Background: Adipokines are proteins which are secreted from the adipose tissue. These groups of proteins are involved in the control of metabolism. Chemerin is one of these adipokines with different proposed biological roles. Serum levels of chemerin have been associated with increased body mass index, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to assess the association between serum chemerin concentrations and polycystic ovarian syndrome.

Methods: This case-control study was performed in Taleghani Hospital in Tehran, Iran during 2011. On 45 patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome and 45 normal individuals as the control group. The participants were selected by easy given sampling method. Body mass index, fasting chemerin and serum insulin concentrations were measured by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELIZA) method. Fasting serum glucose was measured by the enzyme-calorimetric method and insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR) was measured by the calculation of relevant equation. Data was analyzed using independent t-test and Pearson's correlation coefficient by SPSS version 18.

Results: Serum chemerin, insulin, and glucose concentrations were significantly higher in patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome than the control group. There was no significant correlation between body mass index, serum levels of insulin, glucose, HOMA-IR, or chemerin in cases and controls.

Conclusion: This study showed that serum chemerin levels increase in polycystic ovarian syndrome. The findings also suggest that changes in chemerin serum levels could be considered as a criterion for polycystic ovarian syndrome.