ORIGINAL ARTICLE  EPIDEMIOLOGY AND CLINICAL MEDICINE 

The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness 2019 July;59(7):1229-37

DOI: 10.23736/S0022-4707.18.09030-8

Copyright © 2018 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Circulating adiponectin expression is elevated and associated with the IL-15/IL-15Rα complex in obese physically active humans

Alberto PÉREZ-LÓPEZ ^{1, 2, 3}✉, David VALADÉS ³, Ana I. de COS BLANCO ⁴, Natalio GARCÍA-HONDUVILLA ^{1, 2}, Clotilde VÁZQUEZ MARTÍNEZ ^{4, 5}

¹ Department of Medicine and Medical Specialties, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Alcalá, Madrid, Spain; ² Biomedical Research Networking Center on Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN), Madrid, Spain; ³ Department of Biomedical Sciences, Area of Sport and Physical Education, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Alcalá, Madrid, Spain; ⁴ Department of Nutrition, Hospital Universitario La Paz, Madrid, Spain; ⁵ Department of Endocrinology and Nutrition, Hospital Universitario Fundación Jiménez Díaz, Madrid, Spain

BACKGROUND: Adiponectin is an adipokine with oxidative, anti-inflammatory and antiatherogenic effects in several peripheral tissues; however, circulating adiponectin expression is reduced in cardio-metabolic diseases. The aim of this study was to ascertain whether regular physical activity mediates circulating adiponectin concentrations at baseline in an obese population.
METHODS: Two hundred and twenty-one obese participants were divided into 6 groups according to gender, physical activity (PA), and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) diagnosis: A and B) obese PA females (N.=28) and males (N.=33); C and D) obese non-PA females (N.=40) and males (N.=40); E and F) obese non-PA females (N.=40) and males (N.=40) with T2DM. Serum adiponectin, IL-15 and IL-15Rα, blood glucose/lipid profile, and body composition were measured.
RESULTS: Circulating adiponectin increased in PA participants compared to non-PA (ANOVA, P=0.001), finding higher concentrations in females compared to males (P<0.001), particularly in the PA group (P=0.005). Serum adiponectin was associated with age (R2=0.068), body mass (R2=-0.108), waist circumference (WC) (R2=-0.122), LDL (R2=-0.045), triglycerides (R2=-0.043), and serum IL-15Rα (R2=-0.243), as well as fat mass in females (R2=0.098), and WC in males (R2=0.112).
CONCLUSIONS: Circulating adiponectin increased in obese PA participants (≥180 min/week) compared to non-PA counterparts, indicating that physical activity may mediate baseline adiponectin levels irrespective of the fat mass regulatory effect. The inverse relationship found between serum adiponectin and IL-15Rα may support the regulative role of the IL-15/IL-15Rα complex on this adipokine at baseline.

KEY WORDS: Adipokines; Exercise; Sex characteristics; Hyperlipidemias