Correlation of serum Meteorin-like (Metrnl) level with type 2 diabetic peripheral neuropathy

Meteorin-like (Metrnl), a secreted myokine, is a newly discovered neurotrophic factor. The aim of this study was to determine if there is a correlation between the Metrnl level and diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN).

The investigation was conducted on a sample of 80 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and 60 healthy controls. The T2DM patients were categorized into two subgroups based on skin biopsy: the DPN subgroup (n = 20) and the diabetes without neuropathy subgroup (n = 60).

The T2DM groups had higher serum Metrnl concentrations compared with the controls. The serum Metrnl concentration was significantly lower in the DPN group than in T2DM patients without neuropathy. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated a notable correlation between serum Metrnl and DPN (OR: 0.997, 95% CI: 0.995–1.000, P < 0.05). Serum Metrnl level was negatively correlated with age and SBP after a simple logistic regression analysis.

Serum Metrnl concentration is independently correlated with DPN.