مجله غدد درون ریز و متابولیسم ایران
سال بیست و یکم شماره 3 (پیاپی 105، امرداد و شهریور 1398)

Omentin, an adipokine, with anti-inflammatory effects reduces insulin resistance, and can hence, play an important role in prevention of cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The present study aimed to investigate the association of plasma and dietary fatty acids with gene expression of omentin in visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissues.

Visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissues and fasting blood samples were obtained from 50 obese and 47 non-obese participants, who had undergone elective abdominal surgery. Dietary intakes were assessed using a food frequency questionnaire. Relative gene expression of omentin in visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissues was measured by Real-Time PCR and plasma fatty acids were measured using gas chromatography.

Omentin gene expression in visceral adipose tissue was higher in non-obese participants, compared to obese ones; however, no difference was found in subcutaneous adipose tissue. A significant direct association was observed between omentin gene expression in visceral adipose tissue with dietary monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) (P=0.011, β=0.394) in obese subjects and the plasma omega 6: omega 3 ratio (P=0.029, β=0.385) in non-obese subjects after adjustment for confounders. No association was observed between omentin gene expression in subcutaneous adipose tissue and plasma and dietary fatty acids.

Dietary intakes of MUFA in obese participants and plasma omega 6: omega 3 ratio in non-obese ones were directly associated with omentin gene expression in visceral adipose tissue. Therefore, higher omentin gene expression by increasing dietary MUFA may be related to improvement of obesity and its associated comorbidities.

Fear of hypoglycemia is one of the biggest obstacles to achieving proper blood glucose control in diabetic patients, adversely affecting the proper treatment of diabetes and quality of life in these patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between fear of hypoglycemia and quality of life in patients with type 2 diabetes.

The present study was a descriptive analytic-correlational study, conducted in 2018 on 360 patients with 2 diabetes referreing to the Velayat teaching hospital in Ghazvin. Data collection tools included a personal-social checklist, the Hypoglycemia Fear Survey (HFS) and information on Diabetes Quality of Life (DQOL). Data collected were analyzed using one-way ANOVA, Pearson correlation test statistics by SPSS.24 software.

Mean scores of quality of life and fear of hypoglycemia were 44.3±8.6 and 22.07±8.7 respectively. The highest quality of life score for patients in the pill treatment group was 46.4±7.8, and the highest scores of hypoglycemia were in the insulin treatment group with a mean of 26.1±10.5. In this study, there was a significant, inverse relationship between fear of hypoglycemia and quality of life (r=-0.46, p<0.001).

Results show a significant, inverse relationship between fear of hypoglycemia and quality of life in diabetic patients, such that the occurrence of this fear is higher in patients treated with insulin. Based on results, it is recommended that these patients should be educated on the action of insulin and its mode of injection, and on how to prioritize and manage their activities.

Diabetes is the most common metabolic disorder and can have devastating complications. The objective of this study was to determine self-care behaviors for glycemic control and its related factors in type II diabetes women patients.

This cross-sectional study, conducted in 2016 on a randomly selected sample of 120 women volunteers, aged over 30 years, referred to hospital in Javanrud, Kermanshah. Participant’s responses to a KAP questionnaire including the KAP (Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice) constructs and socio-demographics determinants during interviews. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 21 using correlations, t student and linear regression. A level of 0.05 was considered signicant for all tests.

Age range of participants was 32 to 69 years (mean 48.8±8.02 years). There was a significant and inverse correlation between increased age of participants and knowledge (r=-0.289 & P=0.002). Increasing the level of education significantly increased the participants' knowledge (P=0.011) and behavior (P=0.004). Knowledge and attitude constructs explained 11% of the self-care behaviors for diabetes control by paying attention to diet and physical activity, respectively.

Results underscore the need to emphasize raising knowledge of diabetic patients on changes in diet and physical activity behaviors, for facilitating glycemic control.

The term stigma indicates characteristic labeling, in a way, that the individual becomes an outcast in his /her living environment for physical or psychological reason and in the case of patching it becomes ill fated. The objective of this study was to determine the perceived social stigma and its relationship with the demographic and clinical characteristics of patients with type 1 diabetes. Methods and Materials: In this analytical descriptive study, conducted in 2018, 135 patients with type 1 diabetes in Tabriz health centers, who met the inclusion criteria, were assessed using the purposeful sampling method. Data were collected on demographics also using social stigma questionnaires. Data were analyzed by SPSS software version 16 using independent t-test and one way ANOVA.

The majority of participants were women, with an average age of 26.02±7.27 years. Total mean for social stigma of the participants was 51.43±12.16, considered a moderate level. There was a significant relationship between social stigma and age, marital status, place of residence, educational level, duration of diabetes, diabetic family history and different levels of hemoglobin glycosylation.

Based on the research results, the comprehensive effort and support of the treatment team, viz nurses is more effective educating diabetes patients and is vital for improving their knowledge about diabetes, to facilate coping with the psychological and emotional complications of diabetes and its social stigma.

Compared to other adipose tissues, Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue (SAT), may have different effects on health and insulin resistance. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of aerobic exercise on serum orexin-A (OXA), SAT thermogenic indices gene expression, and insulin resistance in high-fat diet-induced obese rats.

Thirty-two male wistar rats with an average weight of 180-200 g were randomly assigned into 4 equal groups: normal fat diet (NFD), high-fat diet-induced obesity (HFDO), normal fat diet after high-fat diet-induced obesity (HFDO-NFD) and the aerobic exercise group with normal fat diet after high-fat diet-induced obesity (HFDO-AEX). After induction of obesity in the HFDO group and 48 hours after eight weeks of aerobic exercise in other groups (60% of maximum exercise capacity), fasting levels of serum OXA, FBS, insulin resistance, lipid profiles, and gene expression of PGC-1α and UCP1 in SAT were measured.

Results showed that, following HFD, compared to the NFD group, levels of OXA, HDL-C, PGC-1α and UCP1 gene expression in the HFDO group, significantly decreased, and lipid profiles, Lee index, FBS, insulin and insulin resistance significantly increased (P<0.01). Also after aerobic exercise in the HFDO-AEX group, compared to the HFDO group, levels of OXA (34.74%), HDL-C (23.65%), PGC-1α and UCP1 genes expression (77.38% and 78.72%, respectively) increased and values of lipid profile, Lee index (18.34%), FBS (32.28%), insulin (4.01%) and insulin resistance (37.48%) were significantly decreased (P≤0.001), changes however, not significant in the HFDO-NFD group.

Data obtained suggest that aerobic exercise by an increase in the OXA and alteration in the SAT thermogenic gene expression indices may improve insulin resistance and blood lipid profiles.

Obesity is a condition characterized by excessive accumulation of adipose tissue and plays a conspicuous role in reducing quality of life, and the occurrence of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer. Adipose tissue is made up of three types of adipocytes, including white, brown and beige. Brown and beige adipocytes are capable of thermogenic activity and can dissipate energy as heat, in response to some environmental stimuli. Beige adipose tissue is derived from white adipose tissue in response to environmental stimuli including cold, a process called browning. More accurate identification of the major transcription regulators and related cascades, i.e. epigenetic mechanisms, activated in response to environmental factors and regulate the browning process and thermogenic function of brown and beige adipocytes, can allow the in vivo control of thermogenic function or its intensity in these cells. Controlling this process, while providing ease and safety, gives the opportunity for new drug therapies for obesity and related illnesses. In this study, while briefly reviewing the process of adipocyte differentiation and providing an introduction on epigenetic mechanisms, and their roles in the browning process, related studies on obesity treatment have been addressed.