School of Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation, Beijing Sport University, Beijing, China.
College of Rehabilitation, Weifang Medicine University, Weifang, China.
BMC Geriatr. 2023 Jul 12;23(1):427. doi: 10.1186/s12877-023-04137-0.
The mass and strength of skeletal muscle decline with age, leading to its progressive dysfunction. High-throughput metabolite profiling provides the opportunity to reveal metabolic mechanisms and the identification of biomarkers. However, the role of amino acid metabolism in possible sarcopenia remains unclear.
The aim of this study included exploring variations in plasma amino acid concentrations in elderly individuals who have possible sarcopenia and further attempting to characterize a distinctive plasma amino acid profile through targeted metabolomics.
A cross-sectional, correlational research design was used for this study. Thirty possible-sarcopenic elderly participants were recruited (n = 30), as determined by the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS). Meanwhile, a reference group of non-sarcopenic (sex-, age-, and Appendicular Skeletal muscle Mass Index (ASMI)-matched non-sarcopenic controls, n = 36) individuals was included to compare the potential differences in metabolic fingerprint of the plasma amino acids associated with sarcopenia. Both groups were conducted the body composition analysis, physical function examination, and plasma amino acid-targeted metabolomics. The amino acids in plasma were measured using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS-MS). Also, orthogonal partial least-squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) was applied to characterize the plasma amino acid profile.
With respect to Handgrip Strength (HGS), the Five-Repetition Chair Stand Test (CS-5), the Six-Minute Walking Test (6MWT), the arm curl, the 30 s-Chair Stand Test (CST), the 2-Minute Step Test (2MST), the Timed Up-and-Go Test (TUGT), there was a decline in skeletal muscle function in the possible-sarcopenic group compared to the non-sarcopenic group. The mean plasma concentrations of arginine, asparagine, phenylalanine, serine, lysine, glutamine, and threonine were significantly lower in the possible sarcopenia group, whereas cirulline, proline, serine, and glutamic acid concentrations were higher. According to the multi-analysis, glutamine, serine, lysine, threonine, and proline were determined as the potential markers that indicated possible sarcopenia.
The findings characterize significantly altered plasma amino acid metabolisms in the elderly with possible sarcopenia, which aids to screening people who are at a high risk of developing condition, and motivating to design new preventive and therapeutic approaches.
骨骼肌的质量和力量随年龄增长而下降，导致其进行性功能障碍。高通量代谢物分析为揭示代谢机制和鉴定生物标志物提供了机会。然而，氨基酸代谢在可能的肌肉减少症中的作用仍不清楚。
本研究的目的包括探索可能患有肌肉减少症的老年人血浆氨基酸浓度的变化，并通过靶向代谢组学进一步尝试描述特征性的血浆氨基酸谱。
本研究采用横断面、相关性研究设计。根据亚洲肌肉减少症工作组（AWGS）标准，招募了 30 名可能患有肌肉减少症的老年参与者（n=30）。同时，纳入了一组性别、年龄和四肢骨骼肌质量指数（ASMI）匹配的非肌肉减少症（非肌肉减少症对照，n=36）参考组，以比较与肌肉减少症相关的血浆氨基酸代谢指纹图谱的潜在差异。两组均进行了身体成分分析、身体功能检查和血浆氨基酸靶向代谢组学分析。使用超高效液相色谱-串联质谱（UPLC-MS-MS）测定血浆中的氨基酸。此外，还应用正交偏最小二乘判别分析（OPLS-DA）来描述血浆氨基酸谱。
在握力（HGS）、五次椅立测试（CS-5）、六分钟步行测试（6MWT）、手臂卷曲、30 秒椅立测试（CST）、两分钟踏步测试（2MST）、起立行走测试（TUGT）方面，与非肌肉减少症组相比，可能患有肌肉减少症的组骨骼肌功能下降。可能患有肌肉减少症组的精氨酸、天冬酰胺、苯丙氨酸、丝氨酸、赖氨酸、谷氨酰胺和苏氨酸的血浆平均浓度明显较低，而瓜氨酸、脯氨酸、丝氨酸和谷氨酸的浓度较高。根据多分析，谷氨酰胺、丝氨酸、赖氨酸、苏氨酸和脯氨酸被确定为表明可能患有肌肉减少症的潜在标志物。
这些发现描述了老年人群中可能患有肌肉减少症的患者血浆氨基酸代谢的显著变化，有助于筛选出有患病高风险的人群，并为设计新的预防和治疗方法提供依据。
