Investigation of serum adropin levels and its relationship with hypothalamic atrophy in patients with multiple sclerosis

Objective Adropin is expressed in vascular endothelial cells and regulates nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability by upregulating nitric oxide. In recent years, some studies have revealed its relationship with the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS). Our aim in this study is to determine serum adropin levels in MS patients and to investigate adropin levels's relationship with hypothalamic atrophy. Methods A total of 80 people, 40 of whom had MS and 40 of whom were healthy volunteers, were included in the study. Serum samples were taken from all participants. Hypothalamus and pituitary diameters were calculated from magnetic resonance imaging of MS patients. The relationship between serum adropin levels and demographic characteristics, Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), and hypothalamic atrophy were evaluated. Results The levels of adropin were 0.85±0.14 ng/mL in patients with MS and 2.96 ng/mL±0.285 ng/mL in the healthy controls. MS patients had significantly lower levels of adropin than the healthy controls (p = 0.003). Adropin has the highest diagnostic value (AUC=0.874, (95% CI, 0,800–0,947) as cut-off value (838.00), sensitivity (80.43%) and specificity (70.64%) in the MS group. In the study, serum adropin levels were not significantly correlated with 3 ventricle diameter (3VD) and pituitary diameter (PD) size (p = 0,968) and no significant relationships were determined between adropin and other clinical parameters. Conclusion As a potential diagnostic marker, adropin levels were significantly lower in MS patients than in those without. Comprehensive studies are needed to verify this entity. © 2022