Jing Ye, Xu Xiaoxuan, Wang Yanhong, Qu Xue, Guo Yunlong, Guo Ao, Dai Yulin, Liu Yangyang, Yue Hao
Jilin Ginseng Academy, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun, China.
Department of College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun, China.
PLoS One. 2025 Sep 10;20(9):e0331901. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0331901. eCollection 2025.
According to traditional Chinese medicine, based on the pathogenesis, clinical manifestation, and treatment, obesity can be classified into two broad types, namely, "shi obesity" and "xu obesity." The aim of this study was to explore the differences in metabolite levels between these two types of obesity.
Q Exactive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry was used to analyze the metabolites in the sera of 30 healthy adults, 30 adults with shi obesity, and 30 adults with xu obesity. Possible metabolic pathways associated with biological alterations were identified using the Human Metabolome Database and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analyses.
Fifteen important potential biomarkers were identified, 14 of which were upregulated. Furthermore, the biomarkers phenylalanine, L-tyrosine, glycerophosphocholine, and LysoPC(O-18:0/0:0) were significantly correlated with both shi and xu obesity. Of note, L-tyrosine and glycerophosphocholine were screened and used as potential biomarkers of shi and xu obesity for the first time.
This study verified the differences in serum metabolites associated with shi and xu obesity, demonstrating potential therapeutic strategies for the two types.
根据中医理论，基于发病机制、临床表现和治疗方法，肥胖可分为两大类，即“实胖”和“虚胖”。本研究旨在探讨这两种肥胖类型之间代谢物水平的差异。
采用Q Exactive液相色谱-串联质谱法分析30名健康成年人、30名实胖成年人和30名虚胖成年人血清中的代谢物。使用人类代谢组数据库和京都基因与基因组百科全书分析确定与生物学改变相关的可能代谢途径。
鉴定出15种重要的潜在生物标志物，其中14种上调。此外，生物标志物苯丙氨酸、L-酪氨酸、甘油磷酸胆碱和溶血磷脂酰胆碱（O-18:0/0:0）与实胖和虚胖均显著相关。值得注意的是，L-酪氨酸和甘油磷酸胆碱首次被筛选并用作实胖和虚胖的潜在生物标志物。
本研究证实了与实胖和虚胖相关的血清代谢物差异，为这两种类型肥胖提供了潜在的治疗策略。
