title: Serum IL-12 is increased in Mexican obese subjects and associated with low-grade inflammation and obesity-related parameters.
abstract: Interleukin-(IL-) 12 has been recently suggested to participate during development of insulin resistance in obese mice. Nevertheless, serum IL-12 levels have not been accurately determined in overweight and obese humans. We thus studied serum concentrations of IL-12 in Mexican adult individuals, examining their relationship with low-grade inflammation and obesity-related parameters. A total of 147 healthy individuals, 43 normal weight, 61 overweight, and 43 obese subjects participated in the study. Circulating levels of IL-12, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF- α ), leptin, insulin, glucose, total cholesterol, and triglyceride were measured after overnight fasting in all of the study subjects. Waist circumference and body fat percentage were recorded for all the participants. Serum IL-12 was significantly higher in overweight and obese individuals than in normal weight controls. Besides being strongly related with body mass index (r = 0.5154), serum IL-12 exhibited a significant relationship with abdominal obesity (r = 0.4481), body fat percentage (r = 0.5625), serum glucose (r = 0.3158), triglyceride (r = 0.3714), and TNF- α (r = 0.4717). Thus, serum levels of IL-12 are increased in overweight and obese individuals and show a strong relationship with markers of low-grade inflammation and obesity in the Mexican adult population. Further research is needed to understand the role of IL-12 in developing obesity-associated alterations in humans.
authors.affiliation: Unidad de Medicina Experimental, Hospital General de México, Dr. Eduardo Liceaga, México D. F. 06726, Mexico.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Suárez-Álvarez
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Solís-Lozano
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Leon-Cabrera
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: González-Chávez
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gómez-Hernández
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Quiñones-Álvarez
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Serralde-Zúñiga
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hernández-Ruiz
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ramírez-Velásquez
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Galindo-González
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Zavala-Castillo
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: De León-Nava
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Robles-Díaz
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Escobedo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000097:blood*; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood; D018664:Interleukin-12 / Q000097:blood*; D020738:Leptin / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000097:blood*; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000097:blood; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D007328:Insulin; D020738:Leptin; D014280:Triglycerides; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D018664:Interleukin-12