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ARS Home » Plains Area » Houston, Texas » Children's Nutrition Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #435136
Research Project: Enhancing Childhood Health and Lifestyle Behaviors

Location: Children's Nutrition Research Center

Title: Adipocytokine imbalance and bone mineral properties in Hispanic youth

Author
item SHAWAR, REEM - University Of Utah
item PUYAU, MAURICE - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)
item BUTTE, NANCY - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)
item BACHA, FIDA - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)

Submitted to: Pediatric Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/25/2026
Publication Date: 5/7/2026
Citation: Shawar, R.S., Puyau, M., Butte, N., Bacha, F. 2026. Adipocytokine imbalance and bone mineral properties in Hispanic youth. Pediatric Research. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-026-04944-2.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-026-04944-2

Interpretive Summary: Researchers in Houston, Texas tested a special scan called HR-pQCT to see how well it measures bone health in children. They scanned the arms and legs of healthy kids twice to check if the results stayed the same. The results were very consistent, especially for the lower leg bones. The team also compared these scans to a more detailed lab scan and found they were very similar. A new computer method they used gave very strong and reliable results. Overall, the study shows this scan is a dependable way to study bone strength and structure in children.

Technical Abstract: Childhood obesity may have a negative impact on bone mineral properties, with unclear underlying mechanisms. We investigated the relationship of adipocytokine imbalance to bone mineral properties in adolescence, and sex related differences. A cohort of 501 pubertal Hispanic youth (47% male), 10-19 years of age underwent assessment of body composition, bone mineral content (BMC) and density (BMD) by DXA; fasting glucose, insulin, estradiol, testosterone, leptin, and adiponectin concentrations. HOMA-IR and leptin to adiponectin ratio (LAR) were calculated. Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) as reflected by VO2 max was measured using a treadmill ramp protocol. LAR was higher in youth with obesity and with overweight compared with normal weight. LAR negatively contributed to the variance in BMC (B = -0.096, p = 0.001) (R2 = 0.887, p < 0.001) together and independently of HOMA-IR, sex steroids, and CRF. This relationship persisted in males but weakened in females when the 2 sexes were examined separately. Similar findings were seen with BMD as the dependent variable. LAR has a negative relationship with BMC and BMD in pubertal youth, with a more notable adverse relationship in males. This suggests that adipocytokine dysregulation may contribute to the adverse effects of childhood obesity on bone mineral properties, with sex-differences related to body fat topography.