본 연구는 건강한 개에서 혈장 homocysteine농도가 비만이나 비만 관련인자(예, 지방, 인슐린, 혈당, 글루카곤, fructosamine)들과 어떤 상관관계가 있는지를 확인하기 위해 실시되었다. 이를 위해, 절식시 혈당, 지방지수(예, total triglycerides [TG], total cholesterol [TC], high-density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-C]과 low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-C]), fructosamine, insulin 및 glucagon 농도를 각각 측정하였다. 실험에 사용된 개들은 body condition score (BCS)에 따라 분류하였다. 평균 혈장 homocysteine 농도는 비만한 개 집단이 정상이나 마른 개 집단에 비해 상당히 높았다. 또한 혈장 homocysteine농도는 HDL-C농도 뿐아니라 TG, TC, 혈장 glucagon 및 fructosamine 농도와도 밀접한 상관관계를 가지고 있었다. 반대로 LDL-C 농도, 절식시 혈당농도 및 insulin농도는 아무런 상관관계가 확인되지 않았다. 본 연구 결과, homocysteine의 농도 상승이 비만견에서 생물학적으로 중요한 역할을 하는 것으로 추정된다.
This study was conducted to evaluate whether plasma homocysteine levels were related to obesity or its contributing factors (e.g., lipids, insulin, glucose, glucagon, and fructosamine) in dogs without systemic diseases such as diabetes or renal failure. For achieving our study goal, 100 client-owned dogs without systemic diseases were enrolled in this study. Fasting glucose concentration; lipid profile (i.e., total triglycerides [TG], total cholesterol [TC], highdensity lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-C], and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-C]); and fructosamine, insulin, and glucagon levels were determined. The dogs were subdivided by the body condition score (BCS). The median levels of homocysteine were considerably higher in obese dogs than in lean and normal dogs. Interestingly, not only was homocysteine positively associated with the level of HDL-C, but also found to have a significant positive association with TG, TC, plasma glucagon levels, and fructosamine. In contrast, LDL-C, fasting glucose and insulin did not show any association with homocysteine. The findings presented, suggest that elevated levels of homocysteine may play a biological role in obesity in dogs.
