title: Serum leptin concentration in a rural African population.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the serum leptin concentration in a cohort of healthy rural Africans, it's relation to the commonly used anthropometric measures of obesity and its relation to the patterns of distribution of fat in the body.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional population survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Baziya area, Transkei region, South Africa.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and thirty five (79 females and 56 males) healthy adults from the Baziya location, Transkei aged 17-70 years were selected by stratified random sampling.
  
  
  METHODS
  Anthropometric measurements of height, weight, and skinfold thickness at the biceps, triceps, subscapular and suprailiac sites and derived total body fat and ratios of fat distribution. Fasting serum leptin using the sandwich ELISA method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Skinfold measurement was significantly higher in the females than the males throughout the age range. Centralization of body fat to the trunk was significantly greater in the males than in the females. Serum leptin concentration was higher in the females (mean = 13.5 ng/ml; 95% confidence interval = 10.0-16.8) than in the males (mean = 5.2 ng/ml; 95% confidence interval = 2.8-7.6) (p < 0.001). The gender difference in leptin concentration persists when expressed as serum leptin per kilogram of fat mass (serum leptin (ng/ml)/FM). The mean value for the males was 5.1 ng/ml/kg (95% confidence interval = 2.9-7.3) compared to the mean value for females of 6.9 ng/ml/kg (95% confidence interval = 5.4-8.3) (p < 0.05). In the females BMI and body fat were significant contributors to the variance in serum leptin. In the males the upper-to-lower trunk skinfold thickness ratio and BMI were the significant contributors to the variance in serum leptin concentration. Deposition of fat in the abdomen did not have a significant contribution to the variance in circulating leptin in both sexes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Serum leptin concentration in rural Africans is similar to that observed in other communities with the exception that regional fat distribution has a significant influence on the leptin levels in the males.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Transkei, Private Bag X1, UNITRA 5117, South Africa.
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Iputo
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Robinson
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mguni
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000886:Anthropometry; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D005215:Fasting / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020738:Leptin / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000097:blood*; D012424:Rural Population; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D013019:South Africa
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D020738:Leptin