The metabolomic markers of incident diabetes in the Hispanic/Latino population of the United States, a group with a high diabetes burden, remained largely unknown. In a subsample (n=2,010) of the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos without diabetes and cardiovascular disease at baseline (2008–2011), researchers examined the correlations of 624 known blood metabolites (measured using a global, untargeted method) with incident diabetes. In addition, using topological network analysis, metabolite modules were discovered based on the important metabolites related to incident diabetes. Their connections with incident diabetes and longitudinal changes in cardiometabolic characteristics were investigated further. After an average of 6 years of follow-up, there were 224 incident cases of diabetes.
About 134 metabolites were related to the occurrence of diabetes after adjusting for sociodemographic, behavioral, and clinical variables (false discovery rate–adjusted P<0.05). They discovered ten metabolite modules, two of which contained previously reported diabetes-related metabolites (e.g., sphingolipids, phospholipids, branched-chain and aromatic amino acids, and glycine) and two of which contained potentially novel metabolite groups (e.g., threonate, N-methylproline, oxalate, and tartarate in a plant food metabolite module and androstenediol sulfates in an androgenic steroid metabolite module). The plant food metabolite module and its components were linked to greater diet quality (particularly larger intakes of healthy plant-based foods), reduced diabetes risk, and positive longitudinal changes in HOMA for insulin resistance. The androgenic steroid module and its component metabolites declined with age and were linked to an increased risk of diabetes, and larger 2-h glucose rises throughout time.
The correlations of both modules with the incidence of diabetes were reproduced in a U.S. sample of non-Hispanic Black and White people (n=1,754). Researchers discovered metabolites associated with incident diabetes and changes in glycemic traits among Hispanic/Latino adults in the United States, including those reflecting androgenic steroids and plant-derived foods, highlighting the importance of hormones and dietary intake in the pathogenesis of diabetes.
Reference:diabetesjournals.org/diabetes/article/71/6/1338/144831/Serum-Metabolomics-of-Incident-Diabetes-and’
