Study investigated the relationship between leptin, an adipo-myokine that regulates appetite and energy expenditure, and lean mass in men with chronic spinal cord injury (SCI). Leptin levels are positively correlated with obesity in the general population, positively associated with sedentary behavior, and greater in individuals with SCI compared to uninjured controls. Body composition, leptin, adiponectin, and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels were measured in 205 men with chronic SCI who were enrolled in the longitudinal Fracture Risk after SCI (FRASCI) Study. Analyses found no association between age, injury duration, injury level, injury completeness, or walking status and leptin. There was a significant positive association between lean mass and leptin in men with SCI that was independent of fat. Adjusting for body composition, leptin levels were positively associated with IL-6 and negatively associated with adiponectin levels. When considering men with SCI and sarcopenic obesity, only fat mass remained positively associated with leptin. The study found no association between IL-6, adiponectin, or lean mass and leptin in the sarcopenic obesity group. The findings suggest that lean mass is an under recognized, but substantial, source of circulating leptin. Furthermore, SCI-related sarcopenic obesity may result in dysregulated adipo-myokine metabolism with local and systemic physiologic effects.
Author(s):
Park, Andrew J.|Battaglino, Ricardo A.|Nguyen, Nguyen M. H.|Morse, Leslie R.|
