Objective   To explore the relationship between serum free fatty acid(FFA)composition and fasting blood glucose(FBG)in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and risk factors associated with diabetes(RFD).

  Methods   The serum FFAprofile was measured with the gas chromatography and mass spectrometer(GC/MS)in 162 patients and 43 control subjects.

  Results   The patients with diabetes had higherparameters of unsaturated fatty acid(UFA, C18:2, C18:1, C20:4, C22:6, C20:3), and polyunsaturated fatty acid(PUFA, C18:2, C20:3), UFA/TFA, PUFA/TFAand PUFA/SFAshowed a significantincrease as compared with those in the normal subjects(P < 0.01~P < 0.05).Saturated fatty acid(SFA, C16:0)and SFA/TFAin patients with diabetes were decreased remarkably than thatin the healthy controls(P < 0.01), theirlinoleic acid(C18:2)and n6/n3 were significantly increased compared to the patients with RFD(P < 0.05~P < 0.01).Subjects with RFDhad higherratio of UFA/TFA, PUFA/SFAcompared to the healthy controls(P < 0.05).FBGhad remarkably positive correlation with UFA/TFA, PUFA/TFA, PUFA/SFAand n6/n3(r=0.190, 0.172, 0.190, 0.182, P < 0.01~P < 0.05, respectively)and a negative correlation with SFA/TFA(r=-0.190, P < 0.01)in these all subjects.

  Conclusion   There is the FFAmetabolic abnormality in these patients.Increased levels of n6PUFAmay play a role in diabetic pathogenesis.Balanced dietary may improve upon the increased lipid peroxidation.