OBJECTIVE The liver-secreted protein fetuin-A induces insulin resistance in animals, and circulating fetuin-A is elevated in insulin resistance and fatty liver in humans. We investigated whether plasma fetuin-A levels predict the incidence of type 2 diabetes in a large prospective, population-based study. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A case-cohort study within the European Prospective Investig...

BACKGROUND Fetuin-A and ghrelin have been implicated in cardiovascular diseases and mortality among end stage renal disease patients. The exact mechanisms have not been fully elucidated. There is robust data supporting an association between ghrelin and various cardiovascular conditions, and some common processes such as inflammation, oxidative stress, and endoplasmic reticulum stress have been...

BACKGROUND An increase in aortic stiffness, as reflected by an increase in pulse wave velocity (PWV) or aortic augmentation index (AI) is an important predictor of cardiovascular mortality in dialysis patients. Dysregulation of calcification inhibitors, such as fetuin-A, is involved in vascular pathology in dialysis patients and fetuin-A is inversely related to mortality in dialysis patients. I...

INTRODUCTION Fetuin-A, a systemic calcification inhibitor, has been negatively related to vascular calcification (VC) and cardiovascular mortality. In this study we investigated the association between fetuin-A levels and atherosclerotic vascular complications in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients with and without lupus nephritis (LN). METHODS We recruited 20 SLE patients without LN,...

INTRODUCTION Low fetuin-A and vitamin D and high monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) contents are associated with vascular calcification (VC) in dialysis patients. We aimed to demonstrate the difference in fetuin-A, vitamin D, MUFA, and VC on plain radiography between patients on hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis (PD). MATERIALS AND METHODS We recruited 31 hemodialysis and 30 PD patients. We...

The hepatokine fetuin-A can together with free fatty acids (FFAs) enhance adipose tissue (AT) inflammation and insulin resistance via toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). Although some of the health benefits of exercise can be explained by altered release of myokines from the skeletal muscle, it is not well documented if some of the beneficial effects of exercise can be explained by altered secretion o...

BACKGROUND Fetuin-A, a protein almost exclusively secreted by the liver, induces insulin resistance and subclinical inflammation in rodents. Circulating fetuin-A levels are elevated in humans with metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance, conditions that are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease. METHODS AND RESULTS We investigated the association between fetuin-A levels a...

OBJECTIVE We investigated whether the concentration of the glycoprotein fetuin A is altered in the second trimester amniotic fluid of trisomy 21 pregnancies compared with euploid pregnancies. METHODS 25 pregnancies with an extra chromosome 21 were matched for maternal and gestational age with 25 pregnancies with normal karyotype. Levels of fetuin A in amniotic fluid were measured by a commerc...

OBJECTIVE To study the association of serum fetuin-A as a potential risk factor with abnormal albuminuria in Chinese individuals with normal glucose tolerance (NGT). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS The cross-sectional analysis included 607 men and 1,042 women aged 40 or older with NGT. RESULTS Women with combined microalbuminuria and macroalbuminuria (n=68) had significantly higher serum fetuin...