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Background. There is no conclusive evidence on the association between interleukin- (IL-) 6 gene polymorphism and type 2 diabetes mellitus (type 2 DM). Thus, this study is aimed at evaluating the role of rs1800795 and rs1800796 polymorphisms in the pathogenesis of type 2 DM among Ghanaians in the Ho Municipality. Materials and Methods. We recruited into this hospital-based case-control study 174 patients with type 2 DM (75 DM alone and 99 with DM+HTN) and 149 healthy individuals between 2018 and 2020. Demographic, lifestyle, clinical, anthropometric, and haemodynamic variables were obtained. Fasting blood samples were collected for haematological, biochemical, and molecular analyses. Genomic DNA was extracted, amplified using Tetra-primer amplification refractory mutation system-polymerase chain reaction (T-ARMS-PCR) technique, and genotyped for IL-6 gene polymorphism. Logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the association between IL-6 gene polymorphism and type 2 DM. Results. The minor allele frequency (MAF) of the rs1800795 and rs1800796 polymorphisms was higher in DM alone (57.5%, 62.0%) and DM with HTN groups (58.3%, 65.3%) than controls (33.1%, 20.0%). Carriers of the rs1800795GC genotype (aOR = 2.35 , 95% CI: 1.13-4.90, p = 0.022) and mutant C allele (aOR = 2.41 , 95% CI: 1.16-5.00, p = 0.019) as well as those who carried the rs1800796GC (aOR = 8.67 , 95% CI: 4.00-18.90, p < 0.001) and mutant C allele (aOR = 8.84 , 95% CI: 4.06-19.26, p = 0.001) had increased odds of type 2 DM. For both polymorphisms, carriers of the GC genotype had comparable levels of insulin, HOMA-IR, and fasting blood glucose (FBG) with those who carried the GG genotype. IL-6 levels were higher among carriers of the rs1800796GC variant compared to carriers of the rs1800796GG variant (p = 0.023). The rs1800796 polymorphism, dietary sugar intake, and exercise status, respectively, explained approximately 3% (p = 0.046), 3.2% (p = 0.038 , coefficient = 1.456), and 6.2% (p = 0.004 , coefficient = − 2.754) of the variability in IL-6 levels, suggesting weak effect sizes. Conclusion. The GC genotype and mutant C allele are risk genetic variants associated with type 2 DM in the Ghanaian population. The rs1800796 GC variant, dietary sugar intake, and exercise status appear to contribute significantly to the variations in circulating IL-6 levels but with weak effect sizes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visceral obesity is associated with increased risk of metabolic disorders and cardiovascular disease, hence, diagnosing visceral fat is indispensable in clinical practice. However, the diagnostic capacity of waist–hip ratio (WHR), conicity index (CI), and abdominal volume index (AVI) to predict visceral obesity in patients with type 2 diabetes remains unclear. This study was designed to evaluate the performance of WHR, CI, and AVI in predicting visceral fat among patients with type 2 diabetes in Ho municipality. A hospital-based cross-sectional survey involved 221 patients with type 2 diabetes. A questionnaire was designed to collect data on demography and other relevant variables. Anthropometric measurements were obtained using standard methods. Visceral fat was measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). The diagnostic performance of WHR, CI, and AVI in predicting visceral fat was evaluated based on receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analyses. Pearson correlation analysis was used to determine the relationship between adiposity indices and visceral fat. Among men, the optimal threshold for AVI, >15.56, demonstrated the highest sensitivity, 87.5% and specificity, 80.71% compared to CI and WHR while among women, the optimal cutoff value for AVI, >18.49, produced the highest sensitivity, 77.05% and specificity, 85.29%. Likewise, AVI showed a better discriminatory ability in the diagnosis of visceral fat (AUC: 0.89; p < 0.001) compared to CI (AUC: 0.68; p < 0.003), and WHR (AUC: 0.73; p < 0.001) in men and AUC: 0.89; p < 0.001 compared to CI (AUC: 0.62; p < 0.023), and WHR (AUC: 0.59; p < 0.066) in women. Similarly, the strongest positive correlation was observed between visceral fat and AVI after adjustment for age (male r = 0.787, p < 0.01; female r = 0.770, p < 0.01). AVI appeared to have outperformed CI and WHR in the diagnosis of visceral fat. Therefore, it could be a better predictive tool for visceral obesity among patients with type 2 diabetes in low-resource settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]