Association between transthyretin concentrations and gestational diabetes mellitus in Chinese women

Background Transthyretin (TTR) is considered to be associated with insulin resistance in humans. This study aimed to investigate TTR level in gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and its association with glucose metabolism. Methods Fifty pregnant women with GDM and 47 pregnant women with normal glucose tolerance matched for body mass index and age were enrolled in this study. Their blood samples were collected to detect TTR, retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4), and their association with glucose and lipid metabolism. Results Serum TTR levels in the GDM group were significantly higher than those in the control group (median, 93.44 [interquartile range, 73.81, 117.79] μg/ml vs. 80.83 [74.19, 89.38] μg/ml; P = 0.006). GDM subjects had a lower RBP4/TTR ratio than the control subjects (median, 517.57 [interquartile range, 348.38, 685.27] vs. 602.56 [460.28, 730.62]; P = 0.02). The serum TTR concentrations were positively associated with neonatal weight ( r = 0.223, P = 0.028), homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance ( r = 0.246, P = 0.015), and fasting blood glucose (FBG) ( r = 0.363, P