Study of Betatrophin Levels in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes and Gestational Diabetes and Healthy Subjects

Betatrophin is a newly identified hormone that promotes pancreatic beta cell proliferation, improves glucose tolerance and regulates lipids metabolism. A recent study showed that circulating concentrations of betatrophin doubled in type 1 diabetes. The objective of this study is to investigate the association of serum betatrophin levels with the progression of diabetic retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes and the level of betatrophin in gestational diabetes patients and pregnant women.

200 subjects were recruited in this study and divided into six groups for comparison of the serum betatrophin. 70 healthy subjects and 20 healthy young volunteers were enrolled for investigating the role of betatrophin in energy homeostasis and the circadian rhythm. 50 patients with type 2 diabetes were classified into three groups by the stage of diabetic retinopathy. Rank test was used to analyze the correlation between the progression of diabetic retinopathy and circulating betatrophin. Betatrophin were measured by a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and confirmed via Western Blot.