years.