Higher Circulating Resistin Levels Linked to Increased Sarcopenia Risk in Older Adults.

Context: Experimental evidence indicates that resistin, an adipokine, negatively impacts muscle metabolism by hindering myogenesis.

Objective: To explore resistin's potential as a biomarker of muscle health in humans by examining the relationship between circulating resistin levels and sarcopenia in older adults.

Design And Setting: A case-control study conducted in a geriatric clinical unit.

Participants: The study included 247 individuals aged 65 and older who underwent comprehensive geriatric evaluations.

Main Outcome Measures: Sarcopenia was defined based on Asian-specific thresholds, with serum resistin concentrations measured using an ELISA.

Results: After adjusting for sex, age, fat mass, smoking, osteoarthritis, and diabetes, participants with sarcopenia, low muscle mass, and weak muscle strength exhibited at least 27.0% higher circulating resistin concentrations than controls (P = .002-.003). Elevated serum resistin levels were inversely associated with skeletal muscle mass, gait speed, and the short physical performance battery score and positively associated with the time to complete 5 chair stands (P = .019-.048). Higher serum resistin levels were linked to an increased risk of sarcopenia, low muscle mass, and weak muscle strength (all P = .005). Finally, participants in the highest resistin quartile had at least 3 times higher odds of having adverse muscle outcomes compared to those in the lowest quartile (P = .007-.029).

Conclusion: This study set out to establish a link between blood resistin levels and sarcopenia, suggesting that circulating resistin may serve as a potential biomarker reflecting poor muscle health in humans.