Anticipatory metabolic regulation drives the distinct and improved metabolic state of caloric restriction compared to Fasting-Refeeding cycles.
What this study shows
Comparing caloric restriction (CR, one meal/day) to a fasting-refeeding-fasting (FRF) regimen with matched food intake and fasting duration, CR engages anticipatory, circadian-clock-aligned metabolic control (hepatic mTOR signaling, ketogenesis, metabolic gene coordination), whereas FRF responses track direct nutrient/gastric-emptying cues and disrupt circadian rhythmicity. CR improved glucose and fatty-acid metabolism; FRF caused glucose intolerance and hepatic fat accumulation.
Abstract
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Interest in fasting-based diets to improve metabolic health is growing. Caloric restriction (CR) with one meal per day includes an extended fasting component that contributes to its metabolic and longevity benefits, yet the role of fasting within CR remains unclear. Here, we compare CR with a fasting-refeeding-fasting (FRF) regimen while controlling food intake and fasting duration.
Read the full abstract on PubMed →At a glance
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| Evidence type | A Animal model Marked A because it is an animal intervention or observation study measuring an organismal outcome (model: Mouse); the code names the system studied -- animal work can be rigorous and still not be human data. |
| Study type | 4 - Animal Study |
| Model system | Mouse |
| Journal | Cell Reports |
| Year | 2026 |
| Peer reviewed | Yes |
| Record last updated | 2026-10-01 |
| Source | DOI 10.1016/j.celrep.2026.118022 · PMID 42752091 |
Where this study fits
How this study connects to the pathway map, open questions, people and other studies in the Atlas.
People in the Atlas
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Postdoctoral fellow studying how the circadian clock times caloric restriction's effects on liver mTOR signaling and metabolism
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Showed the circadian clock protein BMAL1 gates TOR/mTOR signaling to control aging, and that calorie restriction's lifespan benefits require a working circadian clock
More: 8 other authors
No profile yet: Astafev AA, Prabahar A, Maravillas MA, Trokhimenko E, Rom JB, Asi GJ, Piontkivska H, Jiang P
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Topics
Extracted findings
These fields were extracted from the paper with AI assistance and have not been checked against the source. Read them as a pointer into the paper, not as curated claims; where they disagree with the curated summary above, the curated summary stands.
| Intervention | Caloric restriction (one meal/day) vs matched fasting-refeeding-fasting (FRF) regimen |
| Target | Hepatic mTOR signaling, ketogenesis and circadian metabolic gene coordination |
| Model | Mouse |
| Effect | CR engages anticipatory, clock-aligned metabolic control and improves glucose/fatty-acid metabolism, whereas FRF tracks direct nutrient cues and causes glucose intolerance and hepatic steatosis. |
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