Abstract
Introduction
Studies have shown that systemic levels of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) and aromatic amino acids (AAAs) are elevated in cardiometabolic diseases (CMDs) in populations resident in high income countries. However, little is known about the association of BCAAs and AAAs with metabolic syndrome and its components in Asian Indian (AI) and Black African (BA) populations.
Objective
The aim of this study was to describe the association of BCAAs and AAAs with the metabolic syndrome, its individual components and insulin resistance in AI and BA populations.
Methods
Serum samples collected from AI (n = 349) and BA (n = 369) subjects were used to measure levels of BCAAs and AAAs by ultra-pressure liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). Anthropometric, demographic and cardiometabolic variables were measured in all subjects.
Results
The sum of BCAAs and AAAs was higher in AIs compared to BAs. The BCAAs and AAAs were positively associated with insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome and its individual components. This was particularly the case for AI subjects, in unadjusted regression models. However, these associations were non-significant after adjusting for co-variates, particularly visceral adipose tissue (VAT). Triglyceride levels were significantly associated with valine and leucine levels in BAs even after adjustment for co-variates. Lastly, we found that fasting circulatory BCAA and AAA levels are strongly correlated with VAT in both populations.
Conclusion
This study identified specific associations of serum valine and leucine levels with triglycerides in BAs. The association of amino acids with CMDs was observed in AIs, but was found to be the result of confounding by VAT. Further studies are required to determine whether BCAAs and AAAs are aetiological factors in CMDs and how VAT modulates their serum levels.
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Acknowledgements
This study was supported by the National Health Laboratory Services (NHLS) (94413) and the University of the Witwatersrand (00141084631015CHEMPATTS). The University of the Witwatersrand, the DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Human Development, and the South African Medical Research Council supports the Birth to Twenty Cohort.
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L.K. performed the experiment, was involved in in experimental procedure, the analysis and interpretation of results and wrote the manuscript. T.S. was involved in the study design and contributed to the experimental procedure. S.A.N. contributed to the experimental procedure and study design. N.J.C. contributed to the data interpretation, statistical analysis of data and reviewed the manuscript. J.A.G. supervised the study, contributed to the design of the study, the data interpretation and reviewed the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Ethical clearance for this study was obtained from the University of Witwatersrand Human Research Ethics Committee (Ethical clearance no: M150669). All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. This article does not contain any studies with animals performed by any of the authors.
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Khambule, L., Snyman, T., Norris, S.A. et al. Branched-chain and aromatic amino acids and cardiometabolic risk in Black African and Asian Indian populations. Metabolomics 16, 108 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11306-020-01734-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11306-020-01734-7