β-hydroxybutyrate metabolic pathway

The β-hydroxybutyrate metabolic pathway encompasses the hepatic production of β-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) via ketogenesis, its transport through blood, and its utilization by peripheral tissues primarily as an energy source during periods of low glucose (prolonged fasting, exercise, low carbohydrate diet, or diabetes)[1][2][3][4]. BHB is the most abundant circulating ketone body and plays a role in energy production, cell signaling (as a ligand for receptors like HCAR2/GPR109A), and epigenetic regulation (such as histone lysine β-hydroxybutyrylation and inhibition of histone deacetylases), linking metabolic states to gene expression and cell function[3][4][5]. Disturbances in this pathway are central to metabolic and neurological diseases, and modulation of the pathway is a focus of diet and drug interventions. While individual enzymes and receptors within the pathway may serve as bona fide drug targets, the pathway itself should not be classified as a molecular target[1][2][3].

Other names

Ketone body metabolic pathwayBHB metabolismKetogenesis pathwayD-β-hydroxybutyrate pathway

Drugs/supplements modulate: - Ketogenesis (increasing or inhibiting BHB production via enzymatic or hormonal modulation) - Histone deacetylase inhibition (epigenetic effects) - Agonism/antagonism of BHB cell-surface receptors (e.g., GPR109A/HCAR2)