Short-term therapy with atorvastatin or fenofibrate does not affect plasma ghrelin, resistin or adiponectin levels in type 2 diabetic patients with mixed hyperlipoproteinaemia

Lipid-lowering therapy is associated with reduced cardiovascular risk. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether lipid-lowering therapy might be associated with changes in the concentrations of metabolically important hormone concentrations. We performed a randomised cross-over open-label trial with atorvastatin (10 mg/day) and fenofibrate (200 mg/day), each for 6 weeks separated by a 6-week washout period in 13 patients (5 men, 8 women, age 60.0 +/- 6.8 years, body mass index 30.0 +/- 3.0 kg/m(2)) with type 2 diabetes mellitus and mixed hyperlipoproteinaemia. Plasma ghrelin (RIA, Phoenix Pharmaceuticals, Mountain View, CA, USA), adiponectin (ELISA, Biovendor, Heidelberg, Germany) as well as resistin (ELISA, Linco Research, St. Charles, MO, USA) concentrations were measured before and after atorvastatin as well as before and after fenofibrate. Ghrelin (462 +/- 84 pg/ml before vs. 464 +/- 102 pg/ml after atorvastatin, n.s.; 454 +/- 85 pg/ml before vs. 529 266 pg/ml after fenofibrate, n.s.), resistin (24.4 +/- 7.4 pg/ml before vs. 23.7 +/- 9.1 pg/ml after atorvastatin, n.s.; 23.4 +/- 8.2 pg/ml before vs. 19.9 +/- 5.5 pg/ml after fenofibrate, n.s.), adiponectin (10.89 +/- 5.33 pg/ml before vs. 12.41 +/- 5.75 pg/ml after atorvastatin, n.s.; 12.58 +/- 9.87 pg/ml before vs. 10.27 +/- 5.23 pg/ml after fenofibrate, n.s.) and insulin levels did not change significantly during lipid-lowering therapy. In patients with type 2 diabetes and mixed hyperlipoproteinaemia, short-term atorvastatin as well as fenofibrate therapy had no significant effects on adiponectin, ghrelin or resistin levels.