Table 2.
Comparisons of the concentrations of TMAO and its precursors in the plasma between patients and other groups.
| Metabolites, μmol/L [Median (IQR)] | Patients with ALS compared with their spouses | Patients with ALS compared with healthy controls | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patients | Spouses | p | Patients | Controls | p | |
| Carnitine | 47.84 (13.84) | 38.58 (9.52) | < 0.0005 | 46.86 (12.89) | 44.47 (11.37) | 0.023 |
| Choline | 5.04 (2.33) | 4.73 (1.81) | 0.104 | 5.03 (2.25) | 5.64 (2.55) | 0.002 |
| Betaine | 40.90 (15.19) | 40.10 (15.66) | 0.971 | 45.16 (20.79) | 36.22 (12.00) | < 0.0005 |
| Butyrobetaine | 0.82 (0.53) | 0.75 (0.48) | 0.529 | 0.99 (0.53) | 1.50 (0.74) | < 0.0005 |
| TMAO | 1.35 (1.55) | 1.09 (0.86) | 0.195 | 1.76 (1.76) | 2.29 (1.70) | 0.001 |
ALS amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, TMAO trimethylamine N-oxide.