Circulating Adiponectin Levels and their Associated Factors in Young Lean Healthy Japanese Women

Aim: The aim of the current study was to investigate circulating adiponectin levels and their associated factors in young lean healthy Japanese women. Methods: We recruited 82 healthy Japanese women in their twenties and thirties with their body mass index < 25 kg/m(2), and performed anthropometric, sphygmomanometric, and laboratory examinations. Laboratory examinations included adiponectin levels, as well as lipid profiles, glucose, hemoglobin A1c, transaminase, and creatinine levels, from which the glomerular filtration rate was estimated (eGFR). Results: The median and interquartile range of circulating adiponectin levels were 8.1 (6.2-10.0) mu g/mL. HDL cholesterol levels and eGFR, but not the other examined clinical parameters, were significantly correlated with log-transformed adiponectin levels; their correlation coefficients were 0.323 (p<0.01) and -0.311 (p<0.01), respectively. Statistical significance was still observed even after adjustment for each other (both p=0.02). In adjusted models, subjects with HDL cholesterol levels >= 80 mg/dL had 1.3 times higher adiponectin levels than those with 40-60 mg/dL, whereas eGFR >= 110 mL/min/1.73 m(2) and 60-90 mL/min/1.73 m(2) showed a 1.5-fold difference in adiponectin levels. Conclusions: Adiponectin levels of young lean healthy Japanese women had significant associations with HDL cholesterol levels and eGFR, even though their HDL cholesterol levels and eGFR were distributed within normal ranges. It seems important to take into account these two variables in evaluating adiponectin levels of these subjects, even if the two variables are within normal ranges.