Fig. 2

Comparison of serum irisin level and fat parameters among groups at 24 weeks. Significant differences in serum irisin level, fat mass, percentage of fat mass and visceral fat mass among the four groups (all P values < 0.05). A significantly higher serum irisin level was detected in the NDE (normal diet and exercise group) group compared to the ND (normal diet and sedentary group), HFDE (high-fat diet and exercise group) and HFD (high-fat diet and sedentary group) groups (all P values < 0.05), while the serum irisin level was greater in the ND and HFDE groups than in the HFD group (both P values < 0.05). The fat mass and percentage fat mass were significantly lower in the HFDE group than in the HFD group (both P values < 0.01), while higher fat mass and percentage fat mass were observed in the HFD group compared to the ND and NDE groups (both P values < 0.01). The visceral fat mass was significantly lower in the HFDE group than in the HFD group (P < 0.01); however, a higher visceral fat mass was found in the HFD group compared to those in the ND (P < 0.05) and NDE groups (P < 0.01) (Fig. 2). *, p < 0.05 compared with ND and **, p < 0.01 compared with ND. #, p < 0.05 compared with NDE and ##, p < 0.01 compared with NDE. £, p < 0.05 compared with HFD and ££, p < 0.01 compared with HFD