Determination of irisin and nitric oxide levels in patients with metabolic impairments in intensive care unit

Objective: The newly discovered myokine irisin has been proposed to affect physical activity. However, clinical and functional studies on the association of irisin with muscle mass, and metabolic status remain controversial. The nitric oxide is a molecule produced by the endothelium and in a variety of additional cells, including skeletal muscle. The aim of the study was to determine irisin and nitric oxide (NO) levels in physically inactive patients with severe acute metabolic disorders in intensive care unit. Material and Method: Total of 80 subjects were divided into 3 groups: healthy control (n=20), cerebrovascular disease (including hemi and paraplegic patients) (n=40), pulmonary disease (PD) (n=20). Plasma irisin levels were analyzed using a commercial ELISA kits. The total serum nitrate and nitrite was measured using a Nitrate/Nitrite Colorimetric Assay Kit. Results: We have found significantly higher irisin levels (322.8±20.4 ng/ml) in patients with cerebrovascular disease (p=0.0001) and (302.6±40.2 ng/ml) in patients with PD (p=0.01) compared to (171.4±10.5 ng/ml) control subjects. In addition, higher NO levels were observed (42.42±1.9 μM) in patients with cerebrovascular disease (p<0.001) and (44.36±2.7 μM) in patients with PD (p<0.001), compared to (27.65±0.7 μM) control subjects. Discussion: Observation of higher levels of irisin and NO in critically ill intensive care unit patients may indicate the protective roles of these agents against serious metabolic impairments.