Inflammation increases plasma angiopoietin-like protein 4 in patients with the metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes

Background: Angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4) inhibits lipoprotein lipase and associates with dyslipidemia. The expression of ANGPTL4 is regulated by free fatty acids (FFA) that activate lipid-sensing peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), but FFA can also activate pattern recognition receptors including Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in macrophages.

Objective: To assess whether systemic low-grade inflammation is a determinant for plasma ANGPTL4 levels in patients with the metabolic syndrome (MetS) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Design: We studied 335 male participants: healthy controls (Controls), patients with the MetS without inflammation (MetS-I) and with low-grade inflammation (MetS+I), and patients with T2DM. All patients without diabetes included in the present study were initially matched for waist circumference. In plasma, ANGPTL4, C reactive protein (CRP) and metabolic parameters were determined. Underlying mechanisms were examined using human macrophages in vitro.

Results: As compared with Controls, plasma ANGPTL4 levels were increased in patients with MetS-I, MetS+I, and T2DM. Furthermore, ANGPTL4 was increased in T2DM compared with MetS-I. In fact, plasma CRP correlated positively with plasma ANGPTL4. In vitro studies showed that TLR 3/4 activation largely increased the expression and release of ANGPTL4 by macrophages.

Conclusions: Plasma ANGPTL4 levels in humans are predicted by CRP, a marker of inflammation, and ANGPTL4 expression by macrophages is increased by inflammatory stimuli.