ESPE Abstracts

Background and Aims: A novel bioactive peptide, mitochondrial-derived peptide (MOTS-c), has recently attracted interests as a potential prevention or therapeutic option for obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus in mice. MOTS-c profiles have not yet been reported in type 1 diabetes (T1DM). We aimed to determine circulating MOTS-c levels in T1DM and explore the association between MOTS-c levels and various metabolic parameters.

Methods: In this case-control study, 60 age-, sex- matched children were recruited in the Hubei Province of China in 2015-2017. Thirty (16 females and 14 males) of these individuals were newly diagnosed T1DM children and 30 (15 females and 15 males) were of normal glucose. Subjects were excluded if they used medications such as insulin or metformin. MOTS-c levels in the fasting plasma were assessed using a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), clinical data (e.g., serum glucose, insulin, C-peptide, HbA1c, and lipid profile) were recorded, and anthropometric measurements were performed. Finally, we investigated correlations between MOTS-c levels and related variables.

Results: Circulating MOTS-c levels were significantly decreased in newly diagnosed T1DM children compared with those in the normal control group (445.45 ± 21.29 ng/mL vs. 565.41 ± 20.19 ng/mL, P < 0.001). In addition, when stratified by sex, the trend of plasma MOTS-c reduction was similar in female and male patients with newly diagnosed T1DM (female 438.44 ± 33.06 ng/mL vs. 557.85 ± 27.85 ng/mL, P < 0.05; male 453.47 ± 26.75 ng/mL vs. 572.98 ± 30.08 ng/mL, P < 0.05,respectively). Finally, we observed that MOTS-c levels were negatively correlated with random blood glucose (r = -0.380, P = 0.003), HbA1c (r = -0.408, P = 0.001), and triacylglycerol (r = -0.283, P = 0.029), and positively correlated with HDL-cholesterol (r = 0.294, P = 0.023) and C-peptide (r = 0.338, P = 0.015).

Conclusions: Circulating MOTS-c levels were decreased in newly diagnosed T1DM children. Although the role of MOTS-c as a treatment for T1DM will require further investigation, it is possible that a decline in MOTS-c might be a biomarker of T1DM children.

Keywords: Mitochondrial-derived peptide, MOTS-c, T1DM, children