Abstract: Objective To investigate the changes of serum adiopocyte fatty acid binding protein (AFABP, FABP4) and its correlation to atherosclerosis in hemodialysis patients. Methods Twenty-nine hemodialysis patients and 20 health controls were involved in this study. Serum A-FABP, free fatty acids (FFA), IL- 6, monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Intima-media thickness was measured by color Doppler ultrasonography. Results Serum A-FABP and FFA were higher in hemodialysis patients than in healthy controls (P＜0.05). In hemodialyis patients, serum A-FABP level was positively correlated with serum FFA level (r=0.939, P＜0.01), IL-6, and MCP-1. Serum AFABP was higher in the 19 hemodialysis patients with vascular atherosclerosis than in the 10 hemodialysis patients without vascular atherosclerosis (P＜0.01). Conclusion Serum A-FABP may play an important role in the progression of vascular atherosclerosis in chronic kidney disease patients.

Key words: Hemodialysis, atherosclerosis, adiopocyte fatty acid binding protein, free fatty acid