Chemerin: at the crossroads of inflammation and obesity.

Chemerin is a secreted protein with a complex but well-established role in immune function. Parallel lines of investigation also support the notion that chemerin is a novel adipokine that regulates adipocyte development and metabolic function as well as glucose metabolism in liver and skeletal muscle tissues. A growing body of human experimental data indicates that serum chemerin levels are elevated in patients with obesity and that they exhibit a positive correlation with various aspects of the metabolic syndrome. Thus, the dual role of chemerin in inflammation and metabolism might provide a link between chronic inflammation and obesity, as well as obesity-related disorders such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.