Lipopolysaccharide Binding Protein and Cardiovascular Changes in Obese Children

Objective: Despite the growing evidence that lipopolysaccharide binding protein (LBP) plays a major role in cardiovascular disease (CVD) pathophysiology and obesity, data regarding this association in children are rare. Therefore, our objectives were to assess whether there was a difference between overweight/obese and normal-weight children in plasma LBP levels and to assess the cardiovascular changes in both groups. Methods: In an observational, case-control study, a total of 30 children as obese and overweight children. Obese children with body mass index (BMI) above 95th percentile, and overweight children with BMI between 85th and 95th percentile were recruited if they aged between 8-16 years old. A similar number of matched controls were included. Serum LBP was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique. Results: With regard to serum LBP, the mean LBP was significantly higher in obese children than in the control group (52.74 ± 17.25 versus 12.34 ± 2.67 μg/mL, respectively;p < 0.001). The ROC curve showed that the serum LBP, at a cutoff value of >19 μg/mL, was a significant discriminator of obesity with a sensitivity of 96.67% and specificity of 100%. The regression analysis showed that BMI was an independent predictor of serum LBP (B coefficient = 0.684;p = 0.024). The serum LBP correlated significantly with age (r = 0.58;p = 0.001), BMI (r = 0.834;p = 0.001), and LV longitudinal strain (r = 0.362;p = 0.05). Conclusion: In conclusion, our findings showed that obesity was associated with a worse lipid profile and cardiovascular function. LBP is a promising predictor of obesity in children.

In vivo expression of lipopolysaccharide binding protein and its gene induced by endotoxin

Objective: To investigate the expression of lipopolysaccharide binding protein (LBP) and its gene in rats with endotoxemia and explore the role of LBP in the response of host to endotoxin. Methods: Thirty Wistar rats were divided randomly into five groups: the normal group and the endotoxemia groups (1, 3, 6, 12 hours after LPS injection, respectively). The level of plasma endotoxin was determined by the Limulus Amebocyte Lysate assay. The expression of LBP mRNA in hepatic tissue was examined by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT PCR). Plasma levels of LBP, tumor necrosis factor (TNF) α and interleukin (IL) 6 were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Morphologic changes of hepatic tissue were observed under transmission electron microscope. Results: The level of plasma endotoxin peaked at 1 h after LPS injection, then declined, but was still higher than that of the normal group at 12 h; intrahepatic expression of LBP mRNA and plasma LBP increased with time after LPS stimulation; TNF α and IL 6 in plasma increased with upregulation of LBP expression; there were significant differences between the normal group and endotoxemia groups (P< 0.05 ). Activation of Kupffer cells and injury of hepatocytes could be seen in rats with endotoxemia. Conclusions: LPS can upregulate the intrahepatic expression of LBP mRNA and increase the plasma LBP level. Under certain conditions, LBP may enhance the sensitivity of host to the toxic effects of LPS.

LBP and CD14 polymorphisms correlate with increased colorectal carcinoma risk in Han Chinese

AIM: To explore the associations of polymorphisms of lipopolysaccharide binding protein (LBP), cluster of differentiation 14 (CD14), toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) with the colorectal carcinoma (CRC) risk in Han Chinese. METHODS: Polymorphisms of LBP (rs1739654, rs223 2596, rs2232618), CD14 (rs77083413, rs4914), TLR-4 (rs5030719), IL-6 (rs13306435) and TNF-α (rs35131721) were genotyped in 479 cases of sporadic colorectal carcinoma and 486 healthy controls of Han Chinese in a case-control study. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) between cases and controls were analyzed by unconditional logistic regression. RESULTS: GA and GG genotypes of LBP rs2232596 were associated with a significantly increased risk ofCRC [odds ratio (OR) = 1.51, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.15-1.99, P = 0.003; OR = 2.49, 95% CI 1.16-5.38, P = 0.016, respectively]. A similar association was also observed for the CG genotype of CD14 rs4914 (OR= 1.69, 95% CI 1.20-2.36, P = 0.002). In addition, a combination of polymorphisms in LBP rs2232596 and CD14 rs4914 led to a 3.4-fold increased risk of CRC (OR = 3.44, 95% CI 1.94-6.10, P = 0.000). CONCLUSION: This study highlights the LBP rs2232596 and CD14 rs4914 polymorphisms as biomarkers for elevated CRC susceptibility in the Chinese Han population.