Researchers Correct Error in Groundbreaking Study on Cysteine Deficiency and Rapid Weight Loss

Researchers at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine have corrected an error in a recent study published in the journal Nature, which investigated the link between cysteine deficiency and rapid weight loss. The correction, published on May 21, 2025, involved a copy-paste error in Extended Data Fig. 2f,g, where the muscle histology (HE) panels for certain conditions were incorrectly labeled. According to the correction, the muscle HE panel for Day 3 Het No Cys was mistakenly identical to the Day 7 KO Ctrl diet, and the Day 3 KO Ctrl panel was identical to the Day 7 KO No Cys. The error did not affect the conclusions of the figure or the overall paper, according to the authors. "We are pleased to have corrected this error and ensured the accuracy of our research," said Alan Varghese, one of the authors of the study. "The correction does not change the fundamental findings of our paper, which demonstrated the importance of cysteine in fat metabolism and mitochondrial function." The original study, published on May 21, 2025, used metabolomics and mitochondrial analysis to investigate the effects of cysteine deficiency on fat metabolism in mice. The researchers found that cysteine deficiency led to rapid weight loss, which was associated with changes in fat metabolism and mitochondrial function. Cysteine is an essential amino acid that plays a critical role in various biological processes, including fat metabolism and mitochondrial function. The study's findings have implications for our understanding of the relationship between cysteine deficiency and metabolic disorders, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. The correction has been made to the HTML and PDF versions of the article, ensuring that the accurate information is available to the scientific community. The authors of the study are confident that the correction does not affect the overall conclusions of the paper and that the findings remain relevant to the field of fat metabolism and mitochondrial research. The study's lead author, Ivan Gusarov, noted that the correction is a testament to the scientific community's commitment to accuracy and transparency. "We appreciate the diligence of the reviewers and the editors in bringing this error to our attention, and we are grateful for the opportunity to correct it," he said. The correction has been published in Nature, and the study's findings remain available to the scientific community. The researchers at NYU Grossman School of Medicine continue to investigate the complex relationships between cysteine, fat metabolism, and mitochondrial function, with the goal of advancing our understanding of metabolic disorders and developing new therapeutic strategies.