Serum Endocan Levels Correlate with Metabolic Syndrome Severity and Endothelial Dysfunction: A Cross-Sectional Study...

Area of Science:

• Endocrinology
• Cardiovascular Research
• Biomarker Discovery

Background:

• Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of metabolic abnormalities increasing cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes risk.
• Endocan, an endothelial cell-specific molecule, is a known biomarker for endothelial dysfunction and inflammation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between serum endocan levels and the severity of MetS.
• To assess endocan's diagnostic accuracy for MetS using the MetS-Z score.

Main Methods:

• 120 MetS patients and 50 controls were analyzed.
• MetS diagnosed via NCEP-ATP III criteria; severity assessed by MetS-Z score.
• Serum endocan, sICAM-1, and sVCAM-1 measured by ELISA.

Main Results:

• Endocan, sICAM-1, and sVCAM-1 levels were significantly higher in MetS patients versus controls (p < 0.001).
• Increasing MetS-Z score tertiles showed significant stepwise increases in endocan levels (p < 0.0001).
• Strong positive correlation found between MetS-Z score and serum endocan (r = 0.584, p < 0.0001); high diagnostic accuracy (AUC = 0.967).

Conclusions:

• Elevated circulating endocan levels are linked to MetS.
• Serum endocan levels correlate positively with MetS severity.
• Endocan may be implicated in endothelial dysfunction in MetS patients.