This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a related Letter to the Editor Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Copyright Permission Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Ahmed, M. L. Articles by Dunger, D. B. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Ahmed, M. L. Articles by Dunger, D. B.

Longitudinal Study of Leptin Concentrations during Puberty: Sex Differences and Relationship to Changes in Body Composition¹

Department of Pediatrics, John Radcliffe Hospital (M.L.A., K.K.L.O., N.D., D.B.D.), Oxford, United Kingdom OX3 9DU; Reproductive Medicine Laboratory, University of Edinburgh Center for Reproductive Biology (D.J.M.), Edinburgh EH11 9EW, Scotland; the Biochemistry, Endocrinology, and Metabolism Unit, Institute of Child Health (L.C., M.A.P.), London, United Kingdom WC1N 1AH; and the Department of Clinical Biochemistry, St. Bartholomew’s Hospital (L.P.), London, United Kingdom EC1A 7BE

Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Dr. David B. Dunger, Department of Pediatrics, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, United Kingdom OX3 9DU. E-mail: david.dunger{at}paediatrics.ox.ac.uk

Leptin may have a role in the initiation of puberty and the regulation of subsequent weight gain, but this hypothesis has not been tested by longitudinal study. We report data from 40 normal children (20 boys and 20 girls) followed from 8–16 yr of age with hormone measurements and auxology every 6 months. Before the onset of puberty, leptin levels were similar in boys and girls: G1, mean (95% confidence interval), 2.63 (2.17–3.20) ng/mL; B1, 2.47 (2.08–2.94) ng/mL (P = 0.64) and increased with age in both sexes (B, 0.107 ± 0.042; P = 0.02). With the onset of puberty, leptin levels increased in girls (B2–B5, P < 0.0005), but decreased in boys (G2–G5, P < 0.0005). Similar positive independent relationships were seen between leptin and fat mass in girls (B, 0.106 ± 0.022; P < 0.0005) and boys (B, 0.121 ± 0.020; P < 0.0005), and negative relationships were found with fat-free mass [girls: B, -1.104 ± 0.381 (P < 0.005); boys: B, -1.288 ± 0.217 (P < 0.0005)]. Girls gained more fat mass than boys, whereas boys gained more fat-free mass, and this explained the sex difference in leptin levels. Leptin levels correlated significantly with a large number of other hormones, but none was independent of changes in body composition. In girls, but not in boys, low leptin levels during prepuberty (B1) predicted subsequent gains in the percent body fat during puberty (r = -0.75; P = 0.005). The sexual dimorphism in leptin levels during puberty reflects differential changes in body composition. Prepubertal leptin levels in girls also predict gains in the percent body fat.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				F Rutters, A G Nieuwenhuizen, S P M Verhoef, S G T Lemmens, N Vogels, and M S Westerterp-Plantenga The relationship between leptin, gonadotropic hormones, and body composition during puberty in a Dutch children cohort Eur. J. Endocrinol., June 1, 2009; 160(6): 973 - 978. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				L. A. Kuehn, D. J. Nonneman, J. M. Klindt, and T. H. Wise Genetic relationships of body composition, serum leptin, and age at puberty in gilts J Anim Sci, February 1, 2009; 87(2): 477 - 483. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. A Venner, P. K Doyle-Baker, M. E Lyon, and T. S Fung A meta-analysis of leptin reference ranges in the healthy paediatric prepubertal population Ann Clin Biochem, January 1, 2009; 46(1): 65 - 72. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. Z. Kasa-Vubu, A. Rosenthal, E. G. Murdock, and K. B. Welch Impact of Fatness, Fitness, and Ethnicity on the Relationship of Nocturnal Ghrelin to 24-Hour Luteinizing Hormone Concentrations in Adolescent Girls J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., August 1, 2007; 92(8): 3246 - 3252. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. F. Fleisch, N. Agarwal, M. D. Roberts, J. C. Han, K. R. Theim, A. Vexler, J. Troendle, S. Z. Yanovski, and J. A. Yanovski Influence of Serum Leptin on Weight and Body Fat Growth in Children at High Risk for Adult Obesity J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., March 1, 2007; 92(3): 948 - 954. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. E. Wilson, J. Fisher, and K. Chikazawa Estradiol Negative Feedback Regulates Nocturnal Luteinizing Hormone and Follicle-Stimulating Hormone Secretion in Prepubertal Female Rhesus Monkeys J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., August 1, 2004; 89(8): 3973 - 3978. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. Flor-Cisneros, E. W. Leschek, D. P. Merke, K. M. Barnes, M. Coco, G. B. Cutler Jr., and J. Baron In Boys with Abnormal Developmental Tempo, Maturation of the Skeleton and the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Gonadal Axis Remains Synchronous J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., January 1, 2004; 89(1): 236 - 241. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				T. M. Plant and M. L. Barker-Gibb Neurobiological mechanisms of puberty in higher primates Hum. Reprod. Update, January 1, 2004; 10(1): 67 - 77. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. R. Mann, A. O. K. Johnson, T. Gimpel, and V. D. Castracane Changes in Circulating Leptin, Leptin Receptor, and Gonadal Hormones from Infancy until Advanced Age in Humans J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., July 1, 2003; 88(7): 3339 - 3345. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. L. Barker-Gibb, A. Sahu, C. R. Pohl, and T. M. Plant Elevating Circulating Leptin in Prepubertal Male Rhesus Monkeys (Macaca mulatta) Does Not Elicit Precocious Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone Release, Assessed Indirectly J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., November 1, 2002; 87(11): 4976 - 4983. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				G. Kilciler, M. Ozata, C. Oktenli, S.Y. Sanisoglu, E. Bolu, N. Bingol, M. Kilciler, I. C. Ozdemir, and M. Kutlu Diurnal Leptin Secretion Is Intact in Male Hypogonadotropic Hypogonadism and Is Not Influenced by Exogenous Gonadotropins J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., November 1, 2002; 87(11): 5023 - 5029. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. D. Salbe, C. Weyer, R. S. Lindsay, E. Ravussin, and P. A. Tataranni Assessing Risk Factors for Obesity Between Childhood and Adolescence: I. Birth Weight, Childhood Adiposity, Parental Obesity, Insulin, and Leptin Pediatrics, August 1, 2002; 110(2): 299 - 306. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. I. Goran and B. A. Gower Longitudinal Study on Pubertal Insulin Resistance Diabetes, November 1, 2001; 50(11): 2444 - 2450. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. S. Harrell, P. Bomar, R. McMurray, C. Bradley, and S. Deng Leptin and Obesity in Mother-Child Pairs Biol Res Nurs, October 1, 2001; 3(2): 55 - 64. [Abstract] [PDF]

				P. B. Kaplowitz, E. J. Slora, R. C. Wasserman, S. E. Pedlow, and M. E. Herman-Giddens Earlier Onset of Puberty in Girls: Relation to Increased Body Mass Index and Race Pediatrics, August 1, 2001; 108(2): 347 - 353. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. L. Ahmed, K. K. L. Ong, A. P. Watts, D. J. Morrell, M. A. Preece, and D. B. Dunger Elevated Leptin Levels Are Associated with Excess Gains in Fat Mass in Girls, But Not Boys, with Type 1 Diabetes: Longitudinal Study during Adolescence J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., March 1, 2001; 86(3): 1188 - 1193. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				M. Sun, B. A Gower, A. A Bartolucci, G. R Hunter, R. Figueroa-Colon, and M. I Goran A longitudinal study of resting energy expenditure relative to body composition during puberty in African American and white children Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, February 1, 2001; 73(2): 308 - 315. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				E. Terasawa and D. L. Fernandez Neurobiological Mechanisms of the Onset of Puberty in Primates Endocr. Rev., February 1, 2001; 22(1): 111 - 151. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				J I Figueroa-Muñoz, S Chinn, and R J Rona Association between obesity and asthma in 4-11 year old children in the UK Thorax, February 1, 2001; 56(2): 133 - 137. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				M. C. Henson and V. D. Castracane Leptin in Pregnancy Biol Reprod, November 1, 2000; 63(5): 1219 - 1228. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				P C Ng, C W K Lam, C H Lee, G W K Wong, T F Fok, I H S Chan, K C Ma, and E Wong Leptin and metabolic hormones in preterm newborns Arch. Dis. Child. Fetal Neonatal Ed., November 1, 2000; 83(3): 198F - 202. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				M. B. HORLICK, M. ROSENBAUM, M. NICOLSON, L. S. LEVINE, B. FEDUN, J. WANG, R. N. PIERSON Jr., and R. L. LEIBEL Effect of Puberty on the Relationship between Circulating Leptin and Body Composition J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., July 1, 2000; 85(7): 2509 - 2518. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				P E CLAYTON and J A TRUEMAN Leptin and puberty Arch. Dis. Child., July 1, 2000; 83(1): 1 - 4. [Full Text]

				B. A. Gower, T. R. Nagy, M. I. Goran, A. Smith, and E. Kent Leptin in Postmenopausal Women: Influence of Hormone Therapy, Insulin, and Fat Distribution J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., May 1, 2000; 85(5): 1770 - 1775. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				F. Andreelli, H. Hanaire-Broutin, M. Laville, J. P. Tauber, J. P. Riou, and C. Thivolet Normal Reproductive Function in Leptin-Deficient Patients with Lipoatropic Diabetes J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., February 1, 2000; 85(2): 715 - 719. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				D. R. Mann, M. A. Akinbami, K. G. Gould, and V. D. Castracane A Longitudinal Study of Leptin During Development in the Male Rhesus Monkey: The Effect of Body Composition and Season on Circulating Leptin Levels Biol Reprod, February 1, 2000; 62(2): 285 - 291. [Abstract] [Full Text]