TY - JOUR
T1 - Higher liver fat content among Japanese in Japan compared with non-Hispanic whites in the United States
AU - Azuma, Koichiro
AU - Kadowaki, Takashi
AU - Cetinel, Cemal
AU - Kadota, Aya
AU - El-Saed, Aiman
AU - Kadowaki, Sayaka
AU - Edmundowicz, Daniel
AU - Nishio, Yoshihiko
AU - Sutton-Tyrrell, Kim
AU - Okamura, Tomonori
AU - Evans, Rhobert W.
AU - Takamiya, Tomoko
AU - Ueshima, Hirotsugu
AU - Curb, J. David
AU - Abbott, Robert D.
AU - Kuller, Lewis H.
AU - Kelley, David E.
AU - Sekikawa, Akira
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was supported by grants R01 HL68200 from the US National Institutes of Health, and Grant-in-aid for Scientific Research (A) 17209023 and Grant-in-aid for Young Scientists (B) 18790396 from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology.
PY - 2009/8/1
Y1 - 2009/8/1
N2 - Among Asians, including Japanese, obesity is related to dyslipidemia and insulin resistance at a lower level of body mass index (BMI) compared with non-Hispanic whites (NHW). We hypothesize that this ethnic difference in the relationship between BMI and metabolic risks is partly associated with the ethnic difference in fat distribution, namely, liver fat as well as visceral adipose tissue. To compare liver fat content among Japanese vs NHW men, regional computed tomographic images were taken to measure liver computed tomographic density in population-based samples of 313 Japanese and 288 NHW men aged 40 to 49 years, along with the assessment of metabolic parameters. Liver fat content was higher in Japanese than NHW men (liver to spleen attenuation ratio [lower value means higher liver fat content]: 1.01 ± 0.16 vs 1.07 ± 0.15, respectively; P < .01), despite a lower mean BMI in Japanese men (BMI: 23.6 ± 2.9 vs 27.8 ± 4.2 kg/m2, P < .01). Moreover, Japanese men had a greater disposition for fatty liver with a small increase in BMI than NHW (P < .01), whereas both groups had a similar relationship between visceral adipose tissue and BMI. In both groups, liver fat content correlated with triglycerides, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, and C-reactive protein. Liver fat content is higher among Japanese than NHW; and this ethnic difference becomes more robust with a small increase in BMI, suggesting that fatty liver is a sensitive marker for the failure of the adipose tissue to expand to accommodate an increased energy influx, and is associated with similar metabolic risk in Japanese despite lower BMI compared with NHW men.
AB - Among Asians, including Japanese, obesity is related to dyslipidemia and insulin resistance at a lower level of body mass index (BMI) compared with non-Hispanic whites (NHW). We hypothesize that this ethnic difference in the relationship between BMI and metabolic risks is partly associated with the ethnic difference in fat distribution, namely, liver fat as well as visceral adipose tissue. To compare liver fat content among Japanese vs NHW men, regional computed tomographic images were taken to measure liver computed tomographic density in population-based samples of 313 Japanese and 288 NHW men aged 40 to 49 years, along with the assessment of metabolic parameters. Liver fat content was higher in Japanese than NHW men (liver to spleen attenuation ratio [lower value means higher liver fat content]: 1.01 ± 0.16 vs 1.07 ± 0.15, respectively; P < .01), despite a lower mean BMI in Japanese men (BMI: 23.6 ± 2.9 vs 27.8 ± 4.2 kg/m2, P < .01). Moreover, Japanese men had a greater disposition for fatty liver with a small increase in BMI than NHW (P < .01), whereas both groups had a similar relationship between visceral adipose tissue and BMI. In both groups, liver fat content correlated with triglycerides, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, and C-reactive protein. Liver fat content is higher among Japanese than NHW; and this ethnic difference becomes more robust with a small increase in BMI, suggesting that fatty liver is a sensitive marker for the failure of the adipose tissue to expand to accommodate an increased energy influx, and is associated with similar metabolic risk in Japanese despite lower BMI compared with NHW men.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=67651087473&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=67651087473&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.metabol.2009.03.021
DO - 10.1016/j.metabol.2009.03.021
M3 - Article
C2 - 19428036
AN - SCOPUS:67651087473
SN - 0026-0495
VL - 58
SP - 1200
EP - 1207
JO - Metabolism: clinical and experimental
JF - Metabolism: clinical and experimental
IS - 8
ER -
