Elevated betatrophin influences cardiometabolic risk factors in adolescents

The study aimed to investigate the association between betatrophin, a novel adipokine implicated in metabolic regulation, and cardiometabolic risk factors, including insulin resistance, in adolescents. A total of 306 participants aged 12-17 years were divided into three groups based on glycemic status and body mass index (BMI): normal weight with normal fasting glucose (G1), overweight/obese with normal fasting glucose (G2), and overweight/obese with impaired fasting glucose (G3). Clinical assessments included anthropometric measurements and fasting blood sampling to determine lipid profile, insulin, and betatrophin levels. Betatrophin levels were significantly higher in G3 compared with G1 ( p = 0.015). We observed a significant negative association of betatrophin with total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, insulin, and homeostasis model assessment-estimated insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) (all p-values <0.01). In multivariate regression analyses, elevated betatrophin levels were associated with increased odds of high blood pressure (OR=2.55, 95% CI=1.5-4.4, p <0.001), and low HDL-Cholesterol (OR=2.57, 95% CI=1.6-4.2, p <0.001), but decreased odds of elevated HOMA-IR (OR=0.28, 95% CI=0.2-0.5, p <0.001, independent of age, sex, and BMI. Betatrophin levels were associated with multiple cardiometabolic risk factors in Arab adolescents, including blood pressure, lipid indices, and insulin resistance. These findings highlight the potential regulatory role of betatrophin in adolescent cardiometabolic health and signify the need for further mechanistic studies to clarify its relevance.