Plasma leptin in non-diabetic Asian Indians: association with abdominal adiposity

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Abstract
Plasma leptin concentrations were measured in 144 non‐diabetic men and women (age 21–73 years, BMI 14.8–37.7 kg m−2), in fasting samples collected during a population survey for diabetes mellitus. Leptin, fasting and 2‐h post‐glucose load plasma concentrations of glucose and immunoreactive insulin were measured. In a subset of 50 normoglycaemic individuals, subcutaneous fat (SF) and visceral fat (VF) areas at L4–L5 level were also measured by CT. As in other populations, women had significantly higher plasma leptin concentrations than men (p < 0.001) but the values were similar in normal (NGT) and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). Geometric mean concentrations of leptin in men and women with NGT were 4.8 and 17.7 ng ml−1, respectively, and the corresponding values in IGT were 6.2 and 19.0 ng ml−1. Multiple regression analysis in the total group showed that the leptin concentration (log‐transformed) was strongly dependent on sex (R2 = 53.4 %), BMI (R2 = 17.4 %), and to a lesser degree on the 2‐h plasma insulin (R2 = 2.4 %) and the WHR (R2 = 0.8 %). In men, the total abdominal fat showed a strong association with leptin (R2 = 49.3 %) and in women the subcutaneous fat area showed a similar effect (R2 = 39.5 %). It is likely that subcutaneous and not visceral fat may be a determinant of plasma leptin in Asian Indians, and the correlation between leptin and insulin resistance may be less strong than in other ethnic groups. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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