Effect of Empagliflozin on the plasma lipidome in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: results from the EmDia clinical trial

Abstract

Background Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, such as Empagliflozin, are antidiabetic drugs that reduce glucose levels and have emerged as a promising therapy for patients with heart failure (HF), although the exact molecular mechanisms underlying their cardioprotective effects remain to be fully elucidated. The EmDia study, a randomized, double-blind trial conducted at the University Medical Center of Mainz, has confirmed the beneficial effects of Empagliflozin in HF patients after both one and twelve weeks of treatment. In this work, we aimed to assess whether changes in lipid profiles driven by Empagliflozin use in HF patients in the EmDia trial could assist in gaining a better understanding of its cardioprotective mechanisms. Methods Lipid analysis of blood plasma from 144 patients from the EmDia trial was conducted using 4D-LC-TIMS/IMS lipidomics. Lipid signatures after treatment for one and twelve weeks, respectively, were obtained with sparse group LASSO regularized regression models. Linear regression models were employed to highlight associations between significantly changed clinical traits and lipids. Results The lipid signatures after one week of treatment consisted of 37 lipids from the lipid groups lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC), phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), sphingomyelin (SM), and triacylglycerol (TG). After twelve weeks, the signature comprised 24 lipids from the same five lipid groups, along with Ceramides (Cer). Three of five lipids altered at both time points showed consistent directional trends. Empagliflozin treatment led to significant alterations in the lipidome, including increases in both beneficial lipids, such as LPCs, and potentially harmful species, notably ceramides, which have been implicated in lipotoxicity and cardiovascular risk. Conclusion This study identified distinct lipid signatures associated with Empagliflozin treatment after both one and twelve weeks, respectively, with five lipids overlapping between signatures and three with consistent directions, revealing that some of the beneficial effects of Empagliflozin could be through lipid modulation. Notably, Empagliflozin-modulated lipids associated with changes in clinical traits and lipid-specific profiles among clinical subgroups were observed. However, challenges remain in establishing direct associations between individual lipids and clinical outcomes. Future research integrating lipidomics data with other omics datasets could provide a more comprehensive understanding of the identified lipid signatures and their potential roles in health and diseases.