The 2R, 3R isomer of 2, 3-butanediol prevents weight gain and decreases plasma glucose concentration of mice fed a fat-enriched diet.

Background: We have previously shown that, in comparison with wild-type mice, mice that lack a functional flavin-containing monooxygenase 5 gene ( Methods: Mice were fed a standard chow or a 16% fat-enriched diet. Mice on the fat-enriched diet were untreated or treated with 2R, 3R-butanediol, 2S, 3S-butanediol, meso-2, 3-butanediol or a mix of the three isomers. Mice were analyzed for weight, plasma and liver metabolite concentrations and gut microbiota composition. Results: Treatment with 2R, 3R-butanediol prevented weight gain and decreased plasma glucose concentration of mice fed the fat-enriched diet. 2R, 3R-Butanediol increased the concentrations of three of the 693 liver metabolites identified: indolepropionate, Conclusions: We have identified 2R, 3R-butanediol as an effective anti-obesogenic agent that prevents weight gain and decreases plasma glucose of mice fed a fat-enriched diet. The effect of 2R, 3R-butanediol may be due, in part, to its ability to increase the concentration of indolepropionate in the liver and of the proportion of