Abstract
Pentraxine-3 (PTX3) is a member of the humoral innate immune system and serves a role in protection against infections, inflammation control and matrix deposition. The aim of the present study was to measure the PTX3 levels in obese patients and its association with glycemic and lipid profiles, and to analyze the effects of weight loss provided by bariatric surgery in serum PTX3 levels. PTX3 was measured in 84 obese patients whom underwent bariatric surgery and 94 healthy controls. Lipid and glycemic profiles were determined using a clinical chemistry analyzer, and PTX3 levels were measured in patients prior to and following bariatric surgery using ELISA. PTX3 levels prior to surgery were significantly lower compared with the normal controls (median of 0.10 vs. 0.80 ng/ml; P<0.0001). Following surgery, the median weight loss was 33.1 kg, and the median PTX3 levels were significantly increased to 1.45 ng/ml compared with pre-surgery levels (P<0.001) and did not differ significantly from the control group levels (P=0.10). There were no correlations between PTX3 levels and total cholesterol, HDL and LDL, fasting glycemia, HbA1c and basal insulin levels. A significant positive correlation was observed between PTX3 levels and triglycerides levels in the post-operative period (ρ=0.26, P=0.01). In conclusion, obese patients had lower levels of PTX3 compared with the control patients, and the levels were restored to physiological levels following bariatric surgery which may be associated with the weight loss.