Serum FABP1 Levels Correlate Positively with Obesity in Chinese Patients After Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy: a 12-Month Follow-up Study

Objective The role of liver fatty acid-binding protein (FABP1) in obesity is presently unclear. We investigated the association of FABP1 with obesity and the changes noted after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) in a Chinese population. Methods The cross-sectional analysis included 187 individuals: 65 had normal weight (18.5 <= body mass index (BMI) < 24 kg/m(2)), 59 were overweight (24 <= BMI < 28 kg/m(2)), and 63 were obese (BMI >= 28 kg/m(2)). We also assessed 25 severely obese patients (BMI, 38.58 +/- 4.59 kg/m(2)) at baseline and at 3, 6, and 12 months after LSG to observe FABP1 levels. Results FABP1 levels in the obese (30.33 +/- 23.59 ng/ml, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001) and overweight (18.96 +/- 18.75 ng/ml, P = 0.471) individuals were significantly higher than those in normal weight individuals (14.30 +/- 9.37 ng/ml). Linear regression analysis revealed that the FABP1 levels were positively correlated with BMI (R-2 = 0.201, ***P < 0.001), ALT (R-2 = 0.324, ***P < 0.001), AST (R-2 = 0.387, ***P < 0.001), m-AST (R-2 = 0.160, ***P < 0.001), gamma-GT (R-2 = 0.106, ***P < 0.001), DBil (R-2 = 0.078, ***P < 0.001), UA (R-2 = 0.111, ***P < 0.001), FBG (R-2 = 0.066, ***P < 0.001), LDL (R-2 = 0.042, **P = 0.005), and were negatively correlated with HDL (R-2 = 0.051, **P = 0.002). After adjusting for age, sex, ALT, AST, TC, TG, HDL, LDL, FBG, and UA, FABP1 was independently correlated with BMI (*P < 0.05). With decreasing BMI after LSG, the FABP1 levels (29.46 +/- 21.19 ng/ml, P = 0.463, P = 0.06, *P < 0.05) also decreased at 3 (23.00 +/- 22.77 ng/ml), 6 (14.41 +/- 15.48 ng/ml), and 12 months (11.55 +/- 3.27 ng/ml). Conclusion Serum FABP1 levels are closely correlated with obesity and many metabolic factors, and we found that with the decrease in BMI after LSG, the FABP1 levels also progressively decreased postoperatively.