Abstract
ContextMetabolic differences between ectopic fat depots may provide novel insights to obesity-related diseases.ObjectiveTo investigate the plasma metabolomic profiles in relation to visceral adipose tissue (VAT) volume and liver and pancreas fat percentages.DesignCross-sectional.SettingMulticenter at academic research laboratories.PatientsMagnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to assess VAT volume, the percentage of fat in the liver and pancreas (proton density fat fraction [PDFF]) at baseline in 310 individuals with a body mass index ≥ 25 kg/m2 and with serum triglycerides ≥ 1.7 mmol/l and/or type 2 diabetes screened for inclusion in the 2 effect of omega-3 carboxylic acid on liver fat content studies.InterventionNone.Main Outcome MeasureMetabolomic profiling with mass spectroscopy enabled the determination of 1063 plasma metabolites.ResultsThirty metabolites were associated with VAT volume, 31 with liver PDFF, and 2 with pancreas PDFF when adjusting for age, sex, total body fat mass, and fasting glucose. Liver PDFF and VAT shared 4 metabolites, while the 2 metabolites related to pancreas PDFF were unique. The top metabolites associated with liver PDFF were palmitoyl-palmitoleoyl-GPC (16:0/16:1), dihydrosphingomyelin (d18:0/22:0), and betaine. The addition of these metabolites to the Liver Fat Score improved C-statistics significantly (from 0.776 to 0.861, P = 0.0004), regarding discrimination of liver steatosis.ConclusionLiver PDFF and VAT adipose tissue shared several metabolic associations, while those were not shared with pancreatic PDFF, indicating partly distinct metabolic profiles associated with different ectopic fat depots. The addition of 3 metabolites to the Liver Fat Score improved the prediction of liver steatosis.
Highlights
Context: Metabolic differences between ectopic fat depots may provide novel insights to obesity-related diseases
We assessed if specific metabolites were related to visceral adipose tissue (VAT) volume and liver and pancreatic fat percentages
We adjusted for total body fat mass, since obesity is related to major deviations in the metabolome [5, 6], and we wanted to identify metabolic profiles that were distinctly related to ectopic fat accumulation
Summary
Context: Metabolic differences between ectopic fat depots may provide novel insights to obesity-related diseases. Objective: To investigate the plasma metabolomic profiles in relation to visceral adipose tissue (VAT) volume and liver and pancreas fat percentages. Conclusion: Liver PDFF and VAT adipose tissue shared several metabolic associations, while those were not shared with pancreatic PDFF, indicating partly distinct metabolic e118 https://academic.oup.com/jcem. VAT is commonly associated with liver fat, and both depots have been suggested to augment the risk of adverse metabolic effects [3, 4], but may be primary drivers of key metabolic disorders, including dyslipidemia and insulin resistance, either independently of each other [4] or by shared mechanisms. Little is known how ectopic fat in different tissues translate to changes in whole body metabolism, and how various metabolic pathways are influenced by different ectopic fat depots
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
