Figure 2.

(a) Partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) scores plot (a) obtained from the mass spectrometry data of the sera from study subjects. Data allowed clear discrimination between the subjects at week 0 (open square) and at week 12 (filled square). Outlying samples of the ellipse region with the 95% confidence interval were excluded by the Hotelling's T ² test. R ² X, R ² Y, and Q ² Y. The PLS-DA model was validated by a permutation test: P-values and intercepts of R ² (Ri) and Q ² (Qi). (b) S-plot covariance [p] and reliability correlation [p(corr)] from PLS-DA models (b) and loadings plots (b). The numbers for the metabolites are as given in Table 2.