APOB and metabolic syndrome: Some of the changes resulting from this hormone deficiency are as follows: increase in LDL-c, total cholesterol, apolipoprotein B, and triglyceride levels; dysfunctional HDL-c, whose ability to promote cholesterol efflux is reduced, leading to partial loss of its cardiovascular protection; glucose intolerance and increased risk for T2DM; accumulation of visceral fat and ectopic fat deposits in the liver and heart, exacerbating subclinical inflammation; and simultaneous increase of abdominal obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia.2,249