N‐lactoyl amino acids are potential biomarkers for insulin resistance and diabetic complications
Authors' conclusion
Lac-AA may serve as integrative biomarkers of metabolic dysfunction and diabetic complications. Further longitudinal and interventional studies are needed to clarify their mechanistic roles and clinical utility.
Study context
- Population
- Participants from Qatar Biobank; serum profiling of three N-lactoyl amino acid (Lac-AA) species2,907 retained after QC
- Participants
- 2,918 participants
- Exposure
- Insulin-sensitive vs insulin-resistant vs T2D without complications vs T2D with complications
- Outcome
- Serum Lac-AA levels
Methodological detailsuntargeted metabolomics, discovery and validation cohorts, one-sample Mendelian randomisation, network analysis, Randomly divided into discovery (n = 1990) and validation (n = 917) cohorts
- Untargeted metabolomics
- Discovery and validation cohorts
- One-sample Mendelian randomisation
- Network analysis
- Randomly divided into discovery (n = 1990) and validation (n = 917) cohorts
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
- Lac-AA levels significantly higher with insulin resistance and diabetic complications; replicated in validation cohort
- Strong positive correlations with markers of poor glycaemic control, independent of metformin use
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Diagnostic performance (ROC) for insulin-resistant vs insulin-sensitive, independent cohort (n = 60)
- Lac-AA could discriminate between insulin-resistant and insulin-sensitive individuals
Mendelian randomisation: genetic risk for T2D and Lac-AA
- Potential causal association between genetic risk for T2D and increased Lac-AA, particularly in patients with complications
Gaussian graphical model network analysis
- Lac-AA central nodes in metabolic networks, strongly associated with mitochondrial dysfunction biomarkers
Original publication
N‐lactoyl amino acids are potential biomarkers for insulin resistance and diabetic complications. Diabetes Obes Metab. Published 22 July 2025. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →