Sasang Constitution May Play a Key Role in Increasing the Number of Sub-Elements of Metabolic Syndrome

Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Ahn

et al. 2018

Although classification of an individual's Sasang constitution is a key step in the prescription of traditional Korean medicine, the classifying process is complex and not objective. Identification of metabolic-based biomarkers could allow the development of a reliable and sensitive classification technique and even therapeutic management. Our pilot study investigated whether metabolites in plasma are characteristic of Sasang constitutions. Ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry-based metabolic analysis was conducted against 15 Soyangin (SY), 15 Taeeumin (TE), and 18 Soeumin (SE) individuals, as classified according to the Questionnaire for Sasang Constitution Classification II (QSCC II) and specialist diagnosis. Metabolomics data showed that the TE group was significantly separated from the SY and SE groups. Nine canonical pathways related to constitution; phenylalanine metabolism, aminoacyl-tRNA, tyrosine, and tryptophan biosynthesis were activated in the TE group as compared with the other groups. Similar to the results of the metabolomics analysis, the TE group was also significantly separated from the other two groups by lipidomic analysis. On the other hand, the intensity of lipid metabolites was higher in the SY group than in the other groups. Our findings suggest that the combined analysis of metabolomics and lipidomics can provide useful information for characteristics of Sasang constitutions.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Pilot Study on Characteristics of Metabolomics and Lipidomics according to Sasang Constitution

Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Ahn

et al. 2018

“…It is important to predict the risk of developing metabolic syndrome in order to prevent cardiometabolic disorders, because metabolic syndrome has been known to increase the risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases [ 8 ]. A previous study demonstrated that the SC type was a significant risk factor for metabolic syndrome [ 15 , 16 ]. Additionally, individuals of the TE type have an increased risk for metabolic syndrome as the number of components of metabolic syndrome increased [ 16 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A previous study demonstrated that the SC type was a significant risk factor for metabolic syndrome [ 15 , 16 ]. Additionally, individuals of the TE type have an increased risk for metabolic syndrome as the number of components of metabolic syndrome increased [ 16 ]. Consistent with previous studies [ 10 , 15 , 16 ], our finding demonstrated that the TE type was the most prevalent, accounting for 45.03% of participants, and was associated with a greater risk of developing metabolic syndrome than the other types (OR = 2.03, 95% CI 1.63, 2.54).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additionally, individuals of the TE type have an increased risk for metabolic syndrome as the number of components of metabolic syndrome increased [ 16 ]. Consistent with previous studies [ 10 , 15 , 16 ], our finding demonstrated that the TE type was the most prevalent, accounting for 45.03% of participants, and was associated with a greater risk of developing metabolic syndrome than the other types (OR = 2.03, 95% CI 1.63, 2.54). Individuals with the TE type, who have been known to have a greater predisposition to metabolic syndrome, are characterized with larger waist circumferences and higher frequencies of smoking and heavy drinking [ 1 ], as confirmed in our findings.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sasang constitutional types for the risk prediction of metabolic syndrome: a 14-year longitudinal prospective cohort study

BMC Complement Altern Med

et al. 2017

BackgroundTo examine whether the use of Sasang constitutional (SC) types, such as Tae-yang (TY), Tae-eum (TE), So-yang (SY), and So-eum (SE) types, increases the accuracy of risk prediction for metabolic syndrome.MethodsFrom 2001 to 2014, 3529 individuals aged 40 to 69 years participated in a longitudinal prospective cohort. The Cox proportional hazard model was utilized to predict the risk of developing metabolic syndrome.ResultsDuring the 14 year follow-up, 1591 incident events of metabolic syndrome were observed. Individuals with TE type had higher body mass indexes and waist circumferences than individuals with SY and SE types. The risk of developing metabolic syndrome was the highest among individuals with the TE type, followed by the SY type and the SE type. When the prediction risk models for incident metabolic syndrome were compared, the area under the curve for the model using SC types was significantly increased to 0.8173. Significant predictors for incident metabolic syndrome were different according to the SC types. For individuals with the TE type, the significant predictors were age, sex, body mass index (BMI), education, smoking, drinking, fasting glucose level, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol level, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and triglyceride level. For Individuals with the SE type, the predictors were sex, smoking, fasting glucose, HDL cholesterol level, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and triglyceride level, while the predictors in individuals with the SY type were age, sex, BMI, smoking, drinking, total cholesterol level, fasting glucose level, HDL cholesterol level, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and triglyceride level.ConclusionsIn this prospective cohort study among 3529 individuals, we observed that utilizing the SC types significantly increased the accuracy of the risk prediction for the development of metabolic syndrome.

“…According to the SCM theory, the imbalance of energy metabolism under pathological conditions affects the sensitive hypoactive organ of each type, which can cause disease 2 . Because SC types are reflected by integrative systemic features and are closely associated with metabolic status, SCM can facilitate the diagnosis and treatment of metabolic syndromes or diseases including obesity, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, and hypertension 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. These previous studies provide strong evidence of correlations between SC types and particular diseases, suggesting the value of SC types as holistic biomarkers for a wide range of diseases.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Energy metabolism and whole-exome sequencing-based analysis of Sasang constitution: a pilot study

Integrative Medicine Research

et al. 2017

BackgroundTraditional Korean Sasang constitutional (SC) medicine categorizes individuals into four constitutional types [Tae-eum (TE), So-eum (SE), Tae-yang (TY), or So-yang (SY)] based on biological and physiological characteristics. As these characteristics are closely related to the bioenergetics of the human body, we assessed the correlation between SC type and energy metabolism features.MethodsForty healthy, young (22.3 ± 1.4 years) males volunteered to participate in this study. Participants answered an SC questionnaire, and their face shape, voice tone, and body shape were assessed using an SC analysis tool. Thirty-one participants (10 TE, 10 SE, 3 TY, and 8 SY) were selected for further analysis. Collected blood samples were subjected to blood composition analysis, mitochondrial function analysis, and whole-exome sequencing.ResultsThe SY type showed significantly lower total cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels than the SE type. Cellular and mitochondrial Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels were similar across types. All types showed similar basal mitochondrial oxygen consumption rates, whereas the TE type showed a significantly lower ATP-linked oxygen consumption rate than the other types. Whole-exome sequencing identified several genes variants that were exclusively detected in particular SC types, including 19 for SE, seven for SY, 11 for TE, and six for TY.ConclusionSC type-specific differences in mitochondrial function and gene mutations were detected in a small group of healthy, young Korean males. These results are expected to greatly improve the accurate screening and utilization of SC medicine.