This review targets cardiometabolic diseases and how to profile them via advanced techniques such as NMR and metabolomics. Profiling of metabolic output is key here, and it seems to have opened up the relationship between gut microbes and general metabolic health. The paper was published in Gastroenterology.
Metabolic phenotyping and systems biology approaches to understanding metabolic syndrome and fatty liver disease
Metabolic syndrome, a cluster of risk factors for type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease, is becoming an increasing global health concern. Insulin resistance is often associated with metabolic syndrome and also typical hepatic manifestations such as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Profiling of metabolic products (metabolic phenotyping or metabotyping) has provided new insights into metabolic syndrome and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Data from nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and mass spectrometry combined with statistical modeling and top-down systems biology have allowed us to analyze and interpret metabolic signatures in terms of metabolic pathways and protein interaction networks and to identify the genomic and metagenomic determinants of metabolism. For example, metabolic phenotyping has shown that relationships between host cells and the microbiome affect development of the metabolic syndrome and fatty liver disease. We review recent developments in metabolic phenotyping and systems biology technologies and how these methodologies have provided insights into the mechanisms of metabolic syndrome and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. We discuss emerging areas of research in this field and outline our vision for how metabolic phenotyping could be used to study metabolic syndrome and fatty liver disease.
Dumas ME1, Kinross J2, Nicholson JK3.
Gastroenterology 146(1): 46-52
doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2013.11.001
Link: http://www.gastrojournal.org/article/S0016-5085%2813%2901581-3/abstract
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration under grant agreement HEALTH-F4-2012-305312.