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Vitamins and Minerals (Poster Session)

(P17-008-24) Can Obesity Affect Alpha-Tocopherol Plasma Values Mediated by Leptin? A Mediation Analysis in a Population-Based Study

Sunday, June 30, 2024
12:45 PM – 1:45 PM CT
Location: Poster Board 345
Disclosure(s):
Marcela L. Costa, M.sC.: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.
Regina M. Fisberg: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.


Objectives: The objective was to investigate if obesity has a direct effect on plasma α-tocopherol and explore if this effect could be mediated by leptin.

Methods: Data from 636 adults and older adults were obtained from the 2015 Health Survey of Sao Paulo, a cross-sectional study focusing on Nutrition (ISA-Nutrition). Blood samples were analyzed to obtain plasmatic vitamin E and leptin concentrations. Obesity was measured as a latent variable formed by BMI and waist circumference. The direct effect of obesity on plasma α-tocopherol and the indirect effect mediated by leptin were assessed through statistical analyses carried out using Adanco software. The partial least squares (PLS) was used for parameter estimation, adopting SRMR ≤ 0.08 and p < 0.05. The model was controlled for sex and age.

Results: The median age was 58 (27) years; 50.07% were male and median leptin was 1.865 (8.49) ng/ml. Concerning the analysis of body composition, the median BMI was 26.64 (7.02) kg/m², with 50.93% of the individuals classified with excess body weight. The median waist circumference was 94.8 cm (19.2). There was no direct effect of obesity on plasma α-tocopherol concentrations (standardized coefficient: 0.02; p: 0.603); however, we identified a positive direct effect of obesity on leptin (standardized coefficient: 0.52; p < 0.001) and of leptin on plasma α-tocopherol values (standardized coefficient: 0.14; p: 0.002). An indirect effect of obesity on α-tocopherol values mediated by leptin was also identified (standardized coefficient: 0.07; p: 0.003). The goodness of the model fit SRMR was 0.01.

Conclusions: These results suggest that the association between obesity and increased α-tocopherol concentrations is mediated by higher leptin concentrations, indicating that vitamin E may be associated with obesity regulation. Further studies are needed to identify whether increased plasmatic α-tocopherol concentration may play a protective role in cardiometabolic outcomes.

Funding Sources: São Paulo Municipal Health Department and FAPESP