title: Leptin and adiponectin: distribution and associations with cardiovascular risk factors in men and women of the general population.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In view of the increasing prevalence of obesity worldwide, understanding the role of the recently discovered adipokines leptin and adiponectin is of high clinical relevance. The aim of the present study was to assess the association between levels of leptin and adiponectin with age, known cardiovascular risk factors and to establish whether there are differences between men and women of the general population.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 98 men and 107 women of the general population, aged between 20 and 74 years, underwent a medical examination at a clinical research center and fasting morning blood samples were also taken.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Leptin (mean 7.5 μg l(-1) in men and 16.0 μg l(-1) in women) and adiponectin (mean 7.3 mg l(-1) in men and 11.9 mg l(-1) in women) levels were higher in women than men (Ps < 0.001). Both leptin and adiponectin levels increased with advancing age in both men and women (Ps < 0.05). Leptin was highly associated with factors for metabolic syndrome in men while in women, leptin was highly associated with inflammatory factors. Adiponectin was associated with blood lipids in both men and women, and glucose homeostasis more in women than in men.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Leptin and adiponectin levels were ∼2 times and 1.5 times higher in women than in men, respectively. In addition, although leptin and adiponectin were associated to CVD risk factors in both men and women, we observed differences in specific CVD risk factor groups between men and women. These differences may be due to different regulatory mechanisms and effects of these adipokines in men and women.
authors.affiliation: Center for Family and Community Medicine, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden. anna.andreasson@stressforskning.su.se
authors.forename: Anna Nixon
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Andreasson
authors.forename: Anna-Lena
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Undén
authors.forename: Stig
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Elofsson
authors.forename: Kerstin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Brismar
mesh_terms: D052242:Adiponectin / Q000097:blood*; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001774:Blood Chemical Analysis; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020738:Leptin / Q000097:blood*; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D052242:Adiponectin; D020738:Leptin