Association between soluble neprilysin and diabetes: Findings from a prospective longitudinal study

Junting Hu; Hanyun Zhu; Yunlang Dai; Yang Liu; Ying Lu; Shasha Zhu; Linan Chen; Mingzhi Zhang; Tingbo Jiang; Hao Peng

doi:10.3389/fendo.2023.1143590

Association between soluble neprilysin and diabetes: Findings from a prospective longitudinal study

Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2023 Mar 30:14:1143590. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1143590. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Junting Hu¹, Hanyun Zhu², Yunlang Dai¹, Yang Liu¹, Ying Lu², Shasha Zhu¹, Linan Chen², Mingzhi Zhang², Tingbo Jiang¹, Hao Peng^{2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
² Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Medical College of Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
³ Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Soochow University, Suzhou, China.

Abstract

Background: The potential role of neprilysin (NEP) in glucose metabolism has been found by basic studies but lacks population evidence. The objective of this study was to examine the association between serum NEP and diabetes in Chinese adults.

Methods: In a prospective longitudinal cohort study - the Gusu cohort (n=2,286, mean age: 52 years, 61.5% females), the cross-sectional, longitudinal, and prospective associations between serum NEP and diabetes were systemically examined by logistic regression adjusting for conventional risk factors. Serum NEP was measured at baseline using commercial ELISA assays. Fasting glucose was repeatedly measured 4 years apart.

Results: The cross-sectional analysis found a positive association between serum NEP and fasting glucose at baseline (β=0.08, P=0.004 for log-transformed NEP). This association persisted after controlling for the dynamic risk profiles during follow-up (β=0.10, P=0.023 for log-transformed NEP). The prospective analysis found that a higher level of serum NEP at baseline was associated with a higher risk of diabetes during follow-up (OR=1.79, P=0.039 for log-transformed NEP).

Conclusions: Serum NEP was not only associated with prevalent diabetes but also predicted the future risk of diabetes development in Chinese adults, independent of many behavioral and metabolic factors. Serum NEP may be a predictor and even a new therapeutic target for diabetes. However, the casualty and mechanisms of NEP in the development of diabetes require further investigation.

Keywords: Chinese; diabetes; neprilysin; population epidemiology; prospective longitudinal study.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Cross-Sectional Studies
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* / metabolism
Female
Glucose
Humans
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Middle Aged
Neprilysin*

Substances

Neprilysin
Glucose

Grants and funding

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NO. 82173596, 81903384, and 81872690) and a Project of the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions. The funders had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.