In a randomized study in 57 healthy-weight adults, researchers compared nutritionally matched ultraprocessed and non-ultraprocessed meals and found that ultraprocessed foods elicited greater insulin a...

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 01 October 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01643-4In a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, intermittent dasatinib and quercetin treatment over 21 weeks improves liver fibrosis in patients with MASH, as shown by paired liver biopsies, and reduces senescence and fibrotic gene signatures, as demonstrated by single-nucleus transcriptomics.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 21 September 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01614-9In the prospective, multicentre TEDDY study, distinct patterns of gut microbiome maturation are associated with differential risk of type 1 diabetes, with host genetics modifying the strength of this association.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 17 September 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01612-xA 12-week pilot study suggests that time-restricted eating is well tolerated and associated with favourable clinical outcomes in individuals with early-stage Huntington’s disease.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 15 September 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01620-xCells depend on cysteine, but excess free cysteine comes at a price. Nakamura et al. show that excess cysteine disrupts mitochondrial iron homeostasis, which drives a distinct iron-dependent cell death, revealing why cells rapidly channel cysteine into glutathione synthesis.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 15 September 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01616-7Using a genome-wide CRISPR screen, the authors demonstrate that excess cysteine drives mitochondrial iron accumulation and iron–sulfur cluster failure, triggering a distinct iron-dependent cell death pathway.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 11 September 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01623-8Great science comes in all shapes and sizes. Choosing the most suitable article type is key to managing the expectations of readers, editors and reviewers alike.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 09 September 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01611-yGVC-Calc enables large-scale analysis of continuous glucose monitoring data

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 07 September 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01586-wArgininosuccinate produced by phosphorylated ASS1 allosterically enhances the nucleosidase activity of NT5C2, resulting in increased production of purine nucleosides, which serve as a carbon source in BCR–Abl-positive haematological cancers.

In one inbred strain of laboratory mice, late-life treatment with a GLP-1 drug extends lifespan. This effect might be more than just a consequence of calorie restriction.

Semaglutide treatment for 3 months in female mice improved physiological function, attenuated hallmarks of ageing and modulated nutrient sensors and conserved genetic regulators of ageing.

This Review defines seven hallmarks of skeletal muscle homeostasis, providing a unifying framework for understanding, measuring and preserving muscle health.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 20 August 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01595-9This Review defines seven hallmarks of skeletal muscle homeostasis, providing a unifying framework for understanding, measuring and preserving muscle health.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 05 August 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01581-1How liver metastases evade immunity remains unclear. A new study published in Nature Metabolism reveals that DHHC17-driven laminin 511 palmitoylation and its subsequent secretion blunts neutrophil-mediated killing of metastatic cancer cells, uncovering a druggable immune checkpoint in the liver.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 05 August 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01582-0DHHC17-mediated palmitoylation promotes laminin-511 stabilization and availability in the liver metastatic niche, which decreases the cancer cell-killing capacity of neutrophils.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 29 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01579-9This Review provides an overview of the biology of short-chain fatty acids, with a focus on their synthesis, signalling and physiological effects, highlighting their translational potential for metabolic and inflammatory diseases.

A trajectory-based molecular framework reveals coordinated temporal shifts in metabolic, inflammatory and fibrogenic mechanisms across the human MASLD spectrum.

Sickness behaviors are common in cancer-associated cachexia and affect up to half of lung cancer patients. We demonstrate that among the most common cancer mutations, loss of liver kinase B1 (Lkb1) pr...

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 14 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01543-7A trajectory-based molecular framework reveals coordinated temporal shifts in metabolic, inflammatory and fibrogenic mechanisms across the human MASLD spectrum.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 24 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01554-4Exercise, alone or in combination with liraglutide, reduces vascular thickness and inflammation markers during the weight loss maintenance phase, whereas liraglutide alone does not elicit any effects.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 11 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01544-6Machine learning approaches are increasingly being used to aid small-molecule structure elucidation from mass spectrometry data. Surprisingly, however, current models often fail to outperform even simple baseline methods. Here we examine why these approaches fall short and propose strategies to overcome their limitations.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 15 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01542-8In a meta-analysis including 1.5 million incidences of cancer, positive associations between body mass index and 19 cancers were identified, underlining the impact of obesity on cancer risk.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 15 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01529-5This Review discusses epidemiological trends for adiposity and cancer and summarizes mechanisms linking obesity to cancer development.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 03 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01552-6The recent global consensus to rename polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) as polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS) accurately reframes the condition as a lifelong, multisystemic disorder rather than a localized ovarian pathology. This transition underscores the central role of metabolic dysfunction, specifically the high prevalence of insulin resistance and hyperinsulinaemia, and has important consequences for basic and clinical research.

The metabolite αKG promotes carnitine synthesis and increases site-specific histone acetylation, thereby promoting homologous recombination-mediated DNA repair, which has potential implications f...

Exercise-mediated neuroprotection in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis is reduced in mice lacking the irisin-encoding gene, Fndc5, and can be recapitulated by peripheral administration of irisin.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 22 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01545-5The mechanisms controlling activation of the futile creatine cycle are unknown, calling into question its physiological relevance. In work recently published in Nature, Hussain, Krishnan, Carroll et al. identify glycerol as an allosteric activator of tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP) and demonstrate that this activates the futile creatine cycle in adipocytes and osteoblast mineralization in bone.

l-2-Hydroxyglutarate is identified as a legitimate physiological signalling metabolite, and control of its levels is essential for postnatal growth and survival and correct renal development and function.

Faecal microbiome profiling of individuals with obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D) before and 12 months after bariatric surgery links surgery-induced changes in microbiota composition to metabolic improvements and potentially to T2D remission.

As presented at the European Congress on Obesity, this randomized, placebo-controlled trial demonstrates that oral orforglipron, a nonpeptide GLP-1 receptor agonist, preserves weight loss and cardiometabolic benefits achieved with injectable GLP-1 receptor agonist therapies, making it a viable oral maintenance strategy.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 08 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01532-wMetabolomic analysis of plasma from metformin-treated humans, together with mechanistic studies in mouse models, reveals that metformin selectively inhibits mitochondrial complex I in the intestinal epithelium. This mechanism unifies multiple clinical effects of metformin, including enhanced intestinal glucose use, improved postprandial glycaemic control and increased production of GDF15 and N-lactoyl-phenylalanine.

Cell metabolism is a dynamic network of highly interconnected biochemical reactions. In this issue of Nature Metabolism, time-lapse analysis of the amino acid aspartate revealed an unexpected regulati...

Succinate acts as a competitive inhibitor of mammalian aspartate transcarbamylase (ATCase), leading to impaired pyrimidine biosynthesis and reduced proliferation under SDH inhibition.

GLP-1–GIP–lanifibranor, a single-molecule agonist of GLP-1R, GIPR, PPARα, PPARγ and PPARδ, shows promising therapeutic efficacy against obesity-linked metabolic dysfunction in vitro and in mouse models via synergistic incretin and PPAR activity.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 28 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01522-yCo-submissions bring together independent studies that offer complementary insights and strengthen one another, and they remain an integral part of how we support robust research at Nature Metabolism.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 16 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01512-0In a multi-cohort longitudinal study integrating continuous glucose monitoring and circulating proteomics, cumulative age-related disease trajectories shape daily glycaemic variability and postprandial response to standardized meals.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 23 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01504-0An exploratory, observational analysis involving 2.5 million food logs from over 20,000 adults across 2 weeks highlights both consistent and divergent patterns in food habits that may, in turn, influence human health.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 17 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01506-yJohnson et al. discuss the role of dietary and endogenous fructose as a calorie source and modulator of metabolic health and disease.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 15 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01526-8Early mechanistic hypotheses in nutrition research are frequently converted into durable dietary dogma. We argue that context-dependent biological effects are reduced to simple narratives of harm or benefit, with lasting consequences for research, policy and public understanding.

Study of almost 28,000 people also identifies genetic variants that raise the risk of gastrointestinal side effects from GLP-1 medications.

Nature Metabolism, Published online: 07 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s42255-026-01511-1In this issue of Nature Metabolism, Brain, Vigil et al. show that NRF2-induced cystine uptake drives the formation of several cysteine–sugar metabolites. This process acts as a ‘sink’ for free cysteine and can lead to metabolic vulnerabilities and toxicity in NRF2-activated tumours.