A study from West China Hospital, Sichuan University entitled “Defective Branched-Chain Amino Acid Catabolism Disrupts Glucose Metabolism and Sensitizes the Heart to Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury” was recently published in Cell Metabolism (IF2016：17.303) and selected as the cover paper. This is the first high-impact publication from the West China-Washington Mitochondria and Metabolism Center leaded by professor Rong Tian (Corresponding author). The first author Tao Li is an associate professor working in West China-Washington Mitochondria and Metabolism Center, Department of Anesthesiology and Translational Neuroscience Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University. Their work identified a critical role of branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) catabolism in the homeostasis of cardiac metabolism and stress response. They open doors for future research on the disease mechanisms caused by abnormal BCAA metabolism as well as provide a basis for developing novel therapies.

（http://www.cell.com/cell-metabolism/pdfExtended/S1550-4131(16)30583-6）