The correlation between circulating growth differentiation factor 11 and the risk of osteopenia/osteoporosis in men.

Our results suggest that the serum GDF11 concentration is significantly associated with the risk of bone metabolism dysfunction in men and may be a useful target for prediction of osteopenia/osteoporosis to enable prompt intervention for this common but invariably under- or misdiagnosed condition in men. PURPOSE: Male osteopenia/osteoporosis remains a neglected subject or is under- or misdiagnosed. Many studies have confirmed the role of growth differentiation factor 11 (GDF11) in bone metabolism, although its role in bone metabolism remains controversial. In this study, we aimed to investigate the association between serum GDF11 levels and the prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis (OP) in a male cohort and explore the possibility of GDF11 to be a useful target for prediction of osteopenia/osteoporosis to enable prompt intervention for this disease. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 121 native Chinese men randomly aged 20-87 years, excluded the subjects who had the conditions of bone metabolism-related disease and administration of hormonal drugs, and grouped the subjects to OP and non-OP, based on the WHO definition and latest guidelines of OP. The serum GDF11 concentration was determined using a GDF11-specific immunoassay. Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRAP-5b) were measured in serum samples with ELISA method. RESULTS: We observed a negative correlation between serum GDF11 levels and age, a positive correlation between serum GDF11 levels and the femoral neck BMD, and a negative correlation between serum GDF11 levels and TRAP-5b in men. The prevalence and risk of OP were significantly higher in men with low serum GDF11 levels. CONCLUSIONS: The serum GDF11 concentration is significantly associated with the risk of bone metabolism dysfunction and may be a useful target for prediction of OP in male cohort.

Analysis Of The Association Between Sh2B1 chr16.28884655 And Type 2 Diabetes.

PURPOSE: To determine correlation between genetic susceptibility of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and Src homology 2 B adapter protein 1 (SH2B1) gene polymorphism in a diabetic population.  Methods: A total of 111 T2DM patients (DM group) and 34 healthy controls (NC group) from Shanxi Provincial People's Hospital were included in this study. Exon 9 of the SH2B1 gene was detected using the Sanger sequencing method, and the relationship between SH2B1 gene polymorphism and diabetes was analyzed.  Results: Comparison of the data between the two groups showed that the values of TG, the updated HOMA of insulin resistance (HOMA2-IR), weight, body mass index, waist circumference, fasting blood glucose and fasting insulin levels of the DM group were higher than those of the NC group (P < 0.05). The HOMA2 insulin sensitivity (%S) of the DM group was lower than that of the NC group (P < 0.05). Sequencing analysis revealed that the following five single nucleotide polymorphisms in exon 9 of SH2B1 may be related to T2DM: rs181578610, rs550079240, chr16.28884655, chr16.28884659 and chr16.28884831. Among them, chr16.28884655 was found to be significantly related to diabetes; this site, located on the NM_015503 exon, was related to TG, LDL-C and waist circumference. CONCLUSION: The SH2B1 gene locus chr16.28884655 was found to be significantly related to genetic susceptibility to T2DM.