Sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) levels are low in adult subjects with obesity when compared to normal-weight individuals. Obesity is associated with higher tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) plasma levels and lower adiponectin levels. Moreover, we have recently elucidated the molecular mechanisms by which TNFα and adiponectin regulate hepatic SHBG production. The main objective of this study was to assess if the adult associations between TNFα, adiponectin, and SHBG are present in prepubertal children. We determined several morphometric and biochemical parameters in normal-weight (n=15) and obese prepubertal (n=51) children, as well as quantified plasma SHBG, TNFα receptor 1 (TNFα-R1), and adiponectin levels. Our results showed that prepubertal children with obesity had decreased plasma SHBG levels compared to normal-weight controls (67 nmol/L vs 172 nmol/L). Importantly, SHBG plasma levels correlated significantly (P < 0.05) with TNFα (negatively, ßstd= − 0.31) and adiponectin (positively, ßstd= 0.58) suggesting an important role of these two cytokines in determining plasma SHBG levels in prepubertal children. Our results suggest that plasma adiponectin levels may play a more important role than TNFα in influencing plasma SHBG levels in our prepubertal population with obesity.

中文翻译：

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青春期前肥胖儿童脂联素、TNFα、SHBG的关系


与正常体重的个体相比，肥胖成年受试者的性激素结合球蛋白（SHBG）水平较低。肥胖与较高的肿瘤坏死因子α（TNFα）血浆水平和较低的脂联素水平有关。此外，我们最近阐明了 TNFα 和脂联素调节肝脏 SHBG 产生的分子机制。本研究的主要目的是评估青春期前儿童中 TNFα、脂联素和性激素结合球蛋白 (SHBG) 之间是否存在成人相关性。我们测定了正常体重 (n=15) 和肥胖青春期前儿童 (n=51) 的几个形态测量和生化参数，以及定量的血浆 SHBG、TNFα 受体 1 (TNFα-R1) 和脂联素水平。我们的结果表明，与正常体重对照相比，青春期前肥胖儿童的血浆 SHBG 水平降低（67 nmol/L vs 172 nmol/L）。重要的是，SHBG 血浆水平与 TNFα（负值，ßstd= − 0.31）和脂联素（正值，ßstd= 0.58）显着相关（P < 0.05），表明这两种细胞因子在确定青春期前儿童血浆 SHBG 水平方面发挥着重要作用。我们的结果表明，在青春期前肥胖人群中，血浆脂联素水平在影响血浆 SHBG 水平方面可能比 TNFα 发挥更重要的作用。