In this Chinese population living in Singapore, we found a strong dose-dependent association between higher plasma RBP4 levels and increased risk of type 2 diabetes in women but not in men after adjusting for other established risk factors of type 2 diabetes, including lipids (TG, HDL-C), inflammation marker (hs-CRP), liver enzyme (ALT) and adiponectin. This evidence concerns the gene RBP4 and type 2 diabetes mellitus.