HbA1c serum levels were measured by high-performance liquid-chromatography (normal range 3.5-6.5%) Apo A4 was assessed by ELISA (Cusabio Biotech, Wuhan, Hubei, China); the detection range is from 15.62 μg/l to 1000 μg/l and the minimum detectable concentration is 4 μg/l.