Associations of Betatrophin/ANGPTL8 with Septic Dyslipidemia in Human Peritonitis: An Explorative Analysis

Sepsis is defined by life-threatening organ dysfunction mediated by the host’s response to infection. This can result in septic dyslipidemia, which is involved in the neutralization of pathogen-related lipids. Knowledge of the regulatory mechanisms of septic dyslipidemia is incomplete. The cytokine betatrophin/Angiopoietin-like protein 8 (ANGPTL8) plays a role in the regulation of triacylglyceride metabolism, though its function in septic dyslipidemia remains unknown. Sixty-six patients were enrolled in a cross-sectional study. Circulating concentrations and adipose tissue (AT) mRNA expression of betatrophin/ANGPTL8 were studied in patients suffering from peritoneal sepsis. Insulin-resistant individuals and subjects without metabolic derangement/systemic inflammation were enrolled as controls. All underwent open abdominal surgery. Circulating betatrophin/ANGPTL8 was analyzed by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and AT mRNA expression levels were assessed by real-time PCR. Standard laboratory analyses including lipid electrophoresis were evaluated. Sepsis patients showed pronounced septic dyslipidemia (p < 0.05 for all major lipid classes). Despite comparable betatrophin/ANGPTL8 mRNA expression in AT (p = 0.24), we found significantly increased circulating betatrophin/ANGPTL8 with septic dyslipidemia (p = 0.009). Expression levels of betatrophin/ANGPTL8 in AT correlated with circulating concentrations in both control groups (r = 0.61; p = 0.008 and r = 0.43; p = 0.034), while this association was undetectable in sepsis. After stratification, betatrophin/ANGPTL8 remained associated with hypertriacylglyceridemia (p < 0.05).