Alterations in total and high–molecular-weight adiponectin after 3 weeks of moderate alcohol consumption in premenopausal women

Abstract

Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with increased concentrations of adiponectin. Whether this is the case for both total and high–molecular-weight (HMW) adiponectin is uncertain. Furthermore, the rate at which this increase occurs is unclear. Therefore, we examined the effect of moderate alcohol consumption on total and HMW adiponectin. In a randomized, crossover trial, 24 premenopausal women who were regular alcohol consumers received beer (∼26 g alcohol) or alcohol-free beer daily for 3 weeks preceded by a 1-week washout. Blood samples were collected weekly after an overnight fast for measurement of total and HMW adiponectin and markers of glucose and lipid metabolism. There was a significant interaction (P < .05) between the 2 treatments over time for both plasma HMW and total adiponectin concentrations. Within 3 weeks, plasma total (8.2%, P = .01) and HMW (8.2%, P = .02) adiponectin levels were higher after moderate alcohol consumption compared with abstention. Changes over time in total adiponectin were positively associated with changes in HMW adiponectin during the nonalcoholic beer (r = 0.80; 95% confidence interval, 0.55-0.92) and beer (r = 0.82; 0.58-0.93) intervention. Alcohol consumption did not affect the ratio of HMW to total adiponectin or the serum glucose, insulin, hemoglobin A_1c, or triglyceride levels compared with abstention during the intervention periods. Both total and HMW adiponectin concentrations are higher after moderate alcohol consumption compared with abstention in premenopausal women. These effects were evident after at least 3 weeks of consumption and occurred concomitantly.

Introduction

Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus [1], [2]. This association could—in addition to improved insulin sensitivity and favorable changes in triglycerides [3], [4]—partially be explained by increased circulating adiponectin levels [5]. Adiponectin is an adipose tissue-specific adipokine involved in glucose and lipid metabolism [6]. It is associated positively with insulin sensitivity [7] and inversely with inflammatory markers [8] and the metabolic syndrome [9]. Moreover, higher adiponectin levels have been consistently associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus [10] and cardiovascular disease [11].

In observational studies, alcohol consumption has been positively associated with adiponectin concentrations [12], [13], [14], an effect confirmed in short-term (∼3 weeks) randomized trials of alcohol administration [15], [16], [17], [18].

Acute alcohol consumption, however, does not alter postprandial levels of adiponectin [19], [20], suggesting that a longer period of alcohol consumption is needed to increase adiponectin levels. Furthermore, almost all of these short-term trials only included men, although adiponectin levels differ between men and women [21], and lower levels are observed in premenopausal compared with postmenopausal women [22], [23]. Moreover, the majority of these trials investigated only total adiponectin levels, although the high–molecular-weight (HMW) isomer of adiponectin has been proposed as the most active metabolic form [24], [25], [26].

Hence, this trial was designed to investigate the weekly alterations in levels of both total and HMW adiponectin and associated markers of glucose and lipid metabolism by changes in alcohol consumption over a 3-week period in a group of premenopausal women.