Physical exercise intervention at school improved hepcidin, inflammation, and iron metabolism in overweight and obese children and adolescents.

BackgroundObesity is often associated with iron deficiency in children and adolescents. We aimed to study the effect of an 8-month physical exercise (PE) intervention on hepcidin and other markers of inflammation and on iron status in overweight/obese children and adolescents.MethodsSeventy-three overweight/obese children and adolescents participated in the 8-month-long longitudinal study. They were divided into two groups according to their participation in an after-school PE program: the PE group (n=44) and the control group (n=29). Hepcidin, interleukin (IL)-6, C-reactive protein (CRP), iron, ferritin, transferrin, and soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR) were evaluated.ResultsAt baseline, IL-6 correlated positively with hepcidin and negatively with iron and transferrin saturation, suggesting that increasing adiposity associates with increasing IL-6 and hepcidin synthesis, reducing iron availability. After 8 months, the PE group showed a decrease in BMI z-score (P=0.003), body fat mass (P=0.012), CRP (P=0.002), IL-6 (P=0.048), ferritin (P=0.013), hepcidin (P=0.040), and sTfR (P=0.010), and an increase in iron concentration (P=0.002). Moreover, the PE group, when compared with the control group, showed lower weight (P=0.026), BMI (P=0.040), waist circumference (P=0.010), and waist-to-height ratio (P=0.046).ConclusionWe showed that an 8-month-long intervention at school allowed a reduction in BMI z-score and an improvement in inflammation, reducing hepcidin levels and the disturbances in iron status.

Impact of a School-Based Intervention Protocol - ACORDA Project - On Adipokines in An Overweight and Obese Pediatric Population.

PURPOSE: There are few reliable studies assessing the effect of physical exercise (PE) on adipokines levels at young ages. Our objective was to study the effects of regular PE on plasma adipokines in pediatric overweight and obesity. METHOD: 117 overweight and obese children and adolescents (47% females; 10.2 years) participated in an 8-month longitudinal study divided in two groups: PE group (n = 80), engaged in an after-school PE program; control group (n = 37), with no PE program. Plasma lipids, C-reactive protein (CRP), adiponectin, resistin, leptin, IL-6, IL-1beta, TNF-alpha, insulin and glucose levels were determined. RESULTS: contrarily to the control group, the PE group presented reductions in body mass index z-score (BMIzsc) and body fat percentage that were accompanied by an improvement in lipid profile and insulin resistance, a reduction in CRP and TNF-alpha and an increase in adiponectin levels. The reductions in BMIzsc were inversely correlated with changes in adiponectin (r=-0.329, p = .003) and positively correlated with changes in percentage body fat (r = .262, p = .032), triglycerides (r = .228, p = .042) and leptin (r = .285, p = .010). CONCLUSIONS: Moderate reductions in adiposity improve proinflammatory status in obese children and adolescents. A more substantial reduction in BMIzsc was associated with a greater increment in adiponectin and reduction in leptin.

Adipokine Gene Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms in Portuguese Obese Adolescents: Associations with Plasma Concentrations of Adiponectin, Resistin, IL-6, IL-1ß, and TNF-α.

BACKGROUND: The genetic contribution to obesity and to circulating adipokine levels has not been completely clarified. We aimed to evaluate adipokine genes' single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) prevalence and its association with circulating adipokine levels and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in an obese Portuguese pediatric population. METHODS: Two hundred forty-eight obese adolescents (mean age 13.4 years old; 47.2% females) participated in a cohort study. We screened 12 SNPs by direct sequencing in five adipokine genes: adiponectin (ADIPOQ: rs16861194, rs17300539, rs266729, rs2241766, rs1501299), interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß; rs1143627), IL-6 (IL-6; rs1800795), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α; rs1800629), and resistin (RETN; rs1862513, rs3219177, rs3745367, rs3745368). Biochemical analysis included determination of circulating adipokines, C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, lipid profile, and markers of insulin resistance. RESULTS: Compared to males, females presented higher circulating levels of insulin, adiponectin, IL-6, resistin, and leptin concentrations, but lower TNF-α levels. No statistically significant differences were found for genotype or allelic distributions between genders. In the whole sample population, adiponectin levels were influenced by ADIPOQ rs17300539 (c.-1138G>A; lower in subjects with GG genotype). When only males were considered, IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α levels were associated with ADIPOQ rs1501299 (c.214 + 62G>T; higher in GG subjects). TNF-α concentrations were modulated by TNF-α rs1800629 (c.-488G>A; lower in GG males), RETN rs1862513 (c.-216C>G; higher in CC subjects), and RETN rs3219177 (c.118 + 39C>T; higher in CC subjects). Leptin levels were influenced by IL-1ß rs1143627 (c.-118C>T) presenting TT individuals' lower levels. CONCLUSIONS: Our data demonstrate that in pediatric obese patients, some adipokine gene SNPs have an association with circulating adipokine levels and lipid profile.