High Serum FABP4 Levels are Negatively Associated with the Reversion from Prediabetes to Normal Glucose Tolerance: A 2-Year Retrospective Cohort Community Study

Abstract

Objective

To explore the relationship between the level of fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4) and reversion from prediabetes to normal glucose tolerance (NGT).

Methods

A two-year retrospective cohort study was conducted on 398 participants with complete information. These 398 participants were divided into an NGT group and an abnormal glucose metabolism (AGM) group after 2 years of follow-up. The baseline level of FABP4 was determined, and the role of FABP4 in predicting reversion from prediabetes to NGT was investigated using an unconditional logistic regression model.

Results

Over the two-year follow-up period, 37.4% (149/398) of the participants reverted from prediabetes to NGT. The participants with AGM had a higher baseline level of FABP4 than those with NGT. The baseline level of FABP4 was significantly negatively correlated with reversion from prediabetes to NGT. After adjusting for age, sex, body mass index and waist-to-hip ratio, the level of fasting blood glucose (FBG) [odds ratio (OR) 0.336, 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.196–0.576)], 2-h post-challenge blood glucose (2hBG) [OR 0.697, 95% CI (0.581–0.837)], and FABP4 [OR 0.960, 95% CI (0.928–0.993)] at baseline were significant independent predictors of reversion from prediabetes to NGT. The area under the curve (AUC) value of the receiver operating characteristic curve for FABP4 was 0.605 (95% CI: 0.546–0.665), and the AUC for FABP4 combined with FBG and 2hBG was 0.716 (95% CI: 0.663–0.769).

Conclusion

A higher baseline level of FABP4 was positively correlated with an adverse profile of diabetes risk factors and negatively correlated with reversion from prediabetes to NGT. FABP4, FBG and 2hBG were predictors of reversion from prediabetes to NGT.

Keywords:

• fatty acid-binding protein 4
• FABP4
• prediabetes
• normal glucose tolerance
• abnormal glucose metabolism

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the contributions of all the participants.

Disclosure

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.

Additional information

Funding

The study was supported by the NSFC (81870596, 81870594); a Clinical Research Plan of the SHDC [No. SHDC2020CR1016B]; the Shanghai Jiao Tong University Research Funding for Medical and Engineering Interdisciplinary Projects (YG2019GD05); a Multicenter Clinical Research Project of Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (DLY201824); a third-round cooperation project of the Songjiang District Municipal Health Commission (0702N18003); a Shanghai General Hospital Clinical Research Innovation Team Project (CTCCR-2018A02); and a new round of the Medical Key Discipline Construction Program in Songjiang District (ZK2019B02).