The Metabolic Transition Between Fasting and Feeding Alters Aging-Associated Metabolites, Lowers BCAAs, and Stimulates FGF21 Production in Humans.

ABSTRACT: Fasting-based interventions are gaining momentum as strategies to modulate longevity. Conversely, the same metabolic adaptations that once ensured survival during starvation now contribute to the global obesity epidemic. While previous studies have characterized metabolic changes during fasting, few have examined the refeeding phase, and most lack an integrated analysis of key hormonal and metabolic regulators, including insulin, leptin, adiponectin, free T3, FGF21, and the plasma metabolome. To address this gap, we profiled 134 plasma metabolites using mass spectrometry, covering pathways involved in lipid, amino acid, and ketone metabolism, in a cohort of 20 adults (mean age 52.2 ± 11.8 years, 55% women, BMI 28.8 ± 6.4 kg/m²) undergoing medically supervised prolonged fasting (

SUBMITTER: Cagigas ML 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12686557 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature