Background: Although many studies have shown that the metabolic syndrome (MS) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) both are associated with chronic inflammatory state and are risk factors for coronary artery disease (CAD), it is still unclear which condition is a more important contributor to the increased production of inflammatory chemokines. The purpose of this study was to assess monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) and interleukin-8 (IL-8) levels and their association with insulin resistance and adiponectin concentrations in CAD patients, who were categorized as having T2DM, MS, or neither.
Methods: CAD male patients were categorized into three groups: 24 non-obese patients with T2DM (D), 24 obese patients with MS (M) and 24 patients without T2DM or MS (W). 20 healthy subjects were selected as controls (C). Insulin resistance was assessed by the HOMA-IR method, but serum MCP-1, IL-8, and adiponectin levels were measured by xMAP technology.
Results: Serum levels of MCP-1 and IL-8 in D and M groups were increased in comparison with W and C groups (p<0.001, p<0.01), but the increase in the M group was significantly higher than that in the D group (p<0.05, p<0,001), besides MCP-1 and IL-8 concentrations were correlated with HOMA-IR indexes (r=0.52; r=0.49, p<0.0001) and adiponectin levels (r=-0.59, p<0.0001). The M group demonstrated a diminution in the adiponectin level (p<0.01) and pronounced increase of HOMA-IR in comparison with the other three groups (p<0.01).
Conclusion: Obese CAD patients with MS have a more pronounced increase of MCP-1, IL-8 and HOMA-IR and more decreased adiponectin levels than non-obese CAD patients without MS.