Euglycemic hyperinsulinemia differentially modulates circulating total and acylated-ghrelin in humans

Ghrelin is a powerful orexigenic gut hormone. Circulating concentrations of total ghrelin are downregulated by food intake in both acute and chronic hyperinsulinemic states. However, in blood des-acylated (des-acyl) ghrelin is the predominant form that has no orexigenic effects in humans. Circulating acyl-ghrelin has been shown to be suppressed post-prandially and by pharmacological hyperinsulinemia. However, up to now responses of circulating acyl-ghrelin to moderate hyperinsulinemic and hyperinsulinemic-hyperlipidemic clamp conditions have not been reported. Fourteen healthy subjects were investigated using two-stepped euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamps (40 mU insulin/ m2/min; mean 148+/-7 min till steady state, followed by 300 min lipid/heparin infusion). Responses of total ghrelin and acyl-ghrelin were measured at timed intervals throughout the clamps. Des-acyl-ghrelin concentrations were calculated by subtraction. Total ghrelin significantly decreased vs baseline concentrations (819+/-92 vs 564+/-58 pg/ml, p<0.001), thereby confirming previous observations. Des-acyl ghrelin closely followed total ghrelin concentrations and significantly decreased vs baseline (772+/-92 vs 517+/-56 pg/ml, p<0.001). In contrast, neither euglycemichyperinsulinemia nor euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic- hyperlipidemia suppressed acyl-ghrelin below baseline concentrations throughout the clamps (46+/-3 vs 47+/-8 pg/ml, p=0.90). In conclusion, moderate hyperinsulinemic and hyperinsulinemic- hyperlipidemic clamp conditions differentially modulated circulating total ghrelin and acylghrelin in humans. Factors other than changes in insulin and lipid concentrations are likely to contribute to the previously reported post-prandial reduction of circulating acyl-ghrelin.