Cytokine assay
Blood samples obtained from all participants were centrifuged and serum was separated and stored in aliquots at -80 °C until use. Serum levels of adipokines (adiponectin, leptin, resistin, visfatin) and cytokines (TNFα, IFNγ, IL-2, IL-10, IL-17A) were measured, in duplicate, using kits manufactured by Bio-Rad (Bioplex ProTM Cytokine / Chemokine and Growth Factor Assay and Bioplex Pro Diabetes Assay) for Multiplex Immunoassay (Bioplex 200 System by Bio-Rad Laboratories, Hercules (CA, USA). The analyses were carried out according to the manufacturer’s instructions.