Plasma level of pigment epithelium-derived factor is independently associated with the development of the metabolic syndrome in Chinese men: a 10-year prospective study.
OBJECTIVE
Pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF), a serine protease inhibitor, is secreted from the adipose tissue and circulates at high concentrations. A recent study found that PEDF played a causal role in obesity-induced insulin resistance and metabolic dysfunctions in mice. Here we investigated whether circulating PEDF levels predicted the development of the metabolic syndrome (MetS) in a 10-yr prospective study.


METHODS
Baseline plasma PEDF levels were measured with an ELISA in 520 nondiabetic subjects, recruited from the Hong Kong Cardiovascular Risk Factor Prevalence Study cohort. Multiple logistic regression was used to analyze whether PEDF was an independent factor related to the MetS at baseline. The role of PEDF in predicting the development of the MetS over 10 yr was analyzed using Cox regression analysis.


RESULTS
Plasma levels of PEDF were significantly higher in men than women. At baseline, sex-adjusted PEDF levels were significantly higher in subjects with MetS (P < 0.001), and the association remained significant (odds ratio: 1.17, P = 0.015), even after adjustment for covariates. Among the components of the MetS, PEDF was independently associated with hypertriglyceridemia (P = 0.026) and hypertension (P = 0.005). Of the 396 subjects without the MetS at baseline, a total of 80 had developed the MetS over 10 yr. High baseline sex-adjusted PEDF was an independent predictor of the development of the MetS in men (hazard ratio: 1.25, P = 0.034) but not in women.


CONCLUSIONS
Plasma PEDF was significantly associated with the presence of the MetS and predicted the development of the MetS in Chinese men.
Chen
Cheng
C
Department of Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Tso
Annette W K
AW
Law
Lawrence S C
LS
Cheung
Bernard M Y
BM
Ong
K L
KL
Wat
Nelson M S
NM
Janus
Edward D
ED
Xu
Aimin
A
Lam
Karen S L
KS
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D044466:Asian People; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005136:Eye Proteins / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006723:Hong Kong / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors / Q000097:blood*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D015843:Serpins / Q000097:blood*; D012737:Sex Factors; D000099174:Pigment Epithelium-Derived Factor
D005136:Eye Proteins; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors; D015843:Serpins; D000099174:Pigment Epithelium-Derived Factor