Plasma levels of ghrelin, deacyl ghrelin and LEAP2 in children with obesity

Ghrelin is an octanoylated hormone produced by the gastrointestinal tract that regulates appetite and blood glucose. It can be deacylated in plasma, generating deacyl-ghrelin (DAG). DAG blocks some effects of ghrelin, but does not bind to the ghrelin receptor. LEAP2 is a recently discovered ghrelin receptor ligand that also blocks the effects of ghrelin. Other investigations showed that plasma levels of these hormones are altered in people with obesity, but levels in children with obesity have not been studied. This application note evaluates the fasting plasma levels of ghrelin, DAG and LEAP2 in children with normal weight (NW), overweight / obesity (OW / OB) and their association with different anthropometric and metabolic variables.