Biomarkers in Metabolomics

Dear Colleagues,

Metabolomics is the study of biological systems using an integrated approach, which generates unique chemical fingerprints characterizing specific cellular processes. It focuses mainly on profiling small-molecule metabolites (metabolic profiling), and differs from genomics and proteomics, which characterize the profiles of genes and proteins, respectively.  Metabolites are typically produced in a biological system (e.g. cell, tissue, organ or organism, etc.) and are often the end products of a cellular process. Thus, while gene expression and proteomic data analyses rarely tell the whole story of what might be happening in a cell, metabolic profiling can give an instantaneous snapshot of the physiology and biological functioning of the cell.  In recent years, metabolomics has evolved into a mature science and has been applied to advance our understanding of many cellular functions in both healthy and pathologic conditions. On the other hand, biomarkers are objective; they are quantitatively measurable indicators of biological or pathogenic processes. Biomarkers are consequently increasingly used in novel drug development, the management of disease progression, and in personalized medicine. The scientific expertise and technology platforms, such as the analytical and computational tools used in both scientific disciplines, are comparable. Thus, it is conceivable to expect a synergy between biomarker science operating in a metabolomic environment and vice versa. This could be envisaged in many systemic biology studies ranging from in vitro investigation using cell cultures, to in vivo studies using mammalian and aquatic species, as well as mechanistic studies in a clinical and patient setting. Furthermore, there should also be an overlap and collaboration of the discipline with genomic and proteomic sciences, as these disciplines focus on the biological processes occurring more upstream of metabolomic studies’ focus areas. Such collaboration will undoubtedly advance our understanding of the regulation of biological functions in normal and disease states and the influence of genetic and environmental factors on biological functions. Collaboration will also further the discovery and validation of novel biomarkers. Biomarkers will in turn be increasingly implemented in clinical and patient settings. Such efforts will greatly benefit the novel development of drugs and natural health products for disease management in both traditional and complementary medicine, particularly in the management of cancer, cardiovascular, and metabolic diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, and mental illnesses, which remain a therapeutic challenge.

Prof. Dr. Pollen K.F. Yeung
Guest Editor

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• Metabolomics
• Biomarkers
• Drugs
• Natural Health Products
• Metabolites
• Proteomics
• Genomics