TY - JOUR
T1 - Metabolomics: a search for biomarkers of visceral fat and liver fat content
AU - Boone, Sebastiaan
AU - Mook-Kanamori, Dennis
AU - Rosendaal, Frits
AU - den Heijer, Martin
AU - Lamb, Hildo
AU - de Roos, Albert
AU - le Cessie, Saskia
AU - Willems van Dijk, Ko
AU - de Mutsert, Renée
PY - 2019/10/1
Y1 - 2019/10/1
N2 - INTODUCTION: Excess visceral and liver fat are known risk factors for cardiometabolic disorders. Metabolomics might allow for easier quantification of these ectopic fat depots, instead of using invasive and costly tools such as MRI or approximations such as waist circumference. OBJECTIVE: We explored the potential use of plasma metabolites as biomarkers of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and hepatic triglyceride content (HTGC). METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional analysis of a subset of the Netherlands Epidemiology of Obesity study. Plasma metabolite profiles were determined using the Biocrates AbsoluteIDQ p150 kit in 176 individuals with normal fasting plasma glucose. VAT was assessed with magnetic resonance imaging and HTGC with proton-MR spectroscopy. We used linear regression to investigate the associations of 190 metabolite variables with VAT and HTGC. RESULTS: After adjustment for age, sex, total body fat, currently used approximations of visceral and liver fat, and multiple testing, three metabolite ratios were associated with VAT. The strongest association was the lysophosphatidylcholines to total phosphatidylcholines (PCs) ratio [- 14.1 (95% CI - 21.7; - 6.6) cm2 VAT per SD of metabolite concentration]. Four individual metabolites were associated with HTGC, especially the diacyl PCs of which C32:1 was the strongest at a 1.31 (95% CI 1.14; 1.51) fold increased HTGC per SD of metabolite concentration. CONCLUSION: Metabolomics may be a useful tool to identify biomarkers of visceral fat and liver fat content that have added diagnostic value over current approximations. Replication studies are required to validate the diagnostic value of these metabolites.
AB - INTODUCTION: Excess visceral and liver fat are known risk factors for cardiometabolic disorders. Metabolomics might allow for easier quantification of these ectopic fat depots, instead of using invasive and costly tools such as MRI or approximations such as waist circumference. OBJECTIVE: We explored the potential use of plasma metabolites as biomarkers of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and hepatic triglyceride content (HTGC). METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional analysis of a subset of the Netherlands Epidemiology of Obesity study. Plasma metabolite profiles were determined using the Biocrates AbsoluteIDQ p150 kit in 176 individuals with normal fasting plasma glucose. VAT was assessed with magnetic resonance imaging and HTGC with proton-MR spectroscopy. We used linear regression to investigate the associations of 190 metabolite variables with VAT and HTGC. RESULTS: After adjustment for age, sex, total body fat, currently used approximations of visceral and liver fat, and multiple testing, three metabolite ratios were associated with VAT. The strongest association was the lysophosphatidylcholines to total phosphatidylcholines (PCs) ratio [- 14.1 (95% CI - 21.7; - 6.6) cm2 VAT per SD of metabolite concentration]. Four individual metabolites were associated with HTGC, especially the diacyl PCs of which C32:1 was the strongest at a 1.31 (95% CI 1.14; 1.51) fold increased HTGC per SD of metabolite concentration. CONCLUSION: Metabolomics may be a useful tool to identify biomarkers of visceral fat and liver fat content that have added diagnostic value over current approximations. Replication studies are required to validate the diagnostic value of these metabolites.
KW - Biomarkers
KW - Liver fat
KW - Metabolomics
KW - Visceral adipose tissue
UR - https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=85072926877&origin=inward
UR - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31587110
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11306-019-1599-x
DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11306-019-1599-x
M3 - Article
C2 - 31587110
SN - 1573-3882
VL - 15
SP - 139
JO - Metabolomics : Official journal of the Metabolomic Society
JF - Metabolomics : Official journal of the Metabolomic Society
IS - 10
M1 - 139
ER -