The role of kisspeptin and MKRN3 in the diagnosis of central precocious puberty in girls

Objective: To evaluate the characteristics and significance of serum kissp eptin and makorin ring finger protein 3 (MKRN3) levels for the diagnosis o f central precocious puberty (CPP) in girls. Method: Thirty four individuals with CPP, 17 individuals with prematur e thelarche (PT), and 28 age-matched prepubertal girls as normal control (NC) wer e recruited in this case-control study. Physical measurements included BMI and test s for breast, bone, and sexual characteristics. Biochemical measurements included serum LH, FSH, estradiol, insulin-like growth factor-1, MKRN3, and kisspeptin. Blood samp les were taken from individuals with CPP and PT before the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone stimulation test and at 30, 60, 90, and 120 min after injection with tripto relin. Results: Serum kisspeptin levels were higher in the CPP group when comp ared to the NC group (P = 0.020), while serum MKRN3 levels were lower in the two groups (P = 0.028). There were no significant differences between the CPP and PT grou ps as well as the PT and NC groups (all, P > 0.05). The cut-off value of serum kisspeptin differentiating patients with CPP from those without CPP was 0.40 nmol/L, with 82.4% sensitivity and 57.1% specificity, while the cut-off value of serum MKRN3 was 0.3 3 pmol/L, with 79.4% sensitivity and 53.6% specificity. The area under the curves (AU Cs) of both kisspeptin and MKRN3 for differentiating those girls with CPP from PT were less than 0.5. Conclusions: Serum levels of kisspeptin and MKRN3 may play an auxiliary rol e in predicting CPP. However, the two measurements were not able to differentiat e girls with CPP from PT and prepubertal control. This study emphasizes the need to sear ch for markers to simplify the accurate diagnosis of CPP in girls.

Automated summary

This study evaluated the characteristics and significance of serum kisspeptin and MKRN3 levels for the diagnosis of central precocious puberty (CPP) in girls. Results showed that serum kisspeptin levels were higher in the CPP group compared to the normal control group, while serum MKRN3 levels were lower in both groups. However, these two measurements were not able to differentiate girls with CPP from those with premature thelarche and prepubertal control.