Background: Mechanisms of type 2 diabetes remission (T2Dr) after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) in obese patients appear to involve gastrointestinal hormones.
Objective: The objective of this study is to explore changes in ghrelin plasma levels and ghrelin gastrointestinal gene expression (GHRL) after RYGB, and their relationships to T2Dr.
Setting: In 20 obese women with T2D, before and 3 months after RYGB, we assessed GHRL expression by microarray and quantitative RT-PCR in gastrointestinal biopsy samples and plasma levels of ghrelin.
Results: After RYGB, GHRL expression increased in the excluded stomach (p < 0.05) with no change in other gastrointestinal sites. There were no significant changes in ghrelin plasma levels and no correlations with T2Dr.
Conclusions: After RYGB, over-expression of GHRL gene occurs only in the excluded stomach with no correlation to T2Dr.
Keywords: GHRL gene; Gastrointestinal tract; Gene expression; Ghrelin; Roux-en-Y gastric bypass.