Fatty Acid-Binding Protein 4 in Patients with and without Diabetic Retinopathy
- Author:
Ping HUANG
1
;
Xiaoqin ZHAO
;
Yi SUN
;
Xinlei WANG
;
Rong OUYANG
;
Yanqiu JIANG
;
Xiaoquan ZHANG
;
Renyue HU
;
Zhuqi TANG
;
Yunjuan GU
Author Information
- Publication Type:Original Article
- From:Diabetes & Metabolism Journal 2022;46(4):640-649
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Background:Fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4) has been demonstrated to be a predictor of early diabetic nephropathy. However, little is known about the relationship between FABP4 and diabetic retinopathy (DR). This study explored the value of FABP4 as a biomarker of DR in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).
Methods:A total of 238 subjects were enrolled, including 20 healthy controls and 218 T2DM patients. Serum FABP4 levels were measured using a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The grade of DR was determined using fundus fluorescence angiography. Based on the international classification of DR, all T2DM patients were classified into the following three subgroups: non-DR group, non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) group, and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) group. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were employed to assess the correlation between FABP4 levels and DR severity.
Results:FABP4 correlated positively with DR severity (r=0.225, P=0.001). Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to assess the diagnostic potential of FABP4 in identifying DR, with an area under the curve of 0.624 (37% sensitivity, 83.6% specificity) and an optimum cut-off value of 76.4 μg/L. Multivariate logistic regression model including FABP4 as a categorized binary variable using the cut-off value of 76.4 μg/L showed that the concentration of FABP4 above the cut-off value increased the risk of NPDR (odds ratio [OR], 3.231; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.574 to 6.632; P=0.001) and PDR (OR, 3.689; 95% CI, 1.306 to 10.424; P=0.014).
Conclusion:FABP4 may be used as a serum biomarker for the diagnosis of DR.
