title: Circulating galanin levels are increased in patients with gestational diabetes mellitus.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Galanin is a 29/30-amino acid peptide that stimulates food intake and regulates energy metabolism. A significantly higher level of plasma galanin was found in diabetes in non-pregnant women, but there are no data regarding galanin levels in diabetes in pregnant women. In this study we compared plasma galanin concentrations in pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and normal glucose tolerance (NGT).
  
  
  METHODS
  The study registered twenty pregnant women with GDM and twenty pregnant women with NGT. Fasting venous blood samples were collected from all cases. Galanin was analyzed by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A statistically significant higher level of galanin was found in pregnant women with GDM compared with NGT (P<0.001). In addition, a significant positive correlation was shown between galanin and glucose (P<0.001), galanin and BMI (P=0.008) in pregnant women with GDM, although there was no association between galanin and insulin and/or galanin and HbA1c.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Circulating galanin levels are higher in patients with GDM. Circulating galanin levels appear to be related to the changes of blood glucose in GDM. The higher level of galanin observed in GDM may represent a physiological adaptation to the rise of glucose associated with GDM.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, School of Hanlin, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Taizhou, Jiangsu 225300, China.
authors.forename: Penghua
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bo
authors.forename: Mingyi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Mei
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Zhenwen
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001786:Blood Glucose; D015992:Body Mass Index; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016640:Diabetes, Gestational / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D019004:Galanin / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D019004:Galanin