Hormonal
Baseline plasma levels of branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) and tyrosine are positively associated with sustained type 2 diabetes remission following weight loss interventions, whereas betaine and choline levels are negatively associated with remission.
If you have type 2 diabetes and are planning weight loss surgery or an intensive lifestyle program, your baseline blood levels of certain amino acids (like BCAA and tyrosine) and choline metabolites might predict how likely you are to reverse your diabetes. Higher levels of BCAA/tyrosine were linked to remission, while higher choline/betaine were linked to non-remission. This suggests metabolic profiling could help tailor treatment, though these specific markers are not yet standard clinical tools.
Two metabolite factors were associated with diabetes remission: one primarily composed of branched chain amino acids (BCAA) and tyrosine (odds ratio (95% confidence interval) [OR (95% CI)] = 1.4 [1.0–1.9], p = 0.045), and one with betaine and choline (OR [95% CI] = 0.7 [0.5–0.9], p = 0.02).
Why this rating
The study uses large cohorts (LABS and Look AHEAD) but the specific metabolite associations did not survive multiple testing correction (FDR), limiting statistical robustness.
Source
Metabolites and diabetes remission after weight loss
Lydia Coulter Kwee et al. · Nutrition and Diabetes · 2021
DOI 10.1038/s41387-021-00151-6
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