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Untargeted Metabolomics Reveals Elevated L‐Carnitine Metabolism in Pig and Rat Colon Tissue Following Red Versus White Meat Intake
Author(s) -
Rombouts Caroline,
Van Meulebroek Lieven,
De Spiegeleer Margot,
Goethals Sophie,
Van Hecke Thomas,
De Smet Stefaan,
De Vos Winnok H.,
Vanhaecke Lynn
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
molecular nutrition and food research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.495
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1613-4133
pISSN - 1613-4125
DOI - 10.1002/mnfr.202000463
Subject(s) - red meat , carnitine , white meat , colorectal cancer , metabolism , biology , metabolomics , oxidative stress , food science , biochemistry , medicine , cancer , bioinformatics
Scope The consumption of red and processed meat, and not white meat, associates with the development of various Western diseases such as colorectal cancer and type 2 diabetes. This work aims at unraveling novel meat‐associated mechanisms that are involved in disease development. Methods and Results A non‐hypothesis driven strategy of untargeted metabolomics is applied to assess colon tissue from rats (fed a high dose of beef vs. white meat) and from pigs (fed red/processed meat vs. white meat), receiving a realistic human background diet. An increased carnitine metabolism is observed, which is reflected by higher levels of acylcarnitines and 3‐dehydroxycarnitine (rats and pigs) and trimethylamine‐ N ‐oxide (rats). While 3‐dehydroxycarnitine is higher in HT29 cells, incubated with colonic beef digests, acylcarnitine levels are reduced. This suggests an altered response from colon cancer cell line towards meat‐induced oxidative stress. Moreover, metabolic differences between rat and pigs are observed in N ‐glycolylneuraminic acid incorporation, prostaglandin, and fatty acid synthesis. Conclusion This study demonstrates elevated (acyl)carnitine metabolism in colon tissue of animals that follow a red meat‐based diet, providing mechanistic insights that may aid in explaining the nutritional‐physiological correlation between red/processed meat and Western diseases.