Metabolic Profiling

Book excerpt: This volume explores the different approaches and techniques used by researchers to study the recent challenges and developments in metabolic profiling. This book is divided into IV parts. Part I contains chapters that highlight basic concepts, such as experimental design, data treatment, metabolite identification, and harmonization. Part II describes experimental protocols for both targeted and untargeted metabolomics covering the basic analytical technologies: LC-MS, GC-MS, NMR and CE-MS. In addition the protocols describe methods for the study of tissues, feces, blood and other types of biological samples as well as the application of chemical derivatization for GC-MS. Parts III and IV present the use of metabolomics in the study of food, plants and the life sciences, with examples from the quest for the discovery of disease biomarkers, physical exercise omics and metabolic profiling of food, fruit and wine. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and thorough, Metabolic Profiling: Methods and Protocols is a valuable resource for researchers who are interested in expanding their knowledge of this rapidly developing field.