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Glucose Metabolism, Insulin‐like Growth Factor‐I, and Insulin‐like Growth Factor‐Binding Protein‐1 After Alcohol Withdrawal
Author(s) -
Paassilta Marita,
Kervinen Kari,
Kesäniemi Y. Antero
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
alcoholism: clinical and experimental research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.267
H-Index - 153
eISSN - 1530-0277
pISSN - 0145-6008
DOI - 10.1111/j.1530-0277.1999.tb04139.x
Subject(s) - endocrinology , medicine , insulin , carbohydrate metabolism , metabolism , insulin like growth factor , growth factor , alcohol , chemistry , biochemistry , receptor
Alcohol abusers often present with deteriorated glucose metabolism and insulin resistance. Changes in other glucoregulators, such as insulin‐like growth factor‐I (IGF‐I) and IGF‐binding protein‐1 (IGFBP‐1) may also be related to alcohol abuse. We studied the effects of alcohol withdrawal on blood glucose, serum insulin and C‐peptide, and plasma IGF‐I and IGFBP‐1 levels in 27 noncirrhotic male alcoholics aged 43 ± 9.0 (mean ± SD) years on four consecutive days immediately after withdrawal. A 4‐day monitoring period was conducted in four healthy nonalcoholic control men. The groups were similar in age and body mass index. Glucose, insulin, IGF‐I, and IGFBP‐1 did not differ significantly between the groups at the baseline, but C‐peptide was higher in alcoholics ( p < 0.01). After alcohol withdrawal, serum insulin and C‐peptide levels increased in close correlation with each other (r = 0.82, p < 0.001). During the 4‐day observation period in alcoholics, IGFBP‐1 levels declined by 59%, whereas IGF‐I increased by 41 % ( p < 0.001 for both comparisons). The change in insulin correlated inversely with the change in IGFBP‐1 levels ( r = ‐0.39, p < 0.05). In the control group, glucose, insulin, IGF‐I, and IGFBP‐1 remained unchanged during the 4‐day monitoring period, whereas some reduction was observed in C‐peptide. In conclusion, alcohol withdrawal enhances insulin production, as seen in increased C‐peptide levels. An inverse correlation between the changes in insulin and that in IGFBP‐1 might suggest that inhibition of IGFBP‐1 by insulin remains largely unchanged during the acute phase of alcohol withdrawal.