Nucleobindin-2 (NUCB2) gene transcription activity and nesfatin-1 levels in correlation with anthropometric and biochemical parameters in type 2 diabetes mellitus patient groups in Vietnam

IntroductionNucleobindin-2 (NUCB2) was identified as a DNA/Ca2+ binding protein with multiple functions in humans. Prohormone convertase-mediated NUCB2 processing produced nesfatin-1 - a biologically active. Nesfatin-1, an 82-amino acid peptide, was extracted from the N-terminus of nucleobindin-2. Recently, it was described as an anorexia peptide related to weight loss, malnutrition, and appetite regulation in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients. Research design and methodsIn this study, we collected samples and divided them into groups of patients with long-term type 2 diabetes and newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes group. Serum nesfatin-1 level and mRNA NUCB2 gene expression level of the groups were analyzed and compared with those of the healthy group.Biometric parameters and biochemical indices were also analyzed to determine the correlation with nesfatin-1 level. ResultsLevels of nesfatin-1 were found to be higher in the newly diagnosed group than in the other groups. Similar results were also reported in the analysis of mRNA NUCB2 gene expression by Realtime-PCR. Meanwhile, no significant difference was found in both analyzes of nesfatin-1 levels and NUCB2 mRNA expression in subjects with long-term type 2 diabetes compared with the control group. This result can be explained by the effects of long-term treatment. In the correlation of anthropometric parameters and biochemical indices, nesfatin-1 exhibited a significant correlation with BMI (r=0.569), HbA1c (r=-0.468), HDL-C (r=0.731), LDL-C (r=-0.482), Creatinine serum (r=0.525), and Creatinine urine (r=0.592), with p<0.001, in regression analysis. ConclusionsThese results indicate that the serum nesfatin-1 level and the NUCB2 mRNA gene expression level may be associated with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes in Vietnamese patients. However, more specific studies with larger sample sizes were still needed in future studies.