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Although a plant-based diet is recommended, notably for its environmental benefits, the health consequences of such a diet—in which protein intake is exclusively plant-based—are not yet fully understood. Scientists at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) have studied, in mice, the effects of switching from a diet containing both animal and plant proteins to one containing only plant proteins. Within just a few days, liver metabolism changes and the willingness to engage in physical exercise decreases significantly. At the heart of these changes lies a liver enzyme, glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH). The findings are published in Molecular Metabolism.

The proteins that we eat, whether animal- or plant-based, are made up of amino acids, small molecules linked together like the links in a chain. Their composition and proportions vary depending on the food source. Plant-based proteins naturally contain fewer branched-chain amino acids than animal proteins. However, these specific amino acids do more than just help build our proteins. They also provide the liver with some of the raw material needed to produce glucose and maintain sufficient levels in the blood during fasting.

What is the impact of switching from a mixed diet (animal and plant proteins) to an exclusively plant-based diet on the body, and on liver metabolism in particular? Pierre Maechler, full professor in the Department of Cell Physiology and Metabolism and at the Diabetes Center of the UNIGE Faculty of Medicine, set out to answer this question by comparing two groups of mice: one on a lacto-vegetarian diet comprising both plant-based and animal proteins, and the other on a vegan diet.

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