Postprandial lipid and apolipoprotein responses following three consecutive meals associate with liver fat content in type 2 diabetes and the metabolic syndrome.

Description

This study was performed to evaluate postprandial lipoprotein changes and their association with liver fat. For that purpose, 42 caucasian males, aged 40-65 years, with type 2 diabetes (n=14) and with the metabolic syndrome (n=14), and 14 age-matched healthy males were recruited and consumed 3 consecutive fat-rich mixed meals during a 24-hour period. Liver fat was measured using a proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Results of this study revealed that men with type 2 diabetes and with the metabolic syndrome showed an exaggerated and prolonged postprandial dyslipidemia following consumption of high-fat meals compared to healthy controls. Moreover, liver fat was positively and independently associated with 24-hour area under the curve (AUC) of triglycerides, total apolipoprotein B and cholesterol-rich-remnants, but not with 24-hour AUC apolipoprotein B48. Instead, consecutive meals revealed a postponed peak response of apolipoprotein B48-containing particles in type 2 diabetic males as compared to healthy subjects, independently of hepatic fat content. Thus, these results suggest that liver fat is associated with postprandial lipid and lipoprotein changes, but other mechanisms, including intestinal processes, could also be involved.