Acute ketone monoester ingestion increases monocyte lysine β-hydroxybutyrylation and plasma β-hydroxybutyrate amino acid conjugates in humans

Thirteen healthy adults (7 females, 6 males, aged 28 plus or minus 7 years) consumed 0.750 g/kg body mass of a ketone monoester, with blood collected before and 2 hours after, at peak plasma beta-hydroxybutyrate. Blood beta-hydroxybutyrate peaked at 5.0 plus or minus 0.8 mmol/L at 2 hours. Monocyte lysine beta-hydroxybutyrylation rose by about 70 percent (P = 0.004), and plasma beta-hydroxybutyrate conjugates with phenylalanine, leucine, valine and methionine were also higher at 2 hours (P < 0.0001). Changes in capillary blood beta-hydroxybutyrate and in the amino acid conjugates were positively correlated (r of 0.58 or more).