T45G Adiponectin Gene Polymorphism and its association with Hyperglycemia in adult Filipinos seen at the Philippine General Hospital - A pilot study

Introduction@#Adiponectin is an adipocytokine known to have anti-inflammatory and anti-atherogenic effects. It appears to impact insulin resistance and the subsequent development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D). The gene encoding adiponectin ADIPOQ, has single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that can be useful biomarkers to predict development of T2D; with the T/G polymorphism of SNP +45 in exon 2 being the most common. @*Objective@#This study was conducted to evaluate the association of T45G adiponectin gene polymorphism with hyperglycemia among adult Filipinos seen at the outpatient department of the Philippine General Hospital. @*Methods@#This is a matched case-control study, with duration of 12 months. DNA was extracted using the QIAGEN MIDI Blood Extraction Kit. The genomic DNA obtained was then subjected to real time PCR for SNP detection. @*Results@#One hundred (100) adults were enrolled; forty-three (43) had normoglycemia, while fifty seven (57) had hyperglycemia, after a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test. Hyperglycemic subjects were older (44±15.6 years vs. 52±8.3 years, p-value 0.002), and had lower HDL levels (58.5±16.0 mg/dLvs. 47.8+11.8 mg/dL, p-value 0.000). Among thirty-nine (39) participants found to have the T45G adiponectin gene polymorphism, 22 or 56.4% were hyperglycemic while 17 or 43.6% were normoglycemic. @*Conclusion@#There was no significant association observed between the T45G SNP and presence of hyperglycemia.

Two Filipino children with oromandibular limb hypogenesis spectrum

@#Oromandibular Limb Hypogenesis Spectrum (OMLHS) [OMIM 103300] is a rare disease characterized by congenital defects of the face, mandible, tongue and hypoplastic limbs. The exact etiology remains unknown. We present two Filipino children diagnosed with OLMHS. Patient 1 is a 2-year-old female noted to have micrognathia, sygnathia and hypoplasia of distal extremities. Patient 2 is a 6-year-old male with hypoplastic mandible, micrognathia, micromelia of both lower extremities and syndactyly of hands. The early recognition of this disease is important so that early surgical correction of deformities particularly the hypoplastic mandible be addressed to avoid complications such as respiratory distress and feeding difficulties.