Circulating angiopoietin-like protein 8 (betatrophin) association with HsCRP and metabolic syndrome

Background: ANGPTL8 also called betatrophin is a regulator of lipid metabolism through its interaction with ANGPTL3. It has also been suggested to play a role in insulin resistance and beta-cell proliferation. Based on its function, we hypothesized that ANGPTL8 will play a role in Metabolic Syndrome (MetS). To test this hypothesis we designed this study to measure ANGPTL8 level in subjects with MetS as well as its association with high sensitivity C-reactive protein (HsCRP) level in humans. Methods: ANGPTL8 level was measured using ELISA in subjects with MetS as well as their controls, a total of 1735 subjects were enrolled. HsCRP was also measured and its association with ANGPTL8 was examined. Results: ANGPTL8 level was higher in subjects with MetS 1140.6 (171.9-11736.1) pg/mL compared to 710.5 (59.5-11597.2) pg/mL in the controls. Higher levels of ANGPTL8 were also observed with the sequential increase in the number of MetS components (p value = < 0.0001). ANGPTL8 showed strong positive correlation with HsCRP (r = 0.15, p value = < 0.0001). Stratifying the population into tertiles according to the level of HsCRP showed increased ANGPTL8 level at higher tertiles of HsCRP in the overall population (p value = < 0.0001). A similar trend was also observed in MetS and non-MetS subjects as well as in non-obese and obese subjects. Finally, multiple logistic regression models adjusted for age, gender, ethnicity and HsCRP level showed that subjects in the highest tertiles of ANGPTL8 had higher odds of having MetS (odd ratio [OR] = 2.3, 95 % confidence interval [CI] = (1.6-3.1), p value <0.0001. Conclusion: In this study we showed that ANGPTL8 is increased in subjects with MetS and it was significantly associated with HsCRP levels in different subgroups highlighting its potential role in metabolic and inflammatory pathways.