Study of function and maturation of monocytes in morbidly obese individuals

In recent years there has been an intense interest in understanding the mechanisms involved in immune modulation associated with dietary restriction. In this study we have investigated maturation of peripheral blood monocytes in morbidly obese patients using an in vitro culture system. At the end of the culture, the matured monocytes (macrophages) were quantitated. Though there was no detectable functional defect observed in the matured monocytes in vitro, there was a quantitative difference in maturation among the monocytes plated. The number of monocytes that matured into macrophages in obese patients was 3.29 ± 2.41 × 10⁴ cells per milliliter of blood, as compared to 8.24 ± 3.14 × 10⁴ per milliliter of blood in normal volunteers. This difference was found to be statistically significant at P < 0.001. These results indicate a possible development of an intrinsic defect among morbidly obese individuals.