LEP and metabolic syndrome: Studies of the association of distinct abdominal adipose tissue with the cardiometabolic risk factors and metabolic syndrome showed that metabolic syndrome individuals had significantly lower adiponectin levels and significantly higher levels of resistin, leptin, TNF-α, IL-6, intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM), monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1), and oxLDL than the control group.