Sample records for metabonomics study based

  1. Potential effect of diaper and cotton ball contamination on NMR- and LC/MS-based metabonomics studies of urine from newborn babies.

    PubMed

    Goodpaster, Aaron M; Ramadas, Eshwar H; Kennedy, Michael A

    2011-02-01

    Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) based metabonomics screening of urine has great potential for discovery of biomarkers for diseases that afflict newborn and preterm infants. However, urine collection from newborn infants presents a potential confounding problem due to the possibility that contaminants might leach from materials used for urine collection and influence statistical analysis of metabonomics data. In this manuscript, we have analyzed diaper and cotton ball contamination using synthetic urine to assess its potential to influence the outcome of NMR- and LC/MS-based metabonomics studies of human infant urine. Eight diaper brands were examined using the "diaper plus cotton ball" technique. Data were analyzed using conventional principal components analysis, as well as a statistical significance algorithm developed for, and applied to, NMR data. Results showed most diaper brands had distinct contaminant profiles that could potentially influence NMR- and LC/MS-based metabonomics studies. On the basis of this study, it is recommended that diaper and cotton ball brands be characterized using metabonomics methodologies prior to initiating a metabonomics study to ensure that contaminant profiles are minimal or manageable and that the same diaper and cotton ball brands be used throughout a study to minimize variation.

  2. Early Prediction of Lupus Nephritis Using Advanced Proteomics

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2010-06-01

    SELDI-TOF-MS. Additional proteomic profiling studies using NMR- and MS-based metabonomics have been completed, and LC/MS based protein profiling using...Flight mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF-MS). Changes in proteomic profiles will be confirmed and enhanced using NMR- and MS-based metabonomics , by Dr...performed using NMR- and MS-based metabonomics at Miami University, in the laboratory of Dr. Michael Kennedy. Initial spectra and profiles obtained show

  3. Metabonomics approaches and the potential application in foodsafety evaluation.

    PubMed

    Kuang, Hua; Li, Zhe; Peng, Chifang; Liu, Liqiang; Xu, Liguang; Zhu, Yingyue; Wang, Libing; Xu, Chuanlai

    2012-01-01

    It is essential that the novel biomarkers discovered by means of advanced detection tools based on metabonomics could be used for long-term monitoring in food safety. By summarizing the common biomarkers discovery flowsheet based on metabonomics, this review evaluates the possible application of metabonomics in new biomarker discovery, especially in relation to food safety issues. Metabonomics have the advantages of decreasing detection limits and constant monitoring. Although metabonomics is still in the developmental stage, we believe that, based on its properties, such as noninvasiveness, sensitivity, and persistence, together with rigorous experimental designs, new and novel technologies, as well as increasingly accurate chemometrics and a relational database, metabonomics can demonstrate extensive application in food safety in the postgenome period.

  4. A metabonomic investigation on the biochemical perturbation in post-stroke patients with depressive disorder (PSD).

    PubMed

    Ding, Xinghua; Liu, Ruoxu; Li, Wenkai; Ni, Hengjia; Liu, Yong; Wu, Dandan; Yang, Shuguang; Liu, Jing; Xiao, Bo; Liu, Shaojun

    2016-04-01

    A metabonomics study based on GC/MS and multivariate statistical analysis was performed involving 28 post stroke depressed (PSD) patients, 27 post-stroke non-depressed (PSND) patients and 33 healthy subjects to investigate the biochemical perturbation in their plasma samples. The outcome of this study showed that there was distinctive metabolic profile for PSD patients. Seven sentinel metabolites showed marked perturbations in PSD patients' blood. The introduction of metabonomics approach may provide a novel metabonomic insight about PSD and the sentinel metabolites for classifying PSD.

  5. MS Based Metabonomics

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Want, Elizabeth J.; Metz, Thomas O.

    Metabonomics is the latest and least mature of the systems biology triad, which also includes genomics and proteomics, and has its origins in the early orthomolecular medicine work pioneered by Linus Pauling and Arthur Robinson. It was defined by Nicholson and colleagues in 1999 as the quantitative measurement of perturbations in the metabolite complement of an integrated biological system in response to internal or external stimuli, and is often used today to describe many non-global types of metabolite analyses. Applications of metabonomics are extensive and include toxicology, nutrition, pharmaceutical research and development, physiological monitoring and disease diagnosis. For example, bloodmore » samples from millions of neonates are tested routinely by mass spectrometry (MS) as a diagnostic tool for inborn errors of metabolism. The metabonome encompasses a wide range of structurally diverse metabolites; therefore, no single analytical platform will be sufficient. Specialized sample preparation and detection techniques are required, and advances in NMR and MS technologies have led to enhanced metabonome coverage, which in turn demands improved data analysis approaches. The role of MS in metabonomics is still evolving as instrumentation and software becomes more sophisticated and as researchers realize the strengths and limitations of current technology. MS offers a wide dynamic range, high sensitivity, and reproducible, quantitative analysis. These attributes are essential for addressing the challenges of metabonomics, as the range of metabolite concentrations easily exceeds nine orders of magnitude in biofluids, and the diversity of molecular species ranges from simple amino and organic acids to lipids and complex carbohydrates. Additional challenges arise in generating a comprehensive metabolite profile, downstream data processing and analysis, and structural characterization of important metabolites. A typical workflow of MS-based metabonomics is shown in Figure 1. Gas chromatography-(GC)-MS was the most commonly used MS-based method for small molecule analysis in the 1970s and 1980s. It is still used today for the detection of many metabolic disorders and plays a strong role in plant metabonomics. Liquid chromatography (LC)-MS approaches have grown in popularity for metabolite studies, due to simpler sample preparation, reduced analysis times through the introduction of ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UPLC)-MS and the ability to observe a wider range of metabolites. This chapter will discuss the role of MS in metabonomics, the techniques involved in this exciting area, and the current and future applications of the field. The various bioinformatics tools and multivariate analysis techniques used to maximize information recovery and to aid in the interpretation of the very large data sets typically obtained in metabonomics studies will also be discussed. While there are many different MS-based approaches utilized in metabonomics studies, emphasis will be placed on more established methods.« less

  6. Establishing ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance based metabonomics fingerprinting profile for spinal cord injury: a pilot study.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Hua; Peng, Jin; Zhou, Zhi-yuan; Duan, Yu; Chen, Wei; Cai, Bin; Yang, Hao; Zhang, Wei

    2010-09-01

    Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a complex trauma that consists of multiple pathological mechanisms involving cytotoxic, oxidation stress and immune-endocrine. This study aimed to establish plasma metabonomics fingerprinting atlas for SCI using (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) based metabonomics methodology and principal component analysis techniques. Nine Sprague-Dawley (SD) male rats were randomly divided into SCI, normal and sham-operation control groups. Plasma samples were collected for (1)H NMR spectroscopy 3 days after operation. The NMR data were analyzed using principal component analysis technique with Matlab software. Metabonomics analysis was able to distinguish the three groups (SCI, normal control, sham-operation). The fingerprinting atlas indicated that, compared with those without SCI, the SCI group demonstrated the following characteristics with regard to second principal component: it is made up of fatty acids, myc-inositol, arginine, very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), triglyceride (TG), glucose, and 3-methyl-histamine. The data indicated that SCI results in several significant changes in plasma metabolism early on and that a metabonomics approach based on (1)H NMR spectroscopy can provide a metabolic profile comprising several metabolite classes and allow for relative quantification of such changes. The results also provided support for further development and application of metabonomics technologies for studying SCI and for the utilization of multivariate models for classifying the extent of trauma within an individual.

  7. [Recent development of metabonomics and its applications in clinical research].

    PubMed

    Li, Hao; Jiang, Ying; He, Fu-Chu

    2008-04-01

    In the post-genomic era, systems biology is central to the biological sciences. Functional genomics such as transcriptomics and proteomics can simultaneous determine massive gene or protein expression changes following drug treatment or other intervention. However, these changes can't be coupled directly to changes in biological function. As a result, metabonomics and its many pseudonyms (metabolomics, metabolic profiling, etc.) have exploded onto the scientific scene in the past several years. Metabonomics is a rapidly growing research area and a system approach for comprehensive and quantitative analysis of the global metabolites in a biological matrix. Analytical chemistry approach is necessary for the development of comprehensive metabonomics investigations. Fundamentally, there are two types of metabonomics approaches: mass-spectrometry (MS) based and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methodologies. Metabonomics measurements provide a wealth of data information and interpretation of these data relies mainly on chemometrics approaches to perform large-scale data analysis and data visualization, such as principal and independent component analysis, multidimensional scaling, a variety of clustering techniques, and discriminant function analysis, among many others. In this review, the recent development of analytical and statistical techniques used in metabonomics is summarized. Major applications of metabonomics relevant to clinical and preclinical study are then reviewed. The applications of metabonomics in study of liver diseases, cancers and other diseases have proved useful both as an experimental tool for pathogenesis mechanism re-search and ultimately a tool for diagnosis and monitoring treatment response of these diseases. Next, the applications of metabonomics in preclinical toxicology are discussed and the role that metabonomics might do in pharmaceutical research and development is explained with special reference to the aims and achievements of the Consortium for Metabonomic Toxicology (COMET), and the concept of pharmacometabonomics as a way of predicting an individual's response to treatment is highlighted. Finally, the role of metabonomics in elucidating the function of the unknown or novel enzyme is mentioned.

  8. Application of metabonomics in a compound ranking study in early drug development revealing drug-induced excretion of choline into urine.

    PubMed

    Dieterle, Frank; Schlotterbeck, Götz; Ross, Alfred; Niederhauser, Urs; Senn, Hans

    2006-09-01

    Selecting drug candidates based on toxicity is an important step in early drug development. In this case study, it is shown how metabonomics is applied to a ranking study, in which drug candidates with equal pharmacological activities are selected based on least toxic side effects. The metabonomic analyses were carried out on an animal study that followed an established protocol for pilot toxicology/ranking studies in rats, however, not specifically modified for a metabonomic assessment. It is shown how conditions not specificially adopted for metabonomics investigations can significantly influence the metabolic profiles recorded by NMR. Furthermore, it is shown how the multivariate analysis of the NMR spectra identified an extreme excretion of an endogenous metabolite into urine induced by two out of the five drug candidates. The subsequent structure elucidation by two-dimensional NMR experiments and a subsequent validation by spiking experiments identified the metabolite as choline. The discussion of the mechanistic background for the excretion of choline, which is usually well-conserved in the body, results in two hypotheses of either a massive degradation of cell membranes or an inhibition of the choline oxidation. Although the validation of these hypotheses needs a follow-up study, the finding of a increased excretion of the important metabolite choline warrants exclusion of these two compounds as viable drug candidates from a metabonomics point of view.

  9. A New Paradigm for Known Metabolite Identification in Metabonomics/Metabolomics: Metabolite Identification Efficiency

    PubMed Central

    Everett, Jeremy R.

    2015-01-01

    A new paradigm is proposed for assessing confidence in the identification of known metabolites in metabonomics studies using NMR spectroscopy approaches. This new paradigm is based upon the analysis of the amount of metabolite identification information retrieved from NMR spectra relative to the molecular size of the metabolite. Several new indices are proposed including: metabolite identification efficiency (MIE) and metabolite identification carbon efficiency (MICE), both of which can be easily calculated. These indices, together with some guidelines, can be used to provide a better indication of known metabolite identification confidence in metabonomics studies than existing methods. Since known metabolite identification in untargeted metabonomics studies is one of the key bottlenecks facing the science currently, it is hoped that these concepts based on molecular spectroscopic informatics, will find utility in the field. PMID:25750701

  10. A new paradigm for known metabolite identification in metabonomics/metabolomics: metabolite identification efficiency.

    PubMed

    Everett, Jeremy R

    2015-01-01

    A new paradigm is proposed for assessing confidence in the identification of known metabolites in metabonomics studies using NMR spectroscopy approaches. This new paradigm is based upon the analysis of the amount of metabolite identification information retrieved from NMR spectra relative to the molecular size of the metabolite. Several new indices are proposed including: metabolite identification efficiency (MIE) and metabolite identification carbon efficiency (MICE), both of which can be easily calculated. These indices, together with some guidelines, can be used to provide a better indication of known metabolite identification confidence in metabonomics studies than existing methods. Since known metabolite identification in untargeted metabonomics studies is one of the key bottlenecks facing the science currently, it is hoped that these concepts based on molecular spectroscopic informatics, will find utility in the field.

  11. Urine metabonomic profiling of a female adolescent with PIT-1 mutation before and during growth hormone therapy: insights into the metabolic effects of growth hormone.

    PubMed

    Abd Rahman, Shaffinaz; Schirra, Horst Joachim; Lichanska, Agnieszka M; Huynh, Tony; Leong, Gary M

    2013-01-01

    Growth hormone (GH) is a protein hormone with important roles in growth and metabolism. The objective of this study was to investigate the metabolism of a human subject with severe GH deficiency (GHD) due to a PIT-1 gene mutation and the metabolic effects of GH therapy using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)-based metabonomics. NMR-based metabonomics is a platform that allows the metabolic profile of biological fluids such as urine to be recorded, and any alterations in the profile modulated by GH can potentially be detected. Urine samples were collected from a female subject with severe GHD before, during and after GH therapy, and from healthy age- and sex-matched controls and analysed with NMR-based metabonomics. The samples were collected at a hospital and the study was performed at a research facility. We studied a 17 year old female adolescent with severe GHD secondary to PIT-1 gene mutation who had reached final adult height and who had ceased GH therapy for over 3 years. The subject was subsequently followed for 5 years with and without GH therapy. Twelve healthy age-matched female subjects acted as control subjects. The GH-deficient subject re-commenced GH therapy at a dose of 1 mg/day to normalise serum IGF-1 levels. Urine metabolic profiles were recorded using NMR spectroscopy and analysed with multivariate statistics to distinguish the profiles at different time points and identify significant metabolites affected by GH therapy. NMR-based metabonomics revealed that the metabolic profile of the GH-deficient subject altered with GH therapy and that her profile was different from healthy controls before, and during withdrawal of GH therapy. This study illustrates the potential use of NMR-based metabonomics for monitoring the effects of GH therapy on metabolism by profiling the urine of GH-deficient subjects. Further controlled studies in larger numbers of GH-deficient subjects are required to determine the clinical benefits of NMR-based metabonomics in subjects receiving GH therapy. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. A Preliminary Investigation of NSCL/P Plasma and Urine in Guizhou Province in China Using NMR-Based Metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Lei, Huang Guang; Hong, Luo; Kun, Song Ju; Hai, Yin Xin; Dong, Wang Ya; Ke, Zhao; Ping, Xu; Hao, Chen

    2013-09-01

    Objective : To assess the feasibility of metabonomics in clinical studies. This is a pilot study introducing nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabonomics to elucidate and compare the metabolism of patients with nonsyndromic cleft lip and/or palate (NSCL/P) and children without orofacial clefts. Methods : High-resolution (1)H NMR spectroscopy was performed on plasma and urine samples obtained from NSCL/P and healthy children. The (1)H NMR spectra were further analyzed with principal component analysis. Results : Compared to the control group, the level of low-molecular-weight metabolites in plasma such as asparagine was higher in NSCL/P patients, while arginine, lysine, acetate, lactate, proline, glutamine, pyruvate, creatinine, choline, and β-glucose were lower. The carnitine, citrate, and formate excretion in urine appeared to be higher in the healthy children, while the NSCL/P group excreted higher concentrations of aspartic acid and phenylalanine in urine. Conclusion : The present study clearly demonstrated the great potential of NMR-based metabonomics in elucidating NSCL/P plasma metabolism and the possible application of this technology in clinical diagnosis and screening.

  13. Plasma metabolic profiling analysis of nephrotoxicity induced by acyclovir using metabonomics coupled with multivariate data analysis.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Xiuxiu; Li, Yubo; Zhou, Huifang; Fan, Simiao; Zhang, Zhenzhu; Wang, Lei; Zhang, Yanjun

    2014-08-01

    Acyclovir (ACV) is an antiviral agent. However, its use is limited by adverse side effect, particularly by its nephrotoxicity. Metabonomics technology can provide essential information on the metabolic profiles of biofluids and organs upon drug administration. Therefore, in this study, mass spectrometry-based metabonomics coupled with multivariate data analysis was used to identify the plasma metabolites and metabolic pathways related to nephrotoxicity caused by intraperitoneal injection of low (50mg/kg) and high (100mg/kg) doses of acyclovir. Sixteen biomarkers were identified by metabonomics and nephrotoxicity results revealed the dose-dependent effect of acyclovir on kidney tissues. The present study showed that the top four metabolic pathways interrupted by acyclovir included the metabolisms of arachidonic acid, tryptophan, arginine and proline, and glycerophospholipid. This research proves the established metabonomic approach can provide information on changes in metabolites and metabolic pathways, which can be applied to in-depth research on the mechanism of acyclovir-induced kidney injury. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Non-invasively predicting differentiation of pancreatic cancer through comparative serum metabonomic profiling.

    PubMed

    Wen, Shi; Zhan, Bohan; Feng, Jianghua; Hu, Weize; Lin, Xianchao; Bai, Jianxi; Huang, Heguang

    2017-11-02

    The differentiation of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) could be associated with prognosis and may influence the choices of clinical management. No applicable methods could reliably predict the tumor differentiation preoperatively. Thus, the aim of this study was to compare the metabonomic profiling of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma with different differentiations and assess the feasibility of predicting tumor differentiations through metabonomic strategy based on nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. By implanting pancreatic cancer cell strains Panc-1, Bxpc-3 and SW1990 in nude mice in situ, we successfully established the orthotopic xenograft models of PDAC with different differentiations. The metabonomic profiling of serum from different PDAC was achieved and analyzed by using 1 H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy combined with the multivariate statistical analysis. Then, the differential metabolites acquired were used for enrichment analysis of metabolic pathways to get a deep insight. An obvious metabonomic difference was demonstrated between all groups and the pattern recognition models were established successfully. The higher concentrations of amino acids, glycolytic and glutaminolytic participators in SW1990 and choline-contain metabolites in Panc-1 relative to other PDAC cells were demonstrated, which may be served as potential indicators for tumor differentiation. The metabolic pathways and differential metabolites identified in current study may be associated with specific pathways such as serine-glycine-one-carbon and glutaminolytic pathways, which can regulate tumorous proliferation and epigenetic regulation. The NMR-based metabonomic strategy may be served as a non-invasive detection method for predicting tumor differentiation preoperatively.

  15. Spectroscopic and Statistical Techniques for Information Recovery in Metabonomics and Metabolomics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lindon, John C.; Nicholson, Jeremy K.

    2008-07-01

    Methods for generating and interpreting metabolic profiles based on nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, mass spectrometry (MS), and chemometric analysis methods are summarized and the relative strengths and weaknesses of NMR and chromatography-coupled MS approaches are discussed. Given that all data sets measured to date only probe subsets of complex metabolic profiles, we describe recent developments for enhanced information recovery from the resulting complex data sets, including integration of NMR- and MS-based metabonomic results and combination of metabonomic data with data from proteomics, transcriptomics, and genomics. We summarize the breadth of applications, highlight some current activities, discuss the issues relating to metabonomics, and identify future trends.

  16. Spectroscopic and statistical techniques for information recovery in metabonomics and metabolomics.

    PubMed

    Lindon, John C; Nicholson, Jeremy K

    2008-01-01

    Methods for generating and interpreting metabolic profiles based on nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, mass spectrometry (MS), and chemometric analysis methods are summarized and the relative strengths and weaknesses of NMR and chromatography-coupled MS approaches are discussed. Given that all data sets measured to date only probe subsets of complex metabolic profiles, we describe recent developments for enhanced information recovery from the resulting complex data sets, including integration of NMR- and MS-based metabonomic results and combination of metabonomic data with data from proteomics, transcriptomics, and genomics. We summarize the breadth of applications, highlight some current activities, discuss the issues relating to metabonomics, and identify future trends.

  17. Establishment and optimization of NMR-based cell metabonomics study protocols for neonatal Sprague-Dawley rat cardiomyocytes.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Ming; Sun, Bo; Zhang, Qi; Gao, Rong; Liu, Qiao; Dong, Fangting; Fang, Haiqin; Peng, Shuangqing; Li, Famei; Yan, Xianzhong

    2017-01-15

    A quenching, harvesting, and extraction protocol was optimized for cardiomyocytes NMR metabonomics analysis in this study. Trypsin treatment and direct scraping cells in acetonitrile were compared for sample harvesting. The results showed trypsin treatment cause normalized concentration increasing of phosphocholine and metabolites leakage, since the trypsin-induced membrane broken and long term harvesting procedures. Then the intracellular metabolite extraction efficiency of methanol and acetonitrile were compared. As a result, washing twice with phosphate buffer, direct scraping cells and extracting with acetonitrile were chosen to prepare cardiomyocytes extracts samples for metabonomics studies. This optimized protocol is rapid, effective, and exhibits greater metabolite retention. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. [Perspective and application of metabonomics in modern study of traditional Chinese medicine].

    PubMed

    Qin, Kun-Ming; Wang, Bin; Chen, Lin-Wei; Zhang, Mao-Sen; Yang, Guang-Ming; Shu, Ya-Chun; Cai, Bao-Chang

    2014-08-01

    Metabonomics is a new method to study on the metabolic network and the relationship between body and environment, which conforms to the way of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) research. In the study process of modernization of traditional Chinese medicine, effectively conjunction with metabonomics method will facilitate the integration of TCM with modern biological science and technology, and promote the modernization of TCM. This paper introduce the application of metabonomics in the research of toxicity mechanism of TCM, compatibility mechanism of TCM formula, pharmacology effect of TCM and processing mechanism of TCM. This paper summarize the problems in the TCM metabonomics research and prospect its bright future.

  19. Maternal glucocorticoid elevation and associated blood metabonome changes might be involved in metabolic programming of intrauterine growth retardation in rats exposed to caffeine prenatally

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kou, Hao; Liu, Yansong; Liang, Gai

    Our previous studies demonstrated that prenatal caffeine exposure causes intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR), fetuses are over-exposed to high levels of maternal glucocorticoids (GC), and intrauterine metabolic programming and associated metabonome alteration that may be GC-mediated. However, whether maternal metabonomes would be altered and relevant metabolite variations might mediate the development of IUGR remained unknown. In the present studies, we examined the dose- and time-effects of caffeine on maternal metabonome, and tried to clarify the potential roles of maternal GCs and metabonome changes in the metabolic programming of caffeine-induced IUGR. Pregnant rats were treated with caffeine (0, 20, 60 or 180more » mg/kg · d) from gestational days (GD) 11 to 20, or 180 mg/kg · d caffeine from GD9. Metabonomes of maternal plasma on GD20 in the dose–effect study and on GD11, 14 and 17 in the time–course study were analyzed by {sup 1}H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, respectively. Caffeine administration reduced maternal weight gains and elevated both maternal and fetal corticosterone (CORT) levels. A negative correlation between maternal/fetal CORT levels and fetal bodyweight was observed. The maternal metabonome alterations included attenuated metabolism of carbohydrates, enhanced lipolysis and protein breakdown, and amino acid accumulation, suggesting GC-associated metabolic effects. GC-associated metabolite variations (α/β-glucoses, high density lipoprotein-cholesterol, β-hydroxybutyrate) were observed early following caffeine administration. In conclusion, prenatal caffeine exposure induced maternal GC elevation and metabonome alteration, and maternal GC and relevant discriminatory metabolites might be involved in the metabolic programming of caffeine-induced IUGR. - Highlights: • Prenatal caffeine exposure elevated maternal blood glucocorticoid levels. • Prenatal caffeine exposure altered maternal blood metabonomes. • Maternal metabonome alterations were associated with glucocorticoid elevation. • Maternal metabonomes were altered at early stage after caffeine exposure. • Maternal glucocorticoid and associated metabolites may be involved in fetal programming.« less

  20. Metabonomics and toxicology.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Liang; Hartung, Thomas

    2015-01-01

    Being an emerging field of "omics" research, metabonomics has been increasingly used in toxicological studies mostly because this technology has the ability to provide more detailed information to elucidate mechanism of toxicity. As an interdisciplinary field of science, metabonomics combines analytical chemistry, bioinformatics, statistics, and biochemistry. When applied to toxicology, metabonomics also includes aspects of patho-biochemistry, systems biology, and molecular diagnostics. During a toxicological study, the metabolic changes over time and dose after chemical treatment can be monitored. Therefore, the most important use of this emerging technology is the identification of signatures of toxicity-patterns of metabolic changes predictive of a hazard manifestation. This chapter summarizes the current state of metabonomics technology and its applications in various areas of toxicological studies.

  1. [Recent advances in metabonomics].

    PubMed

    Xu, Guo-Wang; Lu, Xin; Yang, Sheng-Li

    2007-12-01

    Metabonomics (or metabolomics) aims at the comprehensive and quantitative analysis of the wide arrays of metabolites in biological samples. Metabonomics has been labeled as one of the new" -omics" joining genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics as a science employed toward the understanding of global systems biology. It has been widely applied in many research areas including drug toxicology, biomarker discovery, functional genomics, and molecular pathology etc. The comprehensive analysis of the metabonome is particularly challenging due to the diverse chemical natures of metabolites. Metabonomics investigations require special approaches for sample preparation, data-rich analytical chemical measurements, and information mining. The outputs from a metabonomics study allow sample classification, biomarker discovery, and interpretation of the reasons for classification information. This review focuses on the currently new advances in various technical platforms of metabonomics and its applications in drug discovery and development, disease biomarker identification, plant and microbe related fields.

  2. Fetal rat metabonome alteration by prenatal caffeine ingestion probably due to the increased circulatory glucocorticoid level and altered peripheral glucose and lipid metabolic pathways

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Liu, Yansong; Xu, Dan; Research Center of Food and Drug Evaluation, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430071

    The aims of this study were to clarify the metabonome alteration in fetal rats after prenatal caffeine ingestion and to explore the underlying mechanism pertaining to the increased fetal circulatory glucocorticoid (GC). Pregnant Wistar rats were daily intragastrically administered with different doses of caffeine (0, 20, 60 and 180 mg/kg) from gestational days (GD) 11 to 20. Metabonome of fetal plasma and amniotic fluid on GD20 were analyzed by {sup 1}H nuclear magnetic resonance-based metabonomics. Gene and protein expressions involved in the GC metabolism, glucose and lipid metabolic pathways in fetal liver and gastrocnemius were measured by real-time RT-PCR andmore » immunohistochemistry. Fetal plasma metabonome were significantly altered by caffeine, which presents as the elevated α- and β‐glucose, reduced multiple lipid contents, varied apolipoprotein contents and increased levels of a number of amino acids. The metabonome of amniotic fluids showed a similar change as that in fetal plasma. Furthermore, the expressions of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 2 (11β-HSD-2) were decreased, while the level of blood GC and the expressions of 11β-HSD-1 and glucocorticoid receptor (GR) were increased in fetal liver and gastrocnemius. Meanwhile, the expressions of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), IGF-1 receptor and insulin receptor were decreased, while the expressions of adiponectin receptor 2, leptin receptors and AMP-activated protein kinase α2 were increased after caffeine treatment. Prenatal caffeine ingestion characteristically change the fetal metabonome, which is probably attributed to the alterations of glucose and lipid metabolic pathways induced by increased circulatory GC, activated GC metabolism and enhanced GR expression in peripheral metabolic tissues. -- Highlights: ► Prenatal caffeine ingestion altered the metabonome of IUGR fetal rats. ► Caffeine altered the glucose and lipid metabolic pathways of IUGR fetal rats. ► Prenatal caffeine ingestion induced GC metabolic activation in IUGR fetal rats.« less

  3. [Metabonomic phenotype of "formula corresponding to pattern types" based on "qi and yin deficiency pattern" of myocardial ischemia rat model].

    PubMed

    Yan, Bei; A, Ji-Ye; Hao, Hai-Ping; Wang, Guang-Ji; Liu, Lin-Sheng; Zha, Wei-Bin; Zhang, Ying; Gu, Sheng-Hua

    2011-08-01

    In order to explore the scientific connotation of "Fangzhengduiying (formula corresponding to pattern types)", "Qiyinliangxuzheng (Qi and Yin deficiency pattern)" of myocardial ischemia rat model and GC-TOF/MS based metabonomic method were used for comparing the effects of Sheng-mai injection, Salvia injection and propranolol in the present study. After data processing and pattern recognition, Sheng-mai injection showed better efficacy than the other two drugs in accordance with not only visual observation from PLS-DA scores plots but also the number of abnormal endogenous compounds restored to the normal level. Further studies showed that Sheng-mai injection could normalize the level of plasma endothelin-1, the index related to cardiovascular diseases and sleep disorders, which verified the results of metabonomics. Finally, the regulated metabolites and related metabolic pathways were analyzed, and it was supposed that the effects of Sheng-mai injection involved in the alternation of energy metabolism, lipid metabolism, amino acids metabolism, and so on. These findings provided scientific evidence to Shengmai "Fang" used for "Qi and Yin deficiency pattern" correspondingly, indicating that metabonomics has great potential in traditional Chinese medical research, which provides a novel approach and way to modernization of traditional Chinese medicine.

  4. Metabonomics and drug development.

    PubMed

    Ramana, Pranov; Adams, Erwin; Augustijns, Patrick; Van Schepdael, Ann

    2015-01-01

    Metabolites as an end product of metabolism possess a wealth of information about altered metabolic control and homeostasis that is dependent on numerous variables including age, sex, and environment. Studying significant changes in the metabolite patterns has been recognized as a tool to understand crucial aspects in drug development like drug efficacy and toxicity. The inclusion of metabonomics into the OMICS study platform brings us closer to define the phenotype and allows us to look at alternatives to improve the diagnosis of diseases. Advancements in the analytical strategies and statistical tools used to study metabonomics allow us to prevent drug failures at early stages of drug development and reduce financial losses during expensive phase II and III clinical trials. This chapter introduces metabonomics along with the instruments used in the study; in addition relevant examples of the usage of metabonomics in the drug development process are discussed along with an emphasis on future directions and the challenges it faces.

  5. Diagnosis of coinfection by schistosomiasis and viral hepatitis B or C using 1H NMR-based metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Gouveia, Liana Ribeiro; Santos, Joelma Carvalho; Silva, Ronaldo Dionísio; Batista, Andrea Dória; Domingues, Ana Lúcia Coutinho; Lopes, Edmundo Pessoa de Almeida; Silva, Ricardo Oliveira

    2017-01-01

    Diagnosis of liver involvement due to schistosomiasis in asymptomatic patients from endemic areas previously diagnosed with chronic hepatitis B (HBV) or C (HCV) and periportal fibrosis is challenging. H-1 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)-based metabonomics strategy is a powerful tool for providing a profile of endogenous metabolites of low molecular weight in biofluids in a non-invasive way. The aim of this study was to diagnose periportal fibrosis due to schistosomiasis mansoni in patients with chronic HBV or HCV infection through NMR-based metabonomics models. The study included 40 patients divided into two groups: (i) 18 coinfected patients with schistosomiasis mansoni and HBV or HCV; and (ii) 22 HBV or HCV monoinfected patients. The serum samples were analyzed through H-1 NMR spectroscopy and the models were based on Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Partial Least Squares-Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA). Ultrasonography examination was used to ascertain the diagnosis of periportal fibrosis. Exploratory analysis showed a clear separation between coinfected and monoinfected samples. The supervised model built from PLS-DA showed accuracy, R2 and Q2 values equal to 100%, 98.1% and 97.5%, respectively. According to the variable importance in the projection plot, lactate serum levels were higher in the coinfected group, while the signals attributed to HDL serum cholesterol were more intense in the monoinfected group. The metabonomics models constructed in this study are promising as an alternative tool for diagnosis of periportal fibrosis by schistosomiasis in patients with chronic HBV or HCV infection from endemic areas for Schistosoma mansoni.

  6. Maternal and fetal metabonomic alterations in prenatal nicotine exposure-induced rat intrauterine growth retardation.

    PubMed

    Feng, Jiang-hua; Yan, You-e; Liang, Gai; Liu, Yan-song; Li, Xiao-jun; Zhang, Ben-jian; Chen, Liao-bin; Yu, Hong; He, Xiao-hua; Wang, Hui

    2014-08-25

    Prenatal nicotine exposure causes adverse birth outcome. However, the corresponding metabonomic alterations and underlying mechanisms of nicotine-induced developmental toxicity remain unclear. The aims of this study were to characterize the metabolic alterations in biofluids in nicotine-induced intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) rat model. In the present study, pregnant Wistar rats were intragastrically administered with different doses of nicotine (0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 mg/kg d) from gestational day (GD) 11-20. The metabolic profiles of the biofluids, including maternal plasma, fetal plasma and amniotic fluid, were analyzed using (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabonomic techniques. Prenatal nicotine exposure caused noticeably lower body weights, higher IUGR rates of fetal rats, and elevated maternal and fetal corticosterone (CORT) levels compared to the controls. The correlation analysis among maternal, fetal serum CORT levels and fetal bodyweight suggested that the levels of maternal and fetal serum CORT presented a positive correlation (r=0.356, n=32, P<0.05), while there was a negative correlation between fetal (r=-0.639, n=32, P<0.01) and maternal (r=-0.530, n=32, P<0.01) serum CORT level and fetal bodyweight. The fetal metabonome alterations included the stimulation of lipogenesis and the decreased levels of glucose and amino acids. The maternal metabonome alterations involved the enhanced blood glucose levels, fatty acid oxygenolysis, proteolysis and amino acid accumulation. These results suggested that prenatal nicotine exposure is associated with an altered maternal and fetal metabonome, which may be related to maternal increased glucocorticoid level induced by nicotine. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. 1H NMR-based metabonomic study on the effects of Epimedium on glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis.

    PubMed

    Pan, Sina; Chen, Ali; Han, Zhihui; Wang, Yaling; Lu, Xin; Yang, Yongxia

    2016-12-01

    Glucocorticoids are widely used in clinical practice for the treatment of many immune-mediated and inflammatory diseases, and glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIO) is the most common type of secondary osteoporosis. Epimedium is one of the most commonly used traditional Chinese medicines for treating osteoporosis. In the present study, we systematically analysed the metabonomic characteristics of GIO model rats and elucidated the therapeutic effect of Epimedium by using a 1 H NMR-based metabonomic approach in conjunction with multivariate data analysis. Rats in treatment and model groups were injected with dexamethasone (0.1mg/kg/day) for 5 weeks. Simultaneously, two treatment groups were orally administered Epimedium (10g/kg/day) or Alendronate (1.2mg/kg/day) for 5 weeks. In GIO model rats, lipid and lactate levels in serum were increased, while creatine/creatinine, PC/GPC, taurine, glycine and β-glucose levels were decreased. In urine, GIO rats had higher levels of phenylacetylglycine but lower levels of 2-oxoglutarate, citrate, creatine/creatinine, taurine, PC/GPC and hippurate than controls. Epimedium reversed the aforementioned metabolic alterations in multiple metabolic pathways involved in energy, lipid, amino acid and phospholipid metabolism and gut microbiota derangement. Our results indicated that Epimedium had significant effects in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. It is concluded that 1 H NMR metabonomics is a useful method for studying the metabolic effects of traditional Chinese medicine from a systematic and holistic view. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Quantification and statistical significance analysis of group separation in NMR-based metabonomics studies

    PubMed Central

    Goodpaster, Aaron M.; Kennedy, Michael A.

    2015-01-01

    Currently, no standard metrics are used to quantify cluster separation in PCA or PLS-DA scores plots for metabonomics studies or to determine if cluster separation is statistically significant. Lack of such measures makes it virtually impossible to compare independent or inter-laboratory studies and can lead to confusion in the metabonomics literature when authors putatively identify metabolites distinguishing classes of samples based on visual and qualitative inspection of scores plots that exhibit marginal separation. While previous papers have addressed quantification of cluster separation in PCA scores plots, none have advocated routine use of a quantitative measure of separation that is supported by a standard and rigorous assessment of whether or not the cluster separation is statistically significant. Here quantification and statistical significance of separation of group centroids in PCA and PLS-DA scores plots are considered. The Mahalanobis distance is used to quantify the distance between group centroids, and the two-sample Hotelling's T2 test is computed for the data, related to an F-statistic, and then an F-test is applied to determine if the cluster separation is statistically significant. We demonstrate the value of this approach using four datasets containing various degrees of separation, ranging from groups that had no apparent visual cluster separation to groups that had no visual cluster overlap. Widespread adoption of such concrete metrics to quantify and evaluate the statistical significance of PCA and PLS-DA cluster separation would help standardize reporting of metabonomics data. PMID:26246647

  9. Study on correspondence between prescription and syndrome and the essence of phlegm and blood stasis syndrome in coronary heart disease based on metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Lu, Xiao-yan; Xu, Hao; Li, Geng; Zhao, Tie

    2014-01-01

    Studying the essence of a syndrome has been a key challenge in the field of Chinese medicine. Until now, due to limitations of the methods available, the progress towards understanding such complicated systems has been slow. Metabonomics encompasses the dynamics, composition and analysis of metabolites, enabling the observation of changes in the metabolic network of the human body associated with disease. Being from the point of view of the whole organism, metabonomics provides an opportunity to study the essence of a syndrome to an unprecedented level. Phlegm and blood stasis syndrome is the main syndrome associated with coronary heart disease (CHD), which bring difficulties in clinical treatment due to difficulties associated with differentiation of symptoms and signs. The fundamental differences of material between the two also need to be interpreted. The authors consider that we can use the method of combining a disease (in this case CHD) with associated syndromes (phlegm and blood stasis syndrome) to select patients with phlegm and blood stasis syndrome of CHD, and utilize metabonomics to explore the essence of the syndrome by difference analysis of metabolite spectra. Meanwhile, we can study the syndrome in CM, observe the change regularity of metabolism spectra after the treatment of corresponding and non-corresponding prescription and syndrome, in order to validate the material fundament in the progress of syndrome formation and their differences. This will not only have great significance in enhancing the ability to identify syndrome of phlegm and blood stasis in CHD and to establish the clinical curative criteria, but will also offer a new approach of studying the essence for a syndrome using metabonomics.

  10. Metabonomics and its role in amino acid nutrition research.

    PubMed

    He, Qinghua; Yin, Yulong; Zhao, Feng; Kong, Xiangfeng; Wu, Guoyao; Ren, Pingping

    2011-06-01

    Metabonomics combines metabolic profiling and multivariate data analysis to facilitate the high-throughput analysis of metabolites in biological samples. This technique has been developed as a powerful analytical tool and hence has found successful widespread applications in many areas of bioscience. Metabonomics has also become an important part of systems biology. As a sensitive and powerful method, metabonomics can quantitatively measure subtle dynamic perturbations of metabolic pathways in organisms due to changes in pathophysiological, nutritional, and epigenetic states. Therefore, metabonomics holds great promise to enhance our understanding of the complex relationship between amino acids and metabolism to define the roles for dietary amino acids in maintaining health and the development of disease. Such a technique also aids in the studies of functions, metabolic regulation, safety, and individualized requirements of amino acids. Here, we highlight the common workflow of metabonomics and some of the applications to amino acid nutrition research to illustrate the great potential of this exciting new frontier in bioscience.

  11. Untargeted saliva metabonomics study of breast cancer based on ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry with HILIC and RPLC separations.

    PubMed

    Zhong, Liping; Cheng, Fei; Lu, Xiaoyong; Duan, Yixiang; Wang, Xiaodong

    2016-09-01

    Breast cancer (BC) is not only the most frequently diagnosed cancer, but also the leading cause of cancer death among women worldwide. This study aimed to screen the potential salivary biomarkers for breast cancer diagnosis, staging, and biomarker discovery. For the first time, a UPLC-MS based method along with multivariate data analysis, was proposed for the global saliva metabonomics analysis and diagnosis of BC, which used both hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) and reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) separations and operated in both positive (ESI+) and negative (ESI-) ionization modes. On account of different polarities of endogenous metabolites, this method was established to overcome the boundedness of a single chromatographic approach. As a result, 18 potential metabolites for diagnosing BC were identified. A nonparametric Mann-Whitney U test, heat map, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) were exploited to analyze the data with the purpose of evaluating the predictive power of the 18 biomarkers. Significant differences (P<0.05) were disclosed in terms of the levels of the 18 potential biomarkers between BC patients and healthy controls (HC). Among the 18 biomarkers, three up-regulated metabolites, LysoPC (18:1), LysoPC (22:6) and MG (0:0/14:0/0:0) displayed the area under the curve (AUC) values of 0.920, 0.920 and 0.929, respectively, indicating the high accuracy of this method to predict BC. In this study, an integrated metabonomics analysis in human saliva for identifying potential biomarkers to diagnose and stage BC was successfully eastablished, which was non-invasive, reliable, low-cost, and simple. The HILIC was demonstrated to be essential for a comprehensive saliva metabonomics profiling as well as RPLC separation. This saliva metabonomics technique may provide new insight into the discovery and identification of diagnostic biomarkers for BC. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  12. Metabonomic study of biochemical changes in the urine of Morning Glory Seed treated rat.

    PubMed

    Ma, Chao; Bi, Kaishun; Zhang, Ming; Su, Dan; Fan, Xinxin; Ji, Wei; Wang, Chao; Chen, Xiaohui

    2010-11-02

    This paper was designed to study metabonomic characters of the nephrotoxicity induced by Morning Glory Seed (MGS), a well-known traditional Chinese medicine which was used for the treatment of edema, simple obesity and lung fever. Urinary samples from control and MGS treated rats were analyzed by ultra-performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) in positive ionization mode. Blood biochemistry and histopathology were examined to identify specific changes of renal damage. The results affirmatively suggested that ethanol extract of Morning Glory Seed (EMGS), instead of water extract of Morning Glory Seed (WMGS), should be responsible for the nephrotoxicity caused by this herbal medicine. The UPLC-MS analysis revealed that the levels of 8 endogenous metabolites as biomarkers were significantly changed in urine from EMGS treated rats. The underlying regulations of EMGS-perturbed metabolic pathways were discussed according to the identified metabolites. The present study proves the potential of UPLC-MS based metabonomics in mapping metabolic response for toxicology. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. INVESTIGATING THE ENANTIOSELECTIVE TOXICITY OF CONAZOLE FUNGICIDES IN RAINBOW TROUT THROUGH THE USE OF NMR BASED METABONOMICS

    EPA Science Inventory

    In support of the Environmental Protection Agency's Computational Toxicology Program, metabonomics, the quantitative measurement of a broad spectrum of metabolic responses of living systems in response to disease onset or genetic modification, is being employed to enable rapid id...

  14. NMR-based metabonomic analysis of the hepatotoxicity induced by combined exposure to PCBs and TCDD in rats

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lu Chunfeng; Department of Pharmacology, Basic Medical College, Jiamusi University, Jiamusi 154007; Wang Yimei

    2010-11-01

    A metabonomic approach using {sup 1}H NMR spectroscopy was adopted to investigate the metabonomic pattern of rat urine after oral administration of environmental endocrine disruptors (EDs) polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo- p-dioxin (TCDD) alone or in combination and to explore the possible hepatotoxic mechanisms of combined exposure to PCBs and TCDD. {sup 1}H NMR spectra of urines collected 24 h before and after exposure were analyzed via pattern recognition by using principal component analysis (PCA). Serum biochemistry and liver histopathology indicated significant hepatotoxicity in the rats of the combined group. The PCA scores plots of urinary {sup 1}H NMR datamore » showed that all the treatment groups could be easily distinguished from the control group, so could the PCBs or TCDD group and the combined group. The loadings plots of the PCA revealed remarkable increases in the levels of lactate, glucose, taurine, creatine, and 2-hydroxy-isovaleric acid and reductions in the levels of 2-oxoglutarate, citrate, succinate, hippurate, and trimethylamine-N-oxide in rat urine after exposure. These changes were more striking in the combined group. The changed metabolites may be considered possible biomarker for the hepatotoxicity. The present study demonstrates that combined exposure to PCBs and TCDD induced significant hepatotoxicity in rats, and mitochondrial dysfunction and fatty acid metabolism perturbations might contribute to the hepatotoxicity. There was good conformity between changes in the urine metabonomic pattern and those in serum biochemistry and liver histopathology. These results showed that the NMR-based metabonomic approach may provide a promising technique for the evaluation of the combined toxicity of EDs.« less

  15. Development and validation of a liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry metabonomic platform in human plasma of liver failure caused by hepatitis B virus.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Lijun; Jia, Xiaofang; Peng, Xia; Ou, Qiang; Zhang, Zhengguo; Qiu, Chao; Yao, Yamin; Shen, Fang; Yang, Hua; Ma, Fang; Wang, Jiefei; Yuan, Zhenghong

    2010-10-01

    This paper presents an liquid chromatography (LC)/mass spectrometry (MS)-based metabonomic platform that combined the discovery of differential metabolites through principal component analysis (PCA) with the verification by selective multiple reaction monitoring (MRM). These methods were applied to analyze plasma samples from liver disease patients and healthy donors. LC-MS raw data (about 1000 compounds), from the plasma of liver failure patients (n = 26) and healthy controls (n = 16), were analyzed through the PCA method and a pattern recognition profile that had significant difference between liver failure patients and healthy controls (P < 0.05) was established. The profile was verified in 165 clinical subjects. The specificity and sensitivity of this model in predicting liver failure were 94.3 and 100.0%, respectively. The differential ions with m/z of 414.5, 432.0, 520.5, and 775.0 were verified to be consistent with the results from PCA by MRM mode in 40 clinical samples, and were proved not to be caused by the medicines taken by patients through rat model experiments. The compound with m/z of 520.5 was identified to be 1-Linoleoylglycerophosphocholine or 1-Linoleoylphosphatidylcholine through exact mass measurements performed using Ion Trap-Time-of-Flight MS and METLIN Metabolite Database search. In all, it was the first time to integrate metabonomic study and MRM relative quantification of differential peaks in a large number of clinical samples. Thereafter, a rat model was used to exclude drug effects on the abundance of differential ion peaks. 1-Linoleoylglycerophosphocholine or 1-Linoleoylphosphatidylcholine, a potential biomarker, was identified. The LC/MS-based metabonomic platform could be a powerful tool for the metabonomic screening of plasma biomarkers.

  16. [Mechanism research on the lupeol treatment on MCF-7 breast cancer cells based on cell metabonomics].

    PubMed

    Shi, Dongdong; Kuang, Yuanyuan; Wang, Guiming; Peng, Zhangxiao; Wang, Yan; Yan, Chao

    2014-03-01

    The objective of this research is to investigate the suppressive effects of lupeol on MCF-7 breast cancer cells, and explore its mechanism on inhibiting the proliferation of MCF-7 cells based on cell metabonomics and cell cycle. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used in the cell metabonomics assay to identify metabolites of MCF-7 cells and MCF-7 cells treated with lupeol. Then, orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) was used to process the metabolic data and model parameters of OPLS-DA were as follows: R2Ycum = 0.988, Q2Ycum = 0.964, which indicated that these two groups could be distinguished clearly. The metabolites (VIP (variable importance in the projection) > 1) were analyzed by t-test, and finally, metabolites (t < 0.05) were identified to be biomarkers. Eleven metabolites such as butanedioic acid, phosphoric acid, L-leucine and isoleucine which had a significant contribution to classification were selected and preliminarily identified due to the accurate mass. Cell cycle assay was analyzed by FACSCalibur. Since the cells in the phase of G1 were increased significantly after the treatment of lupeol, we speculated that lupeol has a blocking effect on the generation of succinyl-CoA and the reaction of substrate phosphorylation of tricarboxylic acid cycle of MCF-7 cells. This study provided a novel approach to the mechanism research on the lupeol treatment on MCF-7 breast cancer cells based on cell metabonomics.

  17. Application of GC/MS-based metabonomic profiling in studying the lipid-regulating effects of Ginkgo biloba extract on diet-induced hyperlipidemia in rats

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Qi; Wang, Guang-ji; A, Ji-ye; Wu, Di; Zhu, Ling-ling; Ma, Bo; Du, Yu

    2009-01-01

    Aim: To evaluate the lipid-regulating effects of extract from Ginkgo biloba leaves (EGB) using pharmacological methods and metabonomic profiling in a rat model of diet-induced hyperlipidemia. Methods: EGB was orally administered at a dose level of 40 mg/kg in both the EGB-prevention and -treatment groups. All rat samples obtained were examined for known and potential biomarkers and enzyme activity using commercial assay kits and GC/MS-based metabonomic profiling coupled with principal component analysis (PCA). Results: The data obtained from the assay kits indicated that EGB reduced total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol levels and increased high density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in rat plasma obtained from both the EGB-prevention and –treatment groups compared with those of the diet-induced hyperlipidemia group. EGB also increased the activities of lipoprotein lipase and hepatic lipase and excretion of fecal bile acid in rats from the EGB-prevention and–treatment groups. Using GC/MS-based metabonomic analysis, more than 40 endogenous metabolites were identified in rat plasma. PCA of rat plasma samples obtained using GC/MS produced a distinctive separation of the four treatment groups and sampling points within each group. Metabolic changes during hyperlipidemia formation and improvement resulting from EGB treatment were definitively monitored with PCA score plots. Furthermore, elevated levels of sorbitol, tyrosine, glutamine and glucose, and decreased levels of citric acid, galactose, palmitic acid, arachidonic acid, acetic acid, cholesterol, butyrate, creatinine, linoleate, ornithine and proline, were observed in the plasma of rats treated with EGB. Conclusion: EGB exerts multi-directional lipid-lowering effects on the rat metabonome, including limitation of the absorption of cholesterol, inactivation of HMGCoA and favorable regulation of profiles of essential polyunsaturated fatty acid (EFA). Further experiments are warranted to explore the mechanisms of action underlying the lipid-regulating effects of EGB against hyperlipidemia. PMID:19960012

  18. Application of GC/MS-based metabonomic profiling in studying the lipid-regulating effects of Ginkgo biloba extract on diet-induced hyperlipidemia in rats.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Qi; Wang, Guang-ji; A, Ji-ye; Wu, Di; Zhu, Ling-ling; Ma, Bo; Du, Yu

    2009-12-01

    To evaluate the lipid-regulating effects of extract from Ginkgo biloba leaves (EGB) using pharmacological methods and metabonomic profiling in a rat model of diet-induced hyperlipidemia. EGB was orally administered at a dose level of 40 mg/kg in both the EGB-prevention and -treatment groups. All rat samples obtained were examined for known and potential biomarkers and enzyme activity using commercial assay kits and GC/MS-based metabonomic profiling coupled with principal component analysis (PCA). The data obtained from the assay kits indicated that EGB reduced total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol levels and increased high density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in rat plasma obtained from both the EGB-prevention and -treatment groups compared with those of the diet-induced hyperlipidemia group. EGB also increased the activities of lipoprotein lipase and hepatic lipase and excretion of fecal bile acid in rats from the EGB-prevention and-treatment groups. Using GC/MS-based metabonomic analysis, more than 40 endogenous metabolites were identified in rat plasma. PCA of rat plasma samples obtained using GC/MS produced a distinctive separation of the four treatment groups and sampling points within each group. Metabolic changes during hyperlipidemia formation and improvement resulting from EGB treatment were definitively monitored with PCA score plots. Furthermore, elevated levels of sorbitol, tyrosine, glutamine and glucose, and decreased levels of citric acid, galactose, palmitic acid, arachidonic acid, acetic acid, cholesterol, butyrate, creatinine, linoleate, ornithine and proline, were observed in the plasma of rats treated with EGB. EGB exerts multi-directional lipid-lowering effects on the rat metabonome, including limitation of the absorption of cholesterol, inactivation of HMGCoA and favorable regulation of profiles of essential polyunsaturated fatty acid (EFA). Further experiments are warranted to explore the mechanisms of action underlying the lipid-regulating effects of EGB against hyperlipidemia.

  19. New Methodology for Known Metabolite Identification in Metabonomics/Metabolomics: Topological Metabolite Identification Carbon Efficiency (tMICE).

    PubMed

    Sanchon-Lopez, Beatriz; Everett, Jeremy R

    2016-09-02

    A new, simple-to-implement and quantitative approach to assessing the confidence in NMR-based identification of known metabolites is introduced. The approach is based on a topological analysis of metabolite identification information available from NMR spectroscopy studies and is a development of the metabolite identification carbon efficiency (MICE) method. New topological metabolite identification indices are introduced, analyzed, and proposed for general use, including topological metabolite identification carbon efficiency (tMICE). Because known metabolite identification is one of the key bottlenecks in either NMR-spectroscopy- or mass spectrometry-based metabonomics/metabolomics studies, and given the fact that there is no current consensus on how to assess metabolite identification confidence, it is hoped that these new approaches and the topological indices will find utility.

  20. Exploring high-resolution magic angle spinning (HR-MAS) NMR spectroscopy for metabonomic analysis of apples.

    PubMed

    Vermathen, Martina; Marzorati, Mattia; Vermathen, Peter

    2012-01-01

    Classical liquid-state high-resolution (HR) NMR spectroscopy has proved a powerful tool in the metabonomic analysis of liquid food samples like fruit juices. In this paper the application of (1)H high-resolution magic angle spinning (HR-MAS) NMR spectroscopy to apple tissue is presented probing its potential for metabonomic studies. The (1)H HR-MAS NMR spectra are discussed in terms of the chemical composition of apple tissue and compared to liquid-state NMR spectra of apple juice. Differences indicate that specific metabolic changes are induced by juice preparation. The feasibility of HR-MAS NMR-based multivariate analysis is demonstrated by a study distinguishing three different apple cultivars by principal component analysis (PCA). Preliminary results are shown from subsequent studies comparing three different cultivation methods by means of PCA and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) of the HR-MAS NMR data. The compounds responsible for discriminating organically grown apples are discussed. Finally, an outlook of our ongoing work is given including a longitudinal study on apples.

  1. Method development in high-performance liquid chromatography for high-throughput profiling and metabonomic studies of biofluid samples.

    PubMed

    Pham-Tuan, Hai; Kaskavelis, Lefteris; Daykin, Clare A; Janssen, Hans-Gerd

    2003-06-15

    "Metabonomics" has in the past decade demonstrated enormous potential in furthering the understanding of, for example, disease processes, toxicological mechanisms, and biomarker discovery. The same principles can also provide a systematic and comprehensive approach to the study of food ingredient impact on consumer health. However, "metabonomic" methodology requires the development of rapid, advanced analytical tools to comprehensively profile biofluid metabolites within consumers. Until now, NMR spectroscopy has been used for this purpose almost exclusively. Chromatographic techniques and in particular HPLC, have not been exploited accordingly. The main drawbacks of chromatography are the long analysis time, instabilities in the sample fingerprint and the rigorous sample preparation required. This contribution addresses these problems in the quest to develop generic methods for high-throughput profiling using HPLC. After a careful optimization process, stable fingerprints of biofluid samples can be obtained using standard HPLC equipment. A method using a short monolithic column and a rapid gradient with a high flow-rate has been developed that allowed rapid and detailed profiling of larger numbers of urine samples. The method can be easily translated into a slow, shallow-gradient high-resolution method for identification of interesting peaks by LC-MS/NMR. A similar approach has been applied for cell culture media samples. Due to the much higher protein content of such samples non-porous polymer-based small particle columns yielded the best results. The study clearly shows that HPLC can be used in metabonomic fingerprinting studies.

  2. Intergrated metabonomic study of the effects of Guizhi Fuling capsule intervention on primary dysmenorrheal using RP-UPLC-MS complementary with HILIC-UPLC-MS technique.

    PubMed

    Lang, Lang; Meng, Zhaorui; Sun, Lan; Xiao, Wei; Zhao, Longshan; Xiong, Zhili

    2018-02-01

    Guizhi Fuling capsule (GFC), developed from the traditional Chinese prescription of Guizhi Fuling Wan, has been commonly used for the treatment of primary dysmenorrhea (PD). However, the intervention effective mechanism in vivo has not been well elucidated. In this study, an integrated plasma metabonomic strategy based on RP-UPLC-MS coupled with HILIC-UPLC-MS technique has been developed to investigate the global therapeutic effects and intervention mechanisms of GFC on dysmenorrhea rats induced by oxytocin. The 20 potential biomarkers were identified and primarily related to sphingolipid metabolism, steroid hormone biosynthesis, glycerophospholipid metabolism, amino acid metabolism, lipid metabolism and energy metabolism. The results showed that the GFC has therapeutic effects on rats with dysmenorrhea via the regulation of multiple metabolic pathways. Some new potential biomarkers associated with primary dysmenorrhea such as phenylalanine, tryptophan, taurine, carnitine, betaine, creatine and creatinine have been discovered in this study for the first time. This study provides a metabonomic platform based on RP-UPLC-MS complementary to HILIC-UPLC-MS technique to investigate both nonpolar and polar compounds, so as to get a more comprehensive metabolite information to yield insight into the pathophysiology of PD and assessing the efficacy of GFC on PD rats. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  3. MDAS: an integrated system for metabonomic data analysis.

    PubMed

    Liu, Juan; Li, Bo; Xiong, Jiang-Hui

    2009-03-01

    Metabonomics, the latest 'omics' research field, shows great promise as a tool in biomarker discovery, drug efficacy and toxicity analysis, disease diagnosis and prognosis. One of the major challenges now facing researchers is how to process this data to yield useful information about a biological system, e.g., the mechanism of diseases. Traditional methods employed in metabonomic data analysis use multivariate analysis methods developed independently in chemometrics research. Additionally, with the development of machine learning approaches, some methods such as SVMs also show promise for use in metabonomic data analysis. Aside from the application of general multivariate analysis and machine learning methods to this problem, there is also a need for an integrated tool customized for metabonomic data analysis which can be easily used by biologists to reveal interesting patterns in metabonomic data.In this paper, we present a novel software tool MDAS (Metabonomic Data Analysis System) for metabonomic data analysis which integrates traditional chemometrics methods and newly introduced machine learning approaches. MDAS contains a suite of functional models for metabonomic data analysis and optimizes the flow of data analysis. Several file formats can be accepted as input. The input data can be optionally preprocessed and can then be processed with operations such as feature analysis and dimensionality reduction. The data with reduced dimensionalities can be used for training or testing through machine learning models. The system supplies proper visualization for data preprocessing, feature analysis, and classification which can be a powerful function for users to extract knowledge from the data. MDAS is an integrated platform for metabonomic data analysis, which transforms a complex analysis procedure into a more formalized and simplified one. The software package can be obtained from the authors.

  4. Deciphering metabonomics biomarkers-targets interactions for psoriasis vulgaris by network pharmacology.

    PubMed

    Gu, Jiangyong; Li, Li; Wang, Dongmei; Zhu, Wei; Han, Ling; Zhao, Ruizhi; Xu, Xiaojie; Lu, Chuanjian

    2018-06-01

    Psoriasis vulgaris is a chronic inflammatory and immune-mediated skin disease. 44 metabonomics biomarkers were identified by high-throughput liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry in our previous work, but the roles of metabonomics biomarkers in the pathogenesis of psoriasis is unclear. The metabonomics biomarker-enzyme network was constructed. The key metabonomics biomarkers and enzymes were screened out by network analysis. The binding affinity between each metabonomics biomarker and target was calculated by molecular docking. A binding energy-weighted polypharmacological index was introduced to evaluate the importance of target-related pathways. Long-chain fatty acids, phospholipids, Estradiol and NADH were the most important metabonomics biomarkers. Most key enzymes belonged hydrolase, thioesterase and acyltransferase. Six proteins (TNF-alpha, MAPK3, iNOS, eNOS, COX2 and mTOR) were extensively involved in inflammatory reaction, immune response and cell proliferation, and might be drug targets for psoriasis. PI3K-Akt signaling pathway and five other pathways had close correlation with the pathogenesis of psoriasis and could deserve further research. The inflammatory reaction, immune response and cell proliferation are mainly involved in psoriasis. Network pharmacology provide a new insight into the relationships between metabonomics biomarkers and the pathogenesis of psoriasis. KEY MESSAGES   • Network pharmacology was adopted to identify key metabonomics biomarkers and enzymes.   • Six proteins were screened out as important drug targets for psoriasis.   • A binding energy-weighted polypharmacological index was introduced to evaluate the importance of target-related pathways.

  5. Metabonomics of Pig Blood Plasma Following Whole Body Exposure to Low Levels of Gb Vapor

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2005-10-01

    METABONOMICS OF PIG BLOOD PLASMA FOLLOWING WHOLE BODY EXPOSURE TO LOW LEVELS OF GB VAPOR Vicky L. H. Bevilacqua▲, Terrence G...of chemometrics and NMR will yield metabonomics data useful for establishing biochemical markers for agent exposure. Ideally, such markers would...associated with environmental change, a field recently referred to as " metabonomics ." High field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has emerged as a

  6. A guide to the identification of metabolites in NMR-based metabonomics/metabolomics experiments.

    PubMed

    Dona, Anthony C; Kyriakides, Michael; Scott, Flora; Shephard, Elizabeth A; Varshavi, Dorsa; Veselkov, Kirill; Everett, Jeremy R

    2016-01-01

    Metabonomics/metabolomics is an important science for the understanding of biological systems and the prediction of their behaviour, through the profiling of metabolites. Two technologies are routinely used in order to analyse metabolite profiles in biological fluids: nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and mass spectrometry (MS), the latter typically with hyphenation to a chromatography system such as liquid chromatography (LC), in a configuration known as LC-MS. With both NMR and MS-based detection technologies, the identification of the metabolites in the biological sample remains a significant obstacle and bottleneck. This article provides guidance on methods for metabolite identification in biological fluids using NMR spectroscopy, and is illustrated with examples from recent studies on mice.

  7. Global gas chromatography/time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC/TOFMS)-based metabonomic profiling of lyophilized human feces.

    PubMed

    Phua, Lee Cheng; Koh, Poh Koon; Cheah, Peh Yean; Ho, Han Kiat; Chan, Eric Chun Yong

    2013-10-15

    Gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC/MS)-based fecal metabonomics represents a powerful systems biology approach for elucidating metabolic biomarkers of lower gastrointestinal tract (GIT) diseases. Unlike metabolic profiling of fecal water, the profiling of complete fecal material remains under-explored. Here, a gas chromatography/time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC/TOFMS) method was developed and validated for the global metabonomic profiling of human feces. Fecal and fecal water metabotypes were also profiled and compared. Additionally, the unclear influence of blood in stool on the fecal metabotype was investigated unprecedentedly. Eighty milligram of lyophilized feces was ultrasonicated with 1mL of methanol:water (8:2) for 30min, followed by centrifugation, drying of supernatant, oximation and trimethylsilylation for 45min. Lyophilized feces demonstrated a more comprehensive metabolic coverage than fecal water, based on the number of chromatographic peaks. Principal component analysis (PCA) indicated occult blood (1mgHb/g feces) exerted a negligible effect on the fecal metabotype. Conversely, a unique metabotype related to feces spiked with gross blood (100mgHb/g feces) was revealed (PCA, R(2)X=0.837, Q(2)=0.794), confirming the potential confounding effect of gross GIT bleeding on the fecal metabotype. This pertinent finding highlights the importance of prudent interpretation of fecal metabonomic data, particularly in GIT diseases where bleeding is prevalent. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Urine metabolic profile changes of CCl4-liver fibrosis in rats and intervention effects of Yi Guan Jian Decoction using metabonomic approach

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Yi Guan Jian Decoction (YGJD), a famous Chinese prescription, has long been employed clinically to treat liver fibrosis. However, as of date, there is no report on the effects of YGJD from a metabonomic approach. In this study, a urine metabonomic method based on gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS) was employed to study the protective efficacy and metabolic profile changes caused by YGJD in carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced liver fibrosis. Methods Urine samples from Wistar rats of three randomly divided groups (control, model, and YGJD treated) were collected at various time-points, and the metabolic profile changes were analyzed by GC/MS with principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares-discriminate analysis (PLS-DA). Furthermore, histopathology and biochemical examination were also carried out to ensure the success of CCl4-induced liver fibrosis model. Results Urine metabolic profile studies suggested distinct clustering of the three groups, and YGJD group was much closer to the control group by showing a tendency of recovering towards the control group. Fourteen significantly changed metabolites were found, and YGJD treatment could reverse the levels of these metabolites to normal levels or close to normal levels. Conclusions The current study indicates that the YGJD has significant anti-fibrotic effects on CCl4-induced liver fibrosis in rats, which might be by regulating the dysfunction of energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism, tryptophan metabolism, cytochrome P450 metabolism, and gut microflora metabolism. The metabonomic approach can be recommended to study the pharmacological effect and mechanism of complex Chinese medicines. PMID:23725349

  9. [Development and Application of Metabonomics in Forensic Toxicology].

    PubMed

    Yan, Hui; Shen, Min

    2015-06-01

    Metabonomics is an important branch of system biology following the development of genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics. It can perform high-throughput detection and data processing with multiple parameters, potentially enabling the identification and quantification of all small metabolites in a biological system. It can be used to provide comprehensive information on the toxicity effects, toxicological mechanisms and biomarkers, sensitively finding the unusual metabolic changes caused by poison. This article mainly reviews application of metabonomics in toxicological studies of abused drugs, pesticides, poisonous plants and poisonous animals, and also illustrates the new direction of forensic toxicology research.

  10. [The application of metabonomics in modern studies of Chinese materia medica].

    PubMed

    Chen, Hai-Bin; Zhou, Hong-Guang; Yu, Xiao-Yi

    2012-06-01

    Metabonomics, a newly developing subject secondary to genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics, is an important constituent part of systems biology. It is believed to be the final direction of the systems biology. It can be directly applied to understand the physiological and biochemical states by its "metabolome profile" as a whole. Therefore, it can provide a huge amount of information different from those originating from other "omics". In the modernization of Chinese materia medica research, the application of metabonomics methods and technologies has a broad potential for future development. Especially it is of important theoretical significance and application value in holistic efficacies evaluation, active ingredients studies, and safety research of Chinese materia medica.

  11. NMR and MS methods for metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Dieterle, Frank; Riefke, Björn; Schlotterbeck, Götz; Ross, Alfred; Senn, Hans; Amberg, Alexander

    2011-01-01

    Metabonomics, also often referred to as "metabolomics" or "metabolic profiling," is the systematic profiling of metabolites in bio-fluids or tissues of organisms and their temporal changes. In the last decade, metabonomics has become increasingly popular in drug development, molecular medicine, and other biotechnology fields, since it profiles directly the phenotype and changes thereof in contrast to other "-omics" technologies. The increasing popularity of metabonomics has been possible only due to the enormous development in the technology and bioinformatics fields. In particular, the analytical technologies supporting metabonomics, i.e., NMR, LC-MS, UPLC-MS, and GC-MS have evolved into sensitive and highly reproducible platforms allowing the determination of hundreds of metabolites in parallel. This chapter describes the best practices of metabonomics as seen today. All important steps of metabolic profiling in drug development and molecular medicine are described in great detail, starting from sample preparation, to determining the measurement details of all analytical platforms, and finally, to discussing the corresponding specific steps of data analysis.

  12. Identification of key metabolic changes in renal interstitial fibrosis rats using metabonomics and pharmacology.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Liangcai; Dong, Minjian; Liao, Shixian; Du, Yao; Zhou, Qi; Zheng, Hong; Chen, Minjiang; Ji, Jiansong; Gao, Hongchang

    2016-06-03

    Renal fibrosis is one of the important pathways involved in end-stage renal failure. Investigating the metabolic changes in the progression of disease may enhance the understanding of its pathogenesis and therapeutic information. In this study, (1)H-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabonomics was firstly used to screen the metabolic changes in urine and kidney tissues of renal interstitial fibrotic rats induced by unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO), at 7, 14, 21, and 28 days after operation, respectively. The results revealed that reduced levels of bioenergy synthesis and branched chain amino acids (BCAAs), as well as elevated levels of indoxyl sulfate (IS) are involved in metabolic alterations of renal fibrosis rats. Next, by pharmacological treatment we found that reduction of IS levels could prevent the renal fibrotic symptoms. Therefore, we suggested that urinary IS may be used as a potential biomarker for the diagnosis of renal fibrosis, and a therapeutic target for drugs. Novel attempt combining metabonomics and pharmacology was established that have ability to provide more systematic diagnostic and therapeutic information of diseases.

  13. Recent developments in sample preparation and data pre-treatment in metabonomics research.

    PubMed

    Li, Ning; Song, Yi peng; Tang, Huiru; Wang, Yulan

    2016-01-01

    Metabonomics is a powerful approach for biomarker discovery and an effective tool for pinpointing endpoint metabolic effects of external stimuli, such as pathogens and disease development. Due to its wide applications, metabonomics is required to deal with various biological samples of different properties. Hence sample preparation and corresponding data pre-treatment become important factors in ensuring validity of an investigation. In this review, we summarize some recent developments in metabonomics sample preparation and data-pretreatment procedures. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. An integrated metabonomic and proteomic study on Kidney-Yin Deficiency Syndrome patients with diabetes mellitus in China.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Ning; Liu, Hong-fang; Li, Si-di; Zhou, Wen-xia; Zhang, Yong-xiang; Zhang, Qi; Yan, Xian-zhong

    2015-06-01

    To investigate specific changes in metabolites and proteins of Kidney-Yin Deficiency Syndrome (KYDS) patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) in China. KYDS (n=29) and non-KYDS (n=23) patients with DM were recruited for this study. The KYDS was diagnosed by two senior TCM clinicians separately. The metabonomic and proteomic profiles of the patients were assessed using a metabonomic strategy based on NMR with multivariate analysis and a proteomic strategy based on MALDI-TOF-MS, respectively. Eighteen upregulated peptides and thirty downregulated peptides were observed in the plasma of the KYDS patients. Comparing the proteomic profiles of the KYDS and non-KYDS groups, however, no significantly differentially expressed peptides were found. At the same time, major metabolic alterations were found to distinguish the two groups, including eight significantly changed metabolites (creatinine, citrate, TMAO, phenylalanine, tyrosine, alanine, glycine and taurine). The levels of creatinine, citrate, TMAO, phenylalanine and tyrosine were decreased, whereas the levels of alanine, glycine and taurine were increased in the KYDS patients. These biochemical changes were found to be associated with alterations in amino acid metabolism, energy metabolism and gut microflora. The identification of distinct expression profiles of metabolites and signaling pathways in KYDS patients with DM suggests that there are indeed molecular signatures underlying the principles of 'Syndrome Differentiation' in traditional Chinese medicine.

  15. NMR-based metabonomic analyses of the effects of ultrasmall superparamagnetic particles of iron oxide (USPIO) on macrophage metabolism

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Jianghua; Zhao, Jing; Hao, Fuhua; Chen, Chang; Bhakoo, Kishore; Tang, Huiru

    2011-05-01

    The metabonomic changes in murine RAW264.7 macrophage-like cell line induced by ultrasmall superparamagnetic particles of iron oxides (USPIO) have been investigated, by analyzing both the cells and culture media, using high-resolution NMR in conjunction with multivariate statistical methods. Upon treatment with USPIO, macrophage cells showed a significant decrease in the levels of triglycerides, essential amino acids such as valine, isoleucine, and choline metabolites together with an increase of glycerophospholipids, tyrosine, phenylalanine, lysine, glycine, and glutamate. Such cellular responses to USPIO were also detectable in compositional changes of cell media, showing an obvious depletion of the primary nutrition molecules, such as glucose and amino acids and the production of end-products of glycolysis, such as pyruvate, acetate, and lactate and intermediates of TCA cycle such as succinate and citrate. At 48 h treatment, there was a differential response to incubation with USPIO in both cell metabonome and medium components, indicating that USPIO are phagocytosed and released by macrophages. Furthermore, information on cell membrane modification can be derived from the changes in choline-like metabolites. These results not only suggest that NMR-based metabonomic methods have sufficient sensitivity to identify the metabolic consequences of murine RAW264.7 macrophage-like cell line response to USPIO in vitro, but also provide useful information on the effects of USPIO on cellular metabolism.

  16. An insight into the metabolic responses of ultra-small superparamagnetic particles of iron oxide using metabonomic analysis of biofluids

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Jianghua; Liu, Huili; Zhang, Limin; Bhakoo, Kishore; Lu, Lehui

    2010-10-01

    Ultra-small superparamagnetic particles of iron oxides (USPIO) have been developed as intravenous organ/tissue-targeted contrast agents to improve magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in vivo. However, their potential toxicity and effects on metabolism have attracted particular attention. In the present study, uncoated and dextran-coated USPIO were investigated by analyzing both rat urine and plasma metabonomes using high-resolution NMR-based metabonomic analysis in combination with multivariate statistical analysis. The wealth of information gathered on the metabolic profiles from rat urine and plasma has revealed subtle metabolic changes in response to USPIO administration. The metabolic changes include the elevation of urinary α-hydroxy-n-valerate, o- and p-HPA, PAG, nicotinate and hippurate accompanied by decreases in the levels of urinary α-ketoglutarate, succinate, citrate, N-methylnicotinamide, NAG, DMA, allantoin and acetate following USPIO administration. The changes associated with USPIO administration included a gradual increase in plasma glucose, N-acetyl glycoprotein, saturated fatty acid, citrate, succinate, acetate, GPC, ketone bodies (β-hydroxybutyrate, acetone and acetoacetate) and individual amino acids, such as phenylalanine, lysine, isoleucine, glycine, glutamine and glutamate and a gradual decrease of myo-inositol, unsaturated fatty acid and triacylglycerol. Hence USPIO administration effects are reflected in changes in a number of metabolic pathways including energy, lipid, glucose and amino acid metabolism. The size- and surface chemistry-dependent metabolic responses and possible toxicity were observed using NMR analysis of biofluids. These changes may be attributed to the disturbances of hepatic, renal and cardiac functions following USPIO administrations. The potential biotoxicity can be derived from metabonomic analysis and serum biochemistry analysis. Metabonomic strategy offers a promising approach for the detection of subtle physiological responses on mammalian metabolism, and can be employed to investigate the potential adverse effects of other nanoparticles and nanomaterials on the environment and human health.

  17. Current practice of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry in metabolomics and metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Gika, Helen G; Theodoridis, Georgios A; Plumb, Robert S; Wilson, Ian D

    2014-01-01

    Based on publication and citation numbers liquid chromatography (LC-MS) has become the major analytical technology in the field of global metabolite profiling. This dominance reflects significant investments from both the research community and instrument manufacturers. Here an overview of the approaches taken for LC-MS-based metabolomics research is given, describing critical steps in the realisation of such studies: study design and its needs, specific technological problems to be addressed and major obstacles in data treatment and biomarker identification. The current state of the art for LC-MS-based analysis in metabonomics/metabolomics is described including recent developments in liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry and data treatment as these are applied in metabolomics underlining the challenges, limitations and prospects for metabolomics research. Examples of the application of metabolite profiling in the life sciences focusing on disease biomarker discovery are highlighted. In addition, new developments and future prospects are described. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. A GC-MS Based Metabonomics Study of Rheumatoid Arthritis and the Interventional Effects of the Simiaowan in Rats.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yuming; Guo, Xuejun; Xie, Jiabin; Hou, Zhiguo; Li, Yubo

    2015-12-01

    Simiaowan (SMW) is a famous Chinese prescription widely used in clinical treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The aim of the present study is to determine novel biomarkers to increase the current understanding of RA mechanisms, as well as the underlying therapeutic mechanism of SMW, in RA-model rats. Plasma extracts from control, RA model, and SMW-treated rats were analyzed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). An orthogonal partial least-square discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) model was created to detect metabolites that were expressed in significantly different amounts between the RA model and the control rats and investigate the therapeutic effect of SMW. Metabonomics may prove to be a valuable tool for determining the efficacy of complex traditional prescriptions.

  19. GC–MS-Based Metabonomic Profiling Displayed Differing Effects of Borna Disease Virus Natural Strain Hu-H1 and Laboratory Strain V Infection in Rat Cortical Neurons

    PubMed Central

    Liu, Siwen; Bode, Liv; Zhang, Lujun; He, Peng; Huang, Rongzhong; Sun, Lin; Chen, Shigang; Zhang, Hong; Guo, Yujie; Zhou, Jingjing; Fu, Yuying; Zhu, Dan; Xie, Peng

    2015-01-01

    Borna disease virus (BDV) persists in the central nervous systems of a wide variety of vertebrates and causes behavioral disorders. Previous studies have revealed that metabolic perturbations are associated with BDV infection. However, the pathophysiological effects of different viral strains remain largely unknown. Rat cortical neurons infected with human strain BDV Hu-H1, laboratory BDV Strain V, and non-infected control (CON) cells were cultured in vitro. At day 12 post-infection, a gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC–MS) metabonomic approach was used to differentiate the metabonomic profiles of 35 independent intracellular samples from Hu-H1-infected cells (n = 12), Strain V-infected cells (n = 12), and CON cells (n = 11). Partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) was performed to demonstrate discrimination between the three groups. Further statistical testing determined which individual metabolites displayed significant differences between groups. PLS-DA demonstrated that the whole metabolic pattern enabled statistical discrimination between groups. We identified 31 differential metabolites in the Hu-H1 and CON groups (21 decreased and 10 increased in Hu-H1 relative to CON), 35 differential metabolites in the Strain V and CON groups (30 decreased and 5 increased in Strain V relative to CON), and 21 differential metabolites in the Hu-H1 and Strain V groups (8 decreased and 13 increased in Hu-H1 relative to Strain V). Comparative metabonomic profiling revealed divergent perturbations in key energy and amino acid metabolites between natural strain Hu-H1 and laboratory Strain V of BDV. The two BDV strains differentially alter metabolic pathways of rat cortical neurons in vitro. Their systematic classification provides a valuable template for improved BDV strain definition in future studies. PMID:26287181

  20. Compositional differences among Chinese soy sauce types studied by (13)C NMR spectroscopy coupled with multivariate statistical analysis.

    PubMed

    Kamal, Ghulam Mustafa; Wang, Xiaohua; Bin Yuan; Wang, Jie; Sun, Peng; Zhang, Xu; Liu, Maili

    2016-09-01

    Soy sauce a well known seasoning all over the world, especially in Asia, is available in global market in a wide range of types based on its purpose and the processing methods. Its composition varies with respect to the fermentation processes and addition of additives, preservatives and flavor enhancers. A comprehensive (1)H NMR based study regarding the metabonomic variations of soy sauce to differentiate among different types of soy sauce available on the global market has been limited due to the complexity of the mixture. In present study, (13)C NMR spectroscopy coupled with multivariate statistical data analysis like principle component analysis (PCA), and orthogonal partial least square-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) was applied to investigate metabonomic variations among different types of soy sauce, namely super light, super dark, red cooking and mushroom soy sauce. The main additives in soy sauce like glutamate, sucrose and glucose were easily distinguished and quantified using (13)C NMR spectroscopy which were otherwise difficult to be assigned and quantified due to serious signal overlaps in (1)H NMR spectra. The significantly higher concentration of sucrose in dark, red cooking and mushroom flavored soy sauce can directly be linked to the addition of caramel in soy sauce. Similarly, significantly higher level of glutamate in super light as compared to super dark and mushroom flavored soy sauce may come from the addition of monosodium glutamate. The study highlights the potentiality of (13)C NMR based metabonomics coupled with multivariate statistical data analysis in differentiating between the types of soy sauce on the basis of level of additives, raw materials and fermentation procedures. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Tumor growth affects the metabonomic phenotypes of multiple mouse non-involved organs in an A549 lung cancer xenograft model.

    PubMed

    Xu, Shan; Tian, Yuan; Hu, Yili; Zhang, Nijia; Hu, Sheng; Song, Dandan; Wu, Zhengshun; Wang, Yulan; Cui, Yanfang; Tang, Huiru

    2016-06-22

    The effects of tumorigenesis and tumor growth on the non-involved organs remain poorly understood although many research efforts have already been made for understanding the metabolic phenotypes of various tumors. To better the situation, we systematically analyzed the metabolic phenotypes of multiple non-involved mouse organ tissues (heart, liver, spleen, lung and kidney) in an A549 lung cancer xenograft model at two different tumor-growth stages using the NMR-based metabonomics approaches. We found that tumor growth caused significant metabonomic changes in multiple non-involved organ tissues involving numerous metabolic pathways, including glycolysis, TCA cycle and metabolisms of amino acids, fatty acids, choline and nucleic acids. Amongst these, the common effects are enhanced glycolysis and nucleoside/nucleotide metabolisms. These findings provided essential biochemistry information about the effects of tumor growth on the non-involved organs.

  2. Tracking of Nuclear Production using Indigenous Species: Final LDRD Report

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Alam, Todd Michael; Alam, Mary Kathleen; McIntyre, Sarah K.

    Our LDRD research project sought to develop an analytical method for detection of chemicals used in nuclear materials processing. Our approach is distinctly different than current research involving hardware-based sensors. By utilizing the response of indigenous species of plants and/or animals surrounding (or within) a nuclear processing facility, we propose tracking 'suspicious molecules' relevant to nuclear materials processing. As proof of concept, we have examined TBP, tributylphosphate, used in uranium enrichment as well as plutonium extraction from spent nuclear fuels. We will compare TBP to the TPP (triphenylphosphate) analog to determine the uniqueness of the metabonomic response. We show thatmore » there is a unique metabonomic response within our animal model to TBP. The TBP signature can further be delineated from that of TPP. We have also developed unique methods of instrumental transfer for metabonomic data sets.« less

  3. Homeostatic signature of anabolic steroids in cattle using 1H-13C HMBC NMR metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Dumas, Marc-Emmanuel; Canlet, Cécile; Vercauteren, Joseph; André, François; Paris, Alain

    2005-01-01

    We used metabonomics to discriminate the urinary signature of different anabolic steroid treatments in cattle having different physiological backgrounds (age, sex, and race). (1)H-(13)C heteronuclear multiple bonding connectivity NMR spectroscopy and multivariate statistical methods reveal that metabolites such as trimethylamine-N-oxide, dimethylamine, hippurate, creatine, creatinine, and citrate characterize the biological fingerprint of anabolic treatment. These urinary biomarkers suggest an overall homeostatic adaptation in nitrogen and energy metabolism. From results obtained in this study, it is now possible to consider metabonomics as a complementary method usable to improve doping control strategies to detect fraudulent anabolic treatment in cattle since the oriented global metabolic response provides helpful discrimination.

  4. Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Patients Sensitive and Resistant to Imatinib Treatment Show Different Metabolic Responses

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Guangji; Yan, Bei; Zhang, Sujiang; Huang, Qing; Ni, Lingna; Zha, Weibin; Liu, Linsheng; Cao, Bei; Hong, Ming; Wu, Hanxin; Lu, Hua; Shi, Jian; Li, Mengjie; Li, Jianyong

    2010-01-01

    The BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib is highly effective for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). However, some patients gradually develop resistance to imatinib, resulting in therapeutic failure. Metabonomic and genomic profiling of patients' responses to drug interventions can provide novel information about the in vivo metabolism of low-molecular-weight compounds and extend our insight into the mechanism of drug resistance. Based on a multi-platform of high-throughput metabonomics, SNP array analysis, karyotype and mutation, the metabolic phenotypes and genomic polymorphisms of CML patients and their diverse responses to imatinib were characterized. The untreated CML patients (UCML) showed different metabolic patterns from those of healthy controls, and the discriminatory metabolites suggested the perturbed metabolism of the urea cycle, tricarboxylic acid cycle, lipid metabolism, and amino acid turnover in UCML. After imatinib treatment, patients sensitive to imatinib (SCML) and patients resistant to imatinib (RCML) had similar metabolic phenotypes to those of healthy controls and UCML, respectively. SCML showed a significant metabolic response to imatinib, with marked restoration of the perturbed metabolism. Most of the metabolites characterizing CML were adjusted to normal levels, including the intermediates of the urea cycle and tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA). In contrast, neither cytogenetic nor metabonomic analysis indicated any positive response to imatinib in RCML. We report for the first time the associated genetic and metabonomic responses of CML patients to imatinib and show that the perturbed in vivo metabolism of UCML is independent of imatinib treatment in resistant patients. Thus, metabonomics can potentially characterize patients' sensitivity or resistance to drug intervention. PMID:20949032

  5. Metabonomics identifies serum metabolite markers of colorectal cancer.

    PubMed

    Tan, Binbin; Qiu, Yunping; Zou, Xia; Chen, Tianlu; Xie, Guoxiang; Cheng, Yu; Dong, Taotao; Zhao, Linjing; Feng, Bo; Hu, Xiaofang; Xu, Lisa X; Zhao, Aihua; Zhang, Menghui; Cai, Guoxiang; Cai, Sanjun; Zhou, Zhanxiang; Zheng, Minhua; Zhang, Yan; Jia, Wei

    2013-06-07

    Recent studies suggest that biofluid-based metabonomics may identify metabolite markers promising for colorectal cancer (CRC) diagnosis. We report here a follow-up replication study, after a previous CRC metabonomics study, aiming to identify a distinct serum metabolic signature of CRC with diagnostic potential. Serum metabolites from newly diagnosed CRC patients (N = 101) and healthy subjects (N = 102) were profiled using gas chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC-TOFMS) and ultraperformance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOFMS). Differential metabolites were identified with statistical tests of orthogonal partial least-squares-discriminant analysis (VIP > 1) and the Mann-Whitney U test (p < 0.05). With a total of 249 annotated serum metabolites, we were able to differentiate CRC patients from the healthy controls using an orthogonal partial least-squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) in a learning sample set of 62 CRC patients and 62 matched healthy controls. This established model was able to correctly assign the rest of the samples to the CRC or control groups in a validation set of 39 CRC patients and 40 healthy controls. Consistent with our findings from the previous study, we observed a distinct metabolic signature in CRC patients including tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, urea cycle, glutamine, fatty acids, and gut flora metabolism. Our results demonstrated that a panel of serum metabolite markers is of great potential as a noninvasive diagnostic method for the detection of CRC.

  6. A Combined Metabonomic and Proteomic Approach Identifies Frontal Cortex Changes in a Chronic Phencyclidine Rat Model in Relation to Human Schizophrenia Brain Pathology

    PubMed Central

    Wesseling, Hendrik; Chan, Man K; Tsang, T M; Ernst, Agnes; Peters, Fabian; Guest, Paul C; Holmes, Elaine; Bahn, Sabine

    2013-01-01

    Current schizophrenia (SCZ) treatments fail to treat the broad range of manifestations associated with this devastating disorder. Thus, new translational models that reproduce the core pathological features are urgently needed to facilitate novel drug discovery efforts. Here, we report findings from the first comprehensive label-free liquid-mass spectrometry proteomic- and proton nuclear magnetic resonance-based metabonomic profiling of the rat frontal cortex after chronic phencyclidine (PCP) intervention, which induces SCZ-like symptoms. The findings were compared with results from a proteomic profiling of post-mortem prefrontal cortex from SCZ patients and with relevant findings in the literature. Through this approach, we identified proteomic alterations in glutamate-mediated Ca2+ signaling (Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II, PPP3CA, and VISL1), mitochondrial function (GOT2 and PKLR), and cytoskeletal remodeling (ARP3). Metabonomic profiling revealed changes in the levels of glutamate, glutamine, glycine, pyruvate, and the Ca2+ regulator taurine. Effects on similar pathways were also identified in the prefrontal cortex tissue from human SCZ subjects. The discovery of similar but not identical proteomic and metabonomic alterations in the chronic PCP rat model and human brain indicates that this model recapitulates only some of the molecular alterations of the disease. This knowledge may be helpful in understanding mechanisms underlying psychosis, which, in turn, can facilitate improved therapy and drug discovery for SCZ and other psychiatric diseases. Most importantly, these molecular findings suggest that the combined use of multiple models may be required for more effective translation to studies of human SCZ. PMID:23942359

  7. NMR-based metabonomic analysis of MnO-embedded iron oxide nanoparticles as potential dual-modal contrast agents

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Jinquan; Zhou, Zijian; Feng, Jianghua; Cai, Shuhui; Gao, Jinhao; Chen, Zhong

    2014-05-01

    MnO-embedded iron oxide nanoparticles (MnIO-NPs) can be treated as potential dual-modal contrast agents. However, their overall bio-effects and potential toxicity remain unknown. In this study, the metabolic effects of MnIO-NPs (dosed at 1 and 5 mg Fe/kg) on Sprague-Dawley rats were investigated using metabonomic analysis, histopathological examination, and conventional biochemical analysis. The histological changes included a focal inflammation in the liver at high-dose and a slightly enlarged area of splenic white pulp after 48 h post-dose. Blood biochemical analysis showed that albumin, globulins, aspartate aminotransferase, lactate dehydrogenase, blood urea nitrogen, and glucose changed distinctly compared to the control. The metabonomic analysis of body fluids (serum and urine) and tissues (liver, kidney, and spleen) indicated that MnIO-NPs induced metabolic perturbation in rats including energy, nucleotides, amino acids and phospholipid metabolisms. Besides, the variations of supportive nutrients: valine, leucine, isoleucine, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (phosphate), and nicotinamide, and the conjugation substrates: glycine, taurine, glutamine, glutathione, and methyl donors (formate, sarcosine, dimethylglycine, choline, and betaine) were involved in detoxification reaction of MnIO-NPs. The obtained information would provide identifiable ground for the candidate selection and optimization.

  8. [metabonomics research on coronary heart disease patients of phlegm turbidity syndrome and qi deficiency syndrome].

    PubMed

    Cheng, Peng; Chen, Ze-qi; Wang, Dong-sheng

    2015-02-01

    To study the correlation between Chinese medical types of coronary heart disease (CHD) [i.e., phlegm turbidity syndrome (PTS) and qi deficiency syndrome (QDS)] and their metabolites. Recruited were 65 CHD patients including 37 cases of PTS and 28 cases of QDS. Serum endogenous metabolites in the two syndrome types were determined by gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer-computer (GC/MS), and their differences between their metabolic profiles analyzed. More than 100 chromatographic peaks were totally scanned. Chromatograms obtained was matched with mass spectrum bank, and finally we got the category contribution value of 46 kinds of substances. Results of MCTree analysis showed patients of PTS and patients of QDS could be effectively distinguished. Compounds contributing to identify the two syndromes were sequenced as serine, valine, 2 hydroxy propionic acid. Comparison of metabolites showed contents of serine and 2 hydroxy propionic acid were higher in patients of PTS than in patients of QDS (P<0.05). The differences in the metabonomics of CHD TCM syndrome types could provide material bases for TCM syndrome differentiation of CHD, indicating that metabonomics technologies might become a new research method for TCM syndrome typing.

  9. Metabonomics revealed xanthine oxidase-induced oxidative stress and inflammation in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy.

    PubMed

    Liu, Jingping; Wang, Chengshi; Liu, Fang; Lu, Yanrong; Cheng, Jingqiu

    2015-03-01

    Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a serious complication of diabetes mellitus (DM), which is a major public health problem in the world. To reveal the metabolic changes associated with DN, we analyzed the serum, urine, and renal extracts obtained from control and streptozotocin (STZ)-induced DN rats by (1)H NMR-based metabonomics and multivariate data analysis. A significant difference between control and DN rats was revealed in metabolic profiles, and we identified several important DN-related metabolites including increased levels of allantoin and uric acid (UA) in the DN rats, suggesting that disturbed purine metabolism may be involved in the DN. Combined with conventional histological and biological methods, we further demonstrated that xanthine oxidase (XO), a key enzyme for purine catabolism, was abnormally activated in the kidney of diabetic rats by hyperglycemia. The highly activated XO increased the level of intracellular ROS, which caused renal injury by direct oxidative damage to renal cells, and indirect inducing inflammatory responses via activating NF-κB signaling pathway. Our study highlighted that metabonomics is a promising tool to reveal the metabolic changes and the underlying mechanism involved in the pathogenesis of DN.

  10. Studies of single-walled carbon nanotubes-induced hepatotoxicity by NMR-based metabonomics of rat blood plasma and liver extracts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lin, Bencheng; Zhang, Huashan; Lin, Zhiqing; Fang, Yanjun; Tian, Lei; Yang, Honglian; Yan, Jun; Liu, Huanliang; Zhang, Wei; Xi, Zhuge

    2013-05-01

    The toxicological effects of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) were investigated after intratracheal instillation in male Wistar rats over a 15-day period using metabonomic analysis of 1H (nuclear magnetic resonance) NMR spectra of blood plasma and liver tissue extracts. Concurrent liver histopathology examinations and plasma clinical chemistry analyses were also performed. Significant changes were observed in clinical chemistry features, including alkaline phosphatase, total protein, and total cholesterol, and in liver pathology, suggesting that SWCNTs clearly have hepatotoxicity in the rat. 1H NMR spectra and pattern recognition analyses from nanomaterial-treated rats showed remarkable differences in the excretion of lactate, trimethylamine oxide, bilineurin, phosphocholine, amylaceum, and glycogen. Indications of amino acid metabolism impairment were supported by increased lactate concentrations and decreased alanine concentrations in plasma. The rise in plasma and liver tissue extract concentrations of choline and phosphocholine, together with decreased lipids and lipoproteins, after SWCNTs treatment indicated a disruption of membrane fluidity caused by lipid peroxidation. Energy, amino acid, and fat metabolism appeared to be affected by SWCNTs exposure. Clinical chemistry and metabonomic approaches clearly indicated liver injury, which might have been associated with an indirect mechanism involving nanomaterial-induced oxidative stress.

  11. Study of acute biochemical effects of thallium toxicity in mouse urine by NMR spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    Tyagi, Ritu; Rana, Poonam; Khan, Ahmad Raza; Bhatnagar, Deepak; Devi, M Memita; Chaturvedi, Shubhra; Tripathi, Rajendra P; Khushu, Subash

    2011-10-01

    Thallium (Tl) is a toxic heavy metal and its exposure to the human body causes physiological and biochemical changes due to its interference with potassium-dependent biological reactions. A high-resolution (1)H NMR spectroscopy based metabonomic approach has been applied for investigating acute biochemical effects caused by thallium sulfate (Tl(2)SO(4)). Male strain A mice were divided in three groups and received three doses of Tl(2)SO(4) (5, 10 and 20 mg kg(-1) b.w., i.p.). Urine samples collected at 3, 24, 72 and 96 h post-dose time points were analyzed by (1)H NMR spectroscopy. NMR spectral data were processed and analyzed using principal components analysis to represent biochemical variations induced by Tl(2)SO(4). Results showed Tl-exposed mice urine to have distinct metabonomic phenotypes and revealed dose- and time-dependent clustering of treated groups. The metabolic signature of urine analysis from Tl(2)SO(4)-treated animals exhibited an increase in the levels of creatinine, taurine, hippurate and β-hydroxybutyrate along with a decrease in energy metabolites trimethylamine and choline. These findings revealed Tl-induced disturbed gut flora, membrane metabolite, energy and protein metabolism, representing physiological dysfunction of vital organs. The present study indicates the great potential of NMR-based metabonomics in mapping metabolic response for toxicology, which could ultimately lead to identification of potential markers for Tl toxicity. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  12. Serum metabonomic analysis of protective effects of Curcuma aromatica oil on renal fibrosis rats.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Liangcai; Zhang, Haiyan; Yang, Yunjun; Zheng, Yongquan; Dong, Minjian; Wang, Yaqiang; Bai, Guanghui; Ye, Xinjian; Yan, Zhihan; Gao, Hongchang

    2014-01-01

    Curcuma aromatica oil is a traditional herbal medicine demonstrating protective and anti-fibrosis activities in renal fibrosis patients. However, study of its mechanism of action is challenged by its multiple components and multiple targets that its active agent acts on. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabonomics combined with clinical chemistry and histopathology examination were performed to evaluate intervening effects of Curcuma aromatica oil on renal interstitial fibrosis rats induced by unilateral ureteral obstruction. The metabolite levels were compared based on integral values of serum 1H NMR spectra from rats on 3, 7, 14, and 28 days after the medicine administration. Time trajectory analysis demonstrated that metabolic profiles of the agent-treated rats were restored to control levels after 7 days of dosage. The results confirmed that the agent would be an effective anti-fibrosis medicine in a time-dependent manner, especially in early renal fibrosis stage. Targeted metabolite analysis showed that the medicine could lower levels of lipid, acetoacetate, glucose, phosphorylcholine/choline, trimethylamine oxide and raise levels of pyruvate, glycine in the serum of the rats. Serum clinical chemistry and kidney histopathology examination dovetailed well with the metabonomics data. The results substantiated that Curcuma aromatica oil administration can ameliorate renal fibrosis symptoms by inhibiting some metabolic pathways, including lipids metabolism, glycolysis and methylamine metabolism, which are dominating targets of the agent working in vivo. This study further strengthens the novel analytical approach for evaluating the effect of traditional herbal medicine and elucidating its molecular mechanism.

  13. Identification of sex-specific urinary biomarkers for major depressive disorder by combined application of NMR- and GC-MS-based metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Zheng, P; Chen, J-J; Zhou, C-J; Zeng, L; Li, K-W; Sun, L; Liu, M-L; Zhu, D; Liang, Z-H; Xie, P

    2016-11-15

    Women are more vulnerable to major depressive disorder (MDD) than men. However, molecular biomarkers of sex differences are limited. Here we combined gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)- and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabonomics to investigate sex differences of urinary metabolite markers in MDD, and further explore their potential of diagnosing MDD. Consequently, the metabolite signatures of women and men MDD subjects were significantly different from of that in their respective healthy controls (HCs). Twenty seven women and 36 men related differentially expressed metabolites were identified in MDD. Fourteen metabolites were changed in both women and men MDD subjects. Significantly, the women-specific (m-Hydroxyphenylacetate, malonate, glycolate, hypoxanthine, isobutyrate and azelaic acid) and men-specific (tyrosine, N-acetyl-d-glucosamine, N-methylnicotinamide, indoxyl sulfate, citrate and succinate) marker panels were further identified, which could differentiate men and women MDD patients from their respective HCs with higher accuracy than previously reported sex-nonspecific marker panels. Our findings demonstrate that men and women MDD patients have distinct metabonomic signatures and sex-specific biomarkers have promising values in diagnosing MDD.

  14. Metabonomics of ageing - Towards understanding metabolism of a long and healthy life.

    PubMed

    Martin, Francois-Pierre J; Montoliu, Ivan; Kussmann, Martin

    2017-07-01

    Systems biology approaches have been increasingly employed in clinical studies to enhance our understanding of the role of genetics, environmental factors and their interactions on nutritional, health and disease status. Amongst the new omics technologies, metabonomics has emerged as a robust platform to capture metabolic and nutritional requirements by enabling, in a minimally invasive fashion, the monitoring of a wide range of biochemical compounds. Their variations reflect comprehensively the various molecular regulatory processes, which are tightly controlled and under the influence of genetics, diet, gut microbiota and other environmental factors. They are providing key insights into complex metabolic phenomena as well as into differences and specificities at individual and population level. The aim of this review is to evaluate promising metabolic insights towards understanding metabolism of a long and healthy life from pre-clinical and clinical metabonomics studies. We will also discuss analytical approaches to enable data integration, with an emphasis on the longitudinal component. Herein, we will illustrate current examples, challenges and perspectives in the applications of metabonomics monitoring and modelling approaches in the context of healthy ageing research. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. Metabonomic analysis of urine from rats after low-dose exposure to 3-chloro-1,2-propanediol using UPLC-MS.

    PubMed

    Liu, Liyan; He, Yujie; Lu, Huimin; Wang, Maoqing; Sun, Changhao; Na, Lixin; Li, Ying

    2013-05-15

    To study the toxic effect of chronic exposure to 3-chloro-1,2-propanediol (3-MCPD) at low doses, a metabonomics approach based on ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography and quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) was performed. Two different doses of 3-MCPD (1.1 and 5.5mg/kg bw/d) were administered to Wistar rats for 120 days (1.1mg/kg bw/d: lowest observed adverse effect level [LOAEL]). The metabolite profiles and biochemical parameters were obtained at five time points after treatment. For the 3-MCPD-treated groups, a significant change in urinary N-acetyl-β-d-glucosaminidase and β-d-galactosidase was detected on day 90, while some biomarkers based on the metabonomics, such as N-acetylneuraminic acid, N-acetyl-l-tyrosine, and gulonic acid, were detected on day 30. These results suggest that these biomarkers changed more sensitively and earlier than conventional biochemical parameters and were thus considered early and sensitive biomarkers of exposure to 3-MCPD; these biomarkers provide more information on toxicity than conventional biochemical parameters. These results might be helpful to investigate the toxic mechanisms of 3-MCPD and provide a scientific basis for assessing the effect of chronic exposure to low-dose 3-MCPD on human health. Crown Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. [Metabonomics-a useful tool for individualized cancer therapy].

    PubMed

    Chai, Yanlan; Wang, Juan; Liu, Zi

    2013-11-01

    Metabonomics has developed rapidly in post-genome era, and becomes a hot topic of omics. The core idea of metabonomics is to determine the metabolites of relatively low-weight molecular in organisms or cells, by a series of analytical methods such as nuclear magnetic resonance, color spectrum and mass spectrogram, then to transform the data of metabolic pattern into useful information, by chemometric tools and pattern recognition software, and to reveal the essence of life activities of the body. With advantages of high-throughput, high-sensitivity and high-accuracy, metabolomics shows great potential and value in cancer individualized treatment. This paper introduces the concept,contents and methods of metabonomics and reviews its application in cancer individualized therapy.

  17. Serum metabonomics study of anti-depressive effect of Xiao-Chai-Hu-Tang on rat model of chronic unpredictable mild stress.

    PubMed

    Xiong, Zhili; Yang, Jie; Huang, Yue; Zhang, Kuo; Bo, Yunhai; Lu, Xiumei; Su, Guangyue; Ma, Jie; Yang, Jingyu; Zhao, Longshan; Wu, Chunfu

    2016-09-01

    Xiao-Chai-Hu-Tang (XCHT) has been proven to be effective for the clinical treatment of depression. However, the mechanisms of definite antidepressant-like effects and detailed metabolic biomarkers were still unclear in this prior study. Here, we have investigated the metabolic profiles and potential biomarkers in a chronic unpredictable mild stress model after treatment with XCHT. Metabonomics based on ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry was used to profile the metabolic fingerprints of serum obtained from a rat model with chronic unpredictable mild stress with and without XCHT treatment. The model rats showed a significant decrease in sucrose preference and food consumption, and these depression-like symptoms were significantly improved by XCHT. Through principal component analysis (PCA), nine potential biomarkers of tryptophan, uric acid, phenylalanine, cholic acid and lysophosphatidylcholine (C18:0 LPC, C16:0 LPC, C16:1 LPC, C18:1 LPC, C20:4 LPC) were characterized as potential biomarkers involved the pathogenesis of depression. The therapeutic effect of XCHT on depression may involve in amino acid metabolism, lipid metabolism, oxidative stress and inflammation response. The present investigation highlights that metabonomics is a valuable tool for studying the essence of depression as well as evaluating the efficacy of the corresponding drug treatment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. NMR-based metabonomic study of the sub-acute toxicity of titanium dioxide nanoparticles in rats after oral administration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bu, Qian; Yan, Guangyan; Deng, Pengchi; Peng, Feng; Lin, Hongjun; Xu, Youzhi; Cao, Zhixing; Zhou, Tian; Xue, Aiqin; Wang, Yanli; Cen, Xiaobo; Zhao, Ying-Lan

    2010-03-01

    As titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) are widely used commercially, their potential toxicity on human health has attracted particular attention. In the present study, the oral toxicological effects of TiO2 NPs (dosed at 0.16, 0.4 and 1 g kg - 1, respectively) were investigated using conventional approaches and metabonomic analysis in Wistar rats. Serum chemistry, hematology and histopathology examinations were performed. The urine and serum were investigated by 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) using principal components and partial least squares discriminant analysis. The metabolic signature of urinalysis in TiO2 NP-treated rats showed increases in the levels of taurine, citrate, hippurate, histidine, trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), citrulline, α-ketoglutarate, phenylacetylglycine (PAG) and acetate; moreover, decreases in the levels of lactate, betaine, methionine, threonine, pyruvate, 3-D-hydroxybutyrate (3-D-HB), choline and leucine were observed. The metabonomics analysis of serum showed increases in TMAO, choline, creatine, phosphocholine and 3-D-HB as well as decreases in glutamine, pyruvate, glutamate, acetoacetate, glutathione and methionine after TiO2 NP treatment. Aspartate aminotransferase (AST), creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were elevated and mitochondrial swelling in heart tissue was observed in TiO2 NP-treated rats. These findings indicate that disturbances in energy and amino acid metabolism and the gut microflora environment may be attributable to the slight injury to the liver and heart caused by TiO2 NPs. Moreover, the NMR-based metabolomic approach is a reliable and sensitive method to study the biochemical effects of nanomaterials.

  19. Serum Metabonomics of Mild Acute Pancreatitis.

    PubMed

    Xu, Hongmin; Zhang, Lei; Kang, Huan; Zhang, Jiandong; Liu, Jie; Liu, Shuye

    2016-11-01

    Mild acute pancreatitis (MAP) is a common acute abdominal disease, and exhibits rising incidence in recent decades. As an important component of systemic biology, metabonomics is a new discipline developed following genomics and proteomics. In this study, the objective was to analyze the serum metabonomics of patients with MAP, aiming to screen metabolic markers with potential diagnostic values. An analysis platform with ultra performance liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry was used to screen the difference metabolites related to MAP diagnosis and disease course monitoring. A total of 432 endogenous metabolites were screened out from 122 serum samples, and 49 difference metabolites were verified, among which 12 difference metabolites were identified by nonparametric test. After material identification, eight metabolites exhibited reliable results, and their levels in MAP serum were higher than those in healthy serum. Four metabolites exhibited gradual downward trend with treatment process going on, and the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Metabonomic analysis has revealed eight metabolites with potential diagnostic values toward MAP, among which four metabolites can be used to monitor the disease course. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  20. Metabonomics evaluation of urine from rats administered with phorate under long-term and low-level exposure by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Sun, Xiaowei; Xu, Wei; Zeng, Yan; Hou, Yurong; Guo, Lin; Zhao, Xiujuan; Sun, Changhao

    2014-02-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the toxic effect of long-term and low-level exposure to phorate using a metabonomics approach based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS). Male Wistar rats were given phorate daily in drinking water at low doses of 0.05, 0.15 or 0.45 mg kg⁻¹ body weight (BW) for 24 weeks consecutively. Rats in the control group were given an equivalent volume of drinking water. Compared with the control group, serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), total bilirubin (TBIL), urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine (CR) were increased in the middle- and high-dose groups whereas albumin (ALB) and cholinesterase (CHE) were decreased. Urine metabonomics profiles were analyzed by UPLC-MS. Compared with the control group, 12 metabolites were significantly changed in phorate-treated groups. In the negative mode, metabolite intensities of uric acid, suberic acid and citric acid were significantly decreased in the middle- and high-dose groups, whereas indoxyl sulfic acid (indican) and cholic acid were increased. In the positive mode, uric acid, creatinine, kynurenic acid and xanthurenic acid were significantly decreased in the middle- and high-dose groups, but 7-methylguanine (N⁷G) was increased. In both negative and positive modes, diethylthiophosphate (DETP) was significantly increased, which was considered as a biomarker of exposure to phorate. In conclusion, long-term and low-level exposure to phorate can cause disturbances in energy-related metabolism, liver and kidney function, the antioxidant system, and DNA damage. Moreover, more information can be provided on the evaluation of toxicity of phorate using metabonomics combined with clinical chemistry. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  1. Human urine as test material in 1H NMR-based metabonomics: recommendations for sample preparation and storage.

    PubMed

    Lauridsen, Michael; Hansen, Steen H; Jaroszewski, Jerzy W; Cornett, Claus

    2007-02-01

    Metabonomic approaches are believed to have the capability of revolutionizing diagnosis of diseases and assessment of patient conditions after medical interventions. In order to ensure comparability of metabonomic 1H NMR data from different studies, we suggest validated sample preparation guidelines for human urine based on a stability study that evaluates effects of storage time and temperature, freeze-drying, and the presence of preservatives. The results indicated that human urine samples should be stored at or below -25 degrees C, as no changes in the 1H NMR fingerprints have been observed during storage at this temperature for 26 weeks. Formation of acetate, presumably due to microbial contamination, was occasionally observed in samples stored at 4 degrees C without addition of a preservative. Addition of a preserving agent is not mandatory provided that the samples are stored at -25 degrees C. Thus, no differences were observed between 1H NMR spectra of nonpreserved urines and urines with added sodium azide and stored at -25 degrees C, whereas the presence of sodium fluoride caused a shift of especially citrate resonances. Freeze-drying of urine and reconstitution in D2O at pH 7.4 resulted in the disappearance of the creatinine CH2 signal at delta 4.06 due to deuteration. A study evaluating the effects of phosphate buffer concentration on signal variability and assessment of the probability of citrate or creatinine resonances crossing bucket border (a boundary between adjacent integrated regions) led to the conclusion that a minimum buffer concentration of 0.3 M is adequate for normal urines used in this study. However, final buffer concentration of 1 M will be required for very concentrated urines.

  2. Biomarkers of Exposure to Toxic Substances: Volume 4: Metabonomics Biomarkers to Liver and Organ Damage

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2009-05-01

    examined the urinary metabolite profiles from rats following a single exposure to the kidney toxicants D- serine, puromycin, hippuric acid and...15. SUBJECT TERMS Amphotericin B, bioinformatics, cell cycle regulation, clinical, clustering analysis, D-serine, glomerular injury, hippuric acid ...puromycin, hippuric acid and amphotericin B at various doses, and as a function of time post-dose. In toxicology, such dose-time metabonomics studies are

  3. A urinary metabonomics analysis of long-term effect of acetochlor exposure on rats by ultra-performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Li, Longxue; Wang, Maoqing; Chen, Shuhong; Zhao, Wei; Zhao, Yue; Wang, Xu; Zhang, Yang

    2016-03-01

    The study was to assess the long-term toxic effects of acetochlor on rats. Two different doses (42.96 and 107.4 mg/kg body weight/day) of acetochlor were administered to Wistar rats through their food for over 24 weeks. Rat urine samples were collected at two time-points for the measurements of the metabonomics profiles with ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MSMS). The results of clinical chemistry and histopathology suggested that long-term use of acetochlor in rats caused liver and kidney damage, and dysfunction of antioxidant system. The urinary metabonomics analysis indicated that the high and low-dose exposure of acetochlor could cause alterations of these metabonomics in urine in the rat. Significant changes of the levels of hippuric acid (0.403-fold decrease), citric acid (0.430-fold decrease), pantothenic acid (0.486-fold decrease), uracil (0.419-fold decrease), β-Alanine (0.325-fold decrease), nonanedioic acid (0.445-fold decrease), L-tyrosine (0.410-fold decrease), D-glucuronic acid (8.389-fold increase) and 2-ethyl-6-methyl-N-methyl-2-chloro-acetanilide in urine were observed. In addition, it may interfere with the fatty acid synthesis, the pyrimidine degradation and pantothenate biosynthesis. The level of 2-ethyl-6-methyl-N-methyl-2-chloro-acetanilide is detected in all treated groups which is not found in the control groups, indicating which can be used as an early, sensitive marker of acetochlor exposure in rat. This study illustrates the important utility of metabonomics approaches to understand the toxicity of long-term exposure of acetochlor. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  4. An effective assessment of valproate sodium-induced hepatotoxicity with UPLC-MS and (1)HNMR-based metabonomics approach.

    PubMed

    Huo, Taoguang; Chen, Xi; Lu, Xiumei; Qu, Lianyue; Liu, Yang; Cai, Shuang

    2014-10-15

    Valproate sodium is one of the most prescribed antiepileptic drugs. However, valproate sodium has various side effects, especially its toxicity on liver. Current markers for toxicity reflect mostly the late stages of tissue damage; thus, more efficient methods for toxicity evaluation are desired. To evaluate the toxicity of valproate sodium on liver, we performed both UPLC-MS and (1)HNMR-based metabonomics analysis of serum samples from 34 epileptic patients (age: 42.0±18.6, 18 male/16 female) after valproate sodium treatment. Compared to conventional markers, the serum metabolic profiles provided clear distinction of the valproate sodium induced normal liver function and abnormal liver function in epileptic patients. Through multivariate statistical analysis, we identified marker metabolites associated with the hepatotoxicity induced by valproate sodium, such as glucose, lactate, acetoacetate, VLDL/LDL, lysophosphatidylcholines, phosphatidylcholines, choline, creatine, amino acids, N-acetyl glycoprotein, pyruvate and uric acid. This metabonomics approach may provide effective way to evaluate the valproate sodium-induced toxicity in a manner that can complement current measures. This approach is expected to find broader application in other drug-induced toxicity assessment. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Icariin reverses corticosterone-induced depression-like behavior, decrease in hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and metabolic network disturbances revealed by NMR-based metabonomics in rats.

    PubMed

    Gong, Meng-Juan; Han, Bin; Wang, Shu-mei; Liang, Sheng-wang; Zou, Zhong-jie

    2016-05-10

    Previously published reports have revealed the antidepressant-like effects of icariin in a chronic mild stress model of depression and in a social defeat stress model in mice. However, the therapeutic effect of icariin in an animal model of glucocorticoid-induced depression remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate antidepressant-like effect and the possible mechanisms of icariin in a rat model of corticosterone (CORT)-induced depression by using a combination of behavioral and biochemical assessments and NMR-based metabonomics. The depression model was established by subcutaneous injections of CORT for 21 consecutive days in rats, as evidenced by reduced sucrose intake and hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels, together with an increase in immobility time in a forced swim test (FST). Icariin significantly increased sucrose intake and hippocampal BDNF level and decreased the immobility time in FST in CORT-induced depressive rats, suggesting its potent antidepressant activity. Moreover, metabonomic analysis identified eight, five and three potential biomarkers associated with depression in serum, urine and brain tissue extract, respectively. These biomarkers are primarily involved in energy metabolism, lipid metabolism, amino acid metabolism and gut microbe metabolism. Icariin reversed the pathological process of CORT-induced depression, partially via regulation of the disturbed metabolic pathways. These results provide important mechanistic insights into the protective effects of icariin against CORT-induced depression and metabolic dysfunction. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Plasma metabonomics study of the patients with acute anterior uveitis based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Guo, Junguo; Yan, Tingqin; Bi, Hongsheng; Xie, Xiaofeng; Wang, Xingrong; Guo, Dadong; Jiang, Haiqiang

    2014-06-01

    The identification of the biomarkers of patients with acute anterior uveitis (AAU) may allow for a less invasive and more accurate diagnosis, as well as serving as a predictor in AAU progression and treatment response. The aim of this study was to identify the potential biomarkers and the metabolic pathways from plasma in patients with AAU. Both plasma metabolic biomarkers and metabolic pathways in the AAU patients versus healthy volunteers were investigated using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) and a metabonomics approach. The principal component analysis (PCA) was used to separate AAU patients from healthy volunteers as well as to identify the different biomarkers between the two groups. Metabolic compounds were matched to the KEGG, METLIN, and HMDB databases, and metabolic pathways associated with AAU were identified. The PCA for UPLC-MS data shows that the metabolites in AAU patients were significantly different from those of healthy volunteers. Of the 4,396 total features detected by UPLC-MS, 102 features were significantly different between AAU patients and healthy volunteers according to the variable importance plot (VIP) values (greater than two) of partial least squares discriminate analysis (PLS-DA). Thirty-three metabolic compounds were identified and were considered as potential biomarkers. Meanwhile, ten metabolic pathways were found that were related to the AAU according to the identified biomarkers. These data suggest that metabolomics study can identify potential metabolites that differ between AAU patients and healthy volunteers. Based on the PCA, PLS-DA, several potential metabolic biomarkers and pathways in AAU patients were found and identified. In addition, the UPLC-MS technique combined with metabonomics could be a suitable systematic biology tool in research in clinical problems in ophthalmology, and can provide further insight into the pathophysiology of AAU.

  7. Effects of breviscapine on amyloid beta 1-42 induced Alzheimer's disease mice: A HPLC-QTOF-MS based plasma metabonomics study.

    PubMed

    Xia, Hongjun; Wu, Lingling; Chu, Mengying; Feng, Huimin; Lu, Chunliang; Wang, Qinghe; He, Minghai; Ge, Xiaoqun

    2017-07-01

    Herba Erigerontis has long been used to cure apoplexy hemiplegia and precordial pain in China. In addition, the bioactivities of its total flavonoids-breviscapine included inhibiting amyloid beta (Aβ) fibril formation, antioxidation and metal chelating, which are beneficial to treat Alzheimer's disease (AD). Hence, A HPLC-QTOF-MS based plasma metabonomics approach was applied to investigate the neuroprotective effects of breviscapine on intracerebroventricular injection of aggregated Aβ 1-42 induced AD mice for the first time in the study. Ten potential biomarkers were screened out by multivariate statistical analysis, eight of which were further identified as indoleacrylic acid, C16 sphinganine, LPE (22:6), sulfolithocholic acid, LPC (16:0), PA (22:1/0:0), taurodeoxycholic acid, and PC (0:0/18:0). According to their metabolic pathways, it was supposed that breviscapine ameliorated the learning and memory deficits of AD mice predominantly by regulating phospholipids metabolism, elevating serotonin level and lowering cholesterols content in vivo. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Differential Gene Expression in Explanted Human Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells 24-Hours Post-Exposure to 532 nm, 3.0 ns Pulsed Laser Light and 1064 nm, 170 ps Pulsed Laser Light 12-Hours Post-Exposure: Results Compendium

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2004-06-01

    Additionally, we offer 3 conceptual cartoons outlining our vision for the future progres of laser bioeffects research, metabonomic risk assessment...future progress of laser bioeffects research, metabonomic risk assessment modeling and knowledge building from laser bioeffects data. BACKGROUND In the...our concepts of future laser bioeffects research directions (Figure 5), a metabonomic risk assessment model of laser tissue interaction (Figure 6

  9. [Advance in studies on Aconitum traditional Chinese medicines in toxicokinetics and metabonomics].

    PubMed

    Ma, Tian-Yu; Yu, Teng-Fei; Li, Shu-Min; Li, Gang

    2014-06-01

    Aconitum, as a kind of common traditional Chinese medicine, contains multiple biological active substances, with a very high medicinal value but high toxicity. Its major toxic ingredients are aconitine, mesaconitine and hypaconitine, which are also efficient ingredients. Therefore, the safety of its clinical application has aroused wide attention. With the constant deepening of drug development studies, people want to learn about its toxic mechanism and the regularity of its emergence and development of its toxicology, so as to make a scientific and rational assessment for its safety. Therefore, toxicokinetics and metabonomics have gradually become important content in the new drug assessment. During the development of drug performance, it is crucial to establish a scientific, objective and standardized Aconitum safety evaluation system and correctly assess and utilize its toxicity. Having summarized studies on metabonomics and toxicokinetics of Aconitum drugs in recent years, authors proposed to strengthen the studies on Aconitum drug safety assessment and establish a scientific and standardized safety evaluation system as soon as possible, in order to make the national treasure more useful.

  10. (1)H NMR-based metabonomics revealed protective effect of Naodesheng bioactive extract on ischemic stroke rats.

    PubMed

    Luo, Lan; Zhen, Lifeng; Xu, Yatao; Yang, Yongxia; Feng, Suxiang; Wang, Shumei; Liang, Shengwang

    2016-06-20

    Stroke is a leading cause of death and disability in the world. However, current therapies are limited. Naodesheng, a widely used traditional Chinese medicine prescription, has shown a good clinical curative effect on ischemic stroke. Also, Naodesheng has been suggested to have neuroprotective effect on focal cerebral ischemia rats, but the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. The present study was designed to evaluate the effect of Naodesheng bioactive extract on the metabolic changes in brain tissue, plasma and urine induced by cerebral ischemia perfusion injury, and explore the possible metabolic mechanisms by using a (1)H NMR-based metabonomics approach. A middle cerebral artery occlusion rat model was established and confirmed by the experiments of neurobehavioral abnormality evaluation, brain tissue TTC staining and pathological examination. The metabolic changes in brain tissue, plasma and urine were then assessed by a (1)H NMR technique combined with multivariate statistical analysis method. These NMR data showed that cerebral ischemia reperfusion induced great metabolic disorders in brain tissue, plasma and urine metabolisms. However, Naodesheng bioactive extract could reverse most of the imbalanced metabolites. Meanwhile, it was found that both the medium and high dosages of Naodesheng bioactive extract were more effective on the metabolic changes than the low dosage, consistent with histopathological assessments. These results revealed that Naodesheng had protective effect on ischemic stroke rats and the underlying mechanisms involved multiple metabolic pathways, including energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism, oxidative stress and inflammatory injury. The present study could provide evidence that metabonomics revealed its capacity to evaluate the holistic efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine and explore the underlying mechanisms. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Sample preparation prior to the LC-MS-based metabolomics/metabonomics of blood-derived samples.

    PubMed

    Gika, Helen; Theodoridis, Georgios

    2011-07-01

    Blood represents a very important biological fluid and has been the target of continuous and extensive research for diagnostic, or health and drug monitoring reasons. Recently, metabonomics/metabolomics have emerged as a new and promising 'omics' platform that shows potential in biomarker discovery, especially in areas such as disease diagnosis, assessment of drug efficacy or toxicity. Blood is collected in various establishments in conditions that are not standardized. Next, the samples are prepared and analyzed using different methodologies or tools. When targeted analysis of key molecules (e.g., a drug or its metabolite[s]) is the aim, enforcement of certain measures or additional analyses may correct and harmonize these discrepancies. In omics fields such as those performed by holistic analytical approaches, no such rules or tools are available. As a result, comparison or correlation of results or data fusion becomes impractical. However, it becomes evident that such obstacles should be overcome in the near future to allow for large-scale studies that involve the assaying of samples from hundreds of individuals. In this case the effect of sample handling and preparation becomes very serious, in order to avoid wasting months of work from experts and expensive instrument time. The present review aims to cover the different methodologies applied to the pretreatment of blood prior to LC-MS metabolomic/metabonomic studies. The article tries to critically compare the methods and highlight issues that need to be addressed.

  12. Global Metabolic Stress of Isoeffort Continuous and High Intensity Interval Aerobic Exercise: A Comparative 1H NMR Metabonomic Study.

    PubMed

    Zafeiridis, Andreas; Chatziioannou, Anastasia Chrysovalantou; Sarivasiliou, Haralambos; Kyparos, Antonios; Nikolaidis, Michalis G; Vrabas, Ioannis S; Pechlivanis, Alexandros; Zoumpoulakis, Panagiotis; Baskakis, Constantinos; Dipla, Konstantina; Theodoridis, Georgios A

    2016-12-02

    The overall metabolic/energetic stress that occurs during an acute bout of exercise is proposed to be the main driving force for long-term training adaptations. Continuous and high-intensity interval exercise protocols (HIIE) are currently prescribed to acquire the muscular and metabolic benefits of aerobic training. We applied 1 H NMR-based metabonomics to compare the overall metabolic perturbation and activation of individual bioenergetic pathways of three popular aerobic exercises matched for effort/strain. Nine men performed continuous, long-interval (3 min), and short-interval (30 s) bouts of exercise under isoeffort conditions. Blood was collected before and after exercise. The multivariate PCA and OPLS-DA models showed a distinct separation of pre- and postexercise samples in three protocols. The two models did not discriminate the postexercise overall metabolic profiles of the three exercise types. Analysis focused on muscle bioenergetic pathways revealed an extensive upregulation of carbohydrate-lipid metabolism and the TCA cycle in all three protocols; there were only a few differences among protocols in the postexercise abundance of molecules when long-interval bouts were performed. In conclusion, continuous and HIIE exercise protocols, when performed with similar effort/strain, induce comparable global metabolic response/stress despite their marked differences in work-bout intensities. This study highlights the importance of NMR metabonomics in comprehensive monitoring of metabolic consequences of exercise training in the blood of athletes and exercising individuals.

  13. Metabonomics approach to determine metabolic differences between green tea and black tea consumption.

    PubMed

    Van Dorsten, Ferdi A; Daykin, Clare A; Mulder, Theo P J; Van Duynhoven, John P M

    2006-09-06

    The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of black and green tea consumption on human metabolism. Seventeen healthy male volunteers consumed black tea, green tea, or caffeine in a randomized crossover study. Twenty-four-hour urine and blood plasma samples were analyzed by NMR-based metabonomics, that is, high-resolution 1H NMR metabolic profiling combined with multivariate statistics. Green and black tea consumption resulted in similar increases in urinary excretion of hippuric acid and 1,3-dihydroxyphenyl-2-O-sulfate, both of which are end products of tea flavonoid degradation by colonic bacteria. Several unidentified aromatic metabolites were detected in urine specifically after green tea intake. Interestingly, green and black tea intake also had a different impact on endogenous metabolites in urine and plasma. Green tea intake caused a stronger increase in urinary excretion of several citric acid cycle intermediates, which suggests an effect of green tea flavanols on human oxidative energy metabolism and/or biosynthetic pathways.

  14. International NMR-based Environmental Metabolomics Intercomparison Exercise

    EPA Science Inventory

    Several fundamental requirements must be met so that NMR-based metabolomics and the related technique of metabonomics can be formally adopted into environmental monitoring and chemical risk assessment. Here we report an intercomparison exercise which has evaluated the effectivene...

  15. Correlations of Fecal Metabonomic and Microbiomic Changes Induced by High-fat Diet in the Pre-Obesity State

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lin, Hong; An, Yanpeng; Hao, Fuhua; Wang, Yulan; Tang, Huiru

    2016-02-01

    Obesity resulting from interactions of genetic and environmental factors becomes a serious public health problem worldwide with alterations of the metabolic phenotypes in multiple biological matrices involving multiple metabolic pathways. To understand the contributions of gut microbiota to obesity development, we analyzed dynamic alterations in fecal metabonomic phenotype using NMR and fecal microorganism composition in rats using pyrosequencing technology during the high-fat diet (HFD) feeding for 81 days (pre-obesity state). Integrated analysis of these two phenotypic datasets was further conducted to establish correlations between the altered rat fecal metabonome and gut microbiome. We found that one-week HFD feeding already caused significant changes in rat fecal metabonome and such changes sustained throughout 81-days feeding with the host and gut microbiota co-metabolites clearly featured. We also found that HFD caused outstanding decreases in most fecal metabolites implying enhancement of gut absorptions. We further established comprehensive correlations between the HFD-induced changes in fecal metabonome and fecal microbial composition indicating contributions of gut microbiota in pathogenesis and progression of the HFD-induced obesity. These findings provided essential information about the functions of gut microbiota in pathogenesis of metabolic disorders which could be potentially important for developing obesity prevention and treatment therapies.

  16. A UHPLC-TOF/MS method based metabonomic study of total ginsenosides effects on Alzheimer disease mouse model.

    PubMed

    Gong, Yingge; Liu, Ying; Zhou, Ling; Di, Xin; Li, Wei; Li, Qing; Bi, Kaishun

    2015-11-10

    A metabonomic method was established to find potential biomarkers and study the metabolism disturbance in Alzheimer disease animal model. Total ginsenosides, as potential agent in neuroprotection and anti-inflammation, was also studied to learn the regulation mechanism to plasma metabolites in model animals. In experiment, amyloid beta 1-42 was occupied to form Alzheimer disease animal model. After drug administration, animals were evaluated by Morris water maze behavior test and sacrificed. Plasma samples were then analyzed using UHPLC-TOF/MS method to determine the endogenous metabolites. Behavior test results revealed that the spatial learning and memory abilities were deficit in model mice, and total ginsenosides could improve cognition abilities in dose-dependent manners. Principal component analysis showed that model and sham were divided into two groups, which means the metabolic network of mice was disturbed after modeling. Accordingly, 19 biomarkers were found and identified. In model group, the levels of proline, valine, tryptophan, LPC (14:0), LPC (15:0), LPC (15:1), LPC (17:0), LPC (18:2), LPC (18:3) and LPC (20:4) were up-regulated, while the levels of acetylcarnitine, palmitoylcarnitine, vaccenylcarnitine, phytosphingosine, N-eicosanoylethanolamine, hexadecenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, docosapentaenoic acid and octadecadienoic acid were down-regulated. The levels of these metabolites were recovered in different degrees after total ginsenosides administration. Combining with behavior study results, total ginsenosides could ameliorate both cognition symptoms and metabolic changes in model animals. This metabonomic approach provided a feasible way to understand the endogenous alterations of AD and to study the pharmacodynamic activity of novel agents. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Short-term toxicity assessments of an antibiotic metabolite in Wistar rats and its metabonomics analysis by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Han, Hongxing; Xiao, Hailong; Lu, Zhenmei

    2016-02-15

    4-Epi-oxytetracycline (4-EOTC), one of main oxytetracycline (OTC) metabolites, can be commonly detected in food and environment. The toxicity and effects of OTC on animals have been well characterized; however, its metabolites have never been studied systemically. This study aims to investigate 15-day oral dose toxicity and urine metabonomics changes of 4-EOTC after repeated administration in Wistar rats at daily doses of 0.5, 5.0 and 50.0mg/kg bw (bodyweight). Hematology and clinical chemistry parameters, including white blood cell count, red blood cell count, total protein, globulin and albumin/globulin, were obviously altered in rats of 5.0 and 50.0mg/kg bw. Histopathology changes of kidney and liver tissues were also observed in high-dose groups. Urinary metabolites from all groups were analyzed using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS). Seventeen metabolites contributing to the clusters were identified as potential biomarkers from multivariate analysis, including aminoadipic acid, 6-phosphogluconate, sebacic acid, pipecolic acid, etc. The significant changes of these biomarkers demonstrated metabonomic variations in treated rats, especially lysine and purine metabolism. For the first time in this paper, we combined the results of toxicity and metabonomics induced by 4-EOTC for the serious reconsideration of the safety and potential risks of antibiotics and its degradation metabolites. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Metabonomics study of the therapeutic mechanism of fenugreek galactomannan on diabetic hyperglycemia in rats, by ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Wenyue; Gao, Lu; Li, Pengdong; Kan, Hong; Qu, Jiale; Men, Lihui; Liu, Zhiqiang; Liu, Zhongying

    2017-02-15

    Fenugreek is a traditional plant for the treatment of diabetes. Galactomannan, an active major component in fenugreek seeds, has shown hypoglycemic activity. The present study was performed to investigate the therapeutic mechanism underlying fenugreek galactomannan (F-GAL) in treating diabetes, using a metabonomics approach based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF/MS). The F-GAL used for study was highly purified, and its yield, purity, and galactose/mannose ratio were characterized by capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) and a modified phenol-sulfuric acid method. After treatment of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats with F-GAL for 28days, urine and serum samples were analyzed by UPLC-QTOF/MS. Multivariate statistical approaches such as principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal projection to latent structures squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) were applied to distinguish the non-diabetic/untreated, diabetic/untreated, and diabetic/F-GAL-treated groups. Then, potential biomarkers were identified that may help elucidate the underlying therapeutic mechanism of F-GAL in diabetes. The results demonstrated that there was a clear separation among the three groups in the PCA model. Fourteen potential biomarkers were identified by OPLS-DA, and they were determined to be produced in response to the therapeutic effects of F-GAL. These biomarkers were involved in histidine metabolism, tryptophan metabolism, energy metabolism, phenylalanine metabolism, sphingolipid metabolism, glycerophospholipid metabolism, and arachidonic acid metabolism. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that a metabonomics approach is a powerful, novel tool that can be used to evaluate the underlying therapeutic mechanisms of herb extracts. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Metabonomics Approach to Assessing the Metabolism Variation and Endoexogenous Metabolic Interaction of Ginsenosides in Cold Stress Rats.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Zhihao; Wang, Xiaoyan; Wang, Jingcheng; Jia, Zhiying; Liu, Yumin; Xie, Xie; Wang, Chongchong; Jia, Wei

    2016-06-03

    Metabolic profiling technology, a massive information provider, has promoted the understanding of the metabolism of multicomponent medicines and its interactions with endogenous metabolites, which was previously a challenge in clarification. In this study, an untargeted GC/MS-based approach was employed to investigate the urinary metabolite profile in rats with oral administration of ginsenosides and the control group. Significant changes of urinary metabolites contents were observed in the total ginsenosides group, revealing the impact of ginsenosides as indicated by the up- or down-regulation of several pathways involving neurotransmitter-related metabolites, tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, fatty acids β-oxidation, and intestinal microflora metabolites. Meanwhile, a targeted UPLC-QQQ/MS-based metabonomic approach was developed to investigate the changes of urinary ginsenoside metabolites during the process of acute cold stress. Metabolic analysis indicated that upstream ginsenosides (rg1, re, and rf) increased significantly, whereas downstream ginsenosides (ck, ppd, and ppt) decreased correspondingly after cold exposure. Finally, the relationships between ginsenosides and significantly changed metabolites were investigated by correlation analysis.

  20. [Experimental study of metabonomics in the diagnosis of allergic rhinitis in mice].

    PubMed

    Wang, A; Li, Q F; Zhang, G Q; Zhao, C Q

    2016-02-01

    To investigate the application of metabonomics in the diagnosis of allergic rhinitis. Eighty male Kunming mice were randomly divided into two groups, control group (30 mice) and allergic rhinitis (AR) group (50 mice). After modeling, removal behavior score more than 6 and retain 30 mice behavior score equal to 6.Collect the mice peripheral blood and preparate blood serum, using UPLC-MS chromatographic separation and detection. The data were pretreated by SPSS and Excel, after chromatographic peak matching by MZmine. Firstly , delete interference data in accordance with the 80% rule .Then, the investigate data were analyzed by PLS-DA and PCA-X. Three-dimensional view of the control group (30 mice) and AR group (30 mice) blood serum data was drawn using PCA-X and PLS-DA method. The two groups of samples could be completely separated through views, which showed that there was a significant difference between the two groups of data. There were some differences in the blood metabolites between the control group and AR group . The study showed that it was scientific and feasible to diagnose AR using the metabonomics.

  1. A metabonomic strategy for the detection of the metabolic effects of chamomile (Matricaria recutita L.) ingestion.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yulan; Tang, Huiru; Nicholson, Jeremy K; Hylands, Peter J; Sampson, J; Holmes, Elaine

    2005-01-26

    A metabonomic strategy, utilizing high-resolution 1H NMR spectroscopy in conjunction with chemometric methods (discriminant analysis with orthogonal signal correction), has been applied to the study of human biological responses to chamomile tea ingestion. Daily urine samples were collected from volunteers during a 6-week period incorporating a 2-week baseline period, 2 weeks of daily chamomile tea ingestion, and a 2-week post-treatment phase. Although strong intersubject variation in metabolite profiles was observed, clear differentiation between the samples obtained before and after chamomile ingestion was achieved on the basis of increased urinary excretion of hippurate and glycine with depleted creatinine concentration. Samples obtained up to 2 weeks after daily chamomile intake formed an isolated cluster in the discriminant analysis map, from which it was inferred that the metabolic effects of chamomile ingestion were prolonged during the 2-week postdosing period. This study highlights the potential for metabonomic technology in the assessment of nutritional interventions, despite the high degree of variation from genetic and environmental sources.

  2. Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS) of Prostatic Fluids for Early Detection of Prostate Cancer

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2005-10-01

    measured using external 1H-NMRS coils, increasing the practicality of the metabonomic approach. In conclusion, the absolute concentrations of the...Lindon, J.C., and Holmes, E. “ Metabonomics ”: understanding the metabolic responses of living systems to pathophysiological stimuli via multivariate

  3. A QC approach to the determination of day-to-day reproducibility and robustness of LC-MS methods for global metabolite profiling in metabonomics/metabolomics.

    PubMed

    Gika, Helen G; Theodoridis, Georgios A; Earll, Mark; Wilson, Ian D

    2012-09-01

    An approach to the determination of day-to-day analytical robustness of LC-MS-based methods for global metabolic profiling using a pooled QC sample is presented for the evaluation of metabonomic/metabolomic data. A set of 60 urine samples were repeatedly analyzed on five different days and the day-to-day reproducibility of the data obtained was determined. Multivariate statistical analysis was performed with the aim of evaluating variability and selected peaks were assessed and validated in terms of retention time stability, mass accuracy and intensity. The methodology enables the repeatability/reproducibility of extended analytical runs in large-scale studies to be determined, allowing the elimination of analytical (as opposed to biological) variability, in order to discover true patterns and correlations within the data. The day-to-day variability of the data revealed by this process suggested that, for this particular system, 3 days continuous operation was possible without the need for maintenance and cleaning. Variation was generally based on signal intensity changes over the 7-day period of the study, and was mainly a result of source contamination.

  4. Di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate Alters the Synthesis and β-Oxidation of Fatty Acids and Hinders ATP Supply in Mouse Testes via UPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap MS-Based Metabonomics Study.

    PubMed

    Shen, Guolin; Zhou, Lili; Liu, Wei; Cui, Yuan; Xie, Wenping; Chen, Huiming; Yu, Wenlian; Li, Wentao; Li, Haishan

    2017-06-21

    Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is considered to be an environmental endocrine disruptor at high levels of general exposure. Studies show that DEHP may cause testicular toxicity on human being. In this study, metabonomics techniques were used to identify differential endogenous metabolites, draw the network metabolic pathways, and conduct network analysis, to determine the underlying mechanisms of testicular toxicity induced by DEHP. The results showed that DEHP inhibited synthesis and accelerated β-oxidation of fatty acids and impaired the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA cycle) and gluconeogenesis, resulting in lactic acid accumulation and an insufficient ATP supply in the microenvironment of the testis. These alterations led to testicular atrophy and, thus, may be the underlying causes of testicular toxicity. DEHP also inhibited peroxisome proliferator activated receptors in the testis, which may be another potential reason for the testicular atrophy. These findings provided new insights to better understand the mechanisms of testicular toxicity induced by DEHP exposure.

  5. Metabonomics Indicates Inhibition of Fatty Acid Synthesis, β-Oxidation, and Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle in Triclocarban-Induced Cardiac Metabolic Alterations in Male Mice.

    PubMed

    Xie, Wenping; Zhang, Wenpeng; Ren, Juan; Li, Wentao; Zhou, Lili; Cui, Yuan; Chen, Huiming; Yu, Wenlian; Zhuang, Xiaomei; Zhang, Zhenqing; Shen, Guolin; Li, Haishan

    2018-02-14

    Triclocarban (TCC) has been identified as a new environmental pollutant that is potentially hazardous to human health; however, the effects of short-term TCC exposure on cardiac function are not known. The aim of this study was to use metabonomics and molecular biology techniques to systematically elucidate the molecular mechanisms of TCC-induced effects on cardiac function in mice. Our results show that TCC inhibited the uptake, synthesis, and oxidation of fatty acids, suppressed the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, and increased aerobic glycolysis levels in heart tissue after short-term TCC exposure. TCC also inhibited the nuclear peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα), confirming its inhibitory effects on fatty acid uptake and oxidation. Histopathology and other analyses further confirm that TCC altered mouse cardiac physiology and pathology, ultimately affecting normal cardiac metabolic function. We elucidate the molecular mechanisms of TCC-induced harmful effects on mouse cardiac metabolism and function from a new perspective, using metabonomics and bioinformatics analysis data.

  6. Serum metabonomics study of the hepatoprotective effect of Corydalis saxicola Bunting on carbon tetrachloride-induced acute hepatotoxicity in rats by (1)H NMR analysis.

    PubMed

    Liang, Yong-Hong; Tang, Chao-Ling; Lu, Shi-Yin; Cheng, Bang; Wu, Fang; Chen, Zhao-Ni; Song, Fangming; Ruan, Jun-Xiang; Zhang, Hong-Ye; Song, Hui; Zheng, Hua; Su, Zhi-Heng

    2016-09-10

    Corydalis saxicola Bunting (CS), a traditional Chinese folk medicine, has been effectively used for treating liver disease in Zhuang nationality in South China. However, the exact hepatoprotective mechanism of CS was still looking forward to further elucidation by far. In present work, metabonomic study of biochemical changes in the serum of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced acute liver injury rats after CS treatment were performed using proton nuclear magnetic resonance ((1)H-NMR) analysis. Metabolic profiling by means of principal components analysis (PCA) and partial least squares-discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) indicated that the metabolic perturbation caused by CCl4 was reduced by CS treatment. A total of 9 metabolites including isoleucine (1), lactate (2), alanine (3), glutamine (4), acetone (5), succinate (6), phosphocholine (7), d-glucose (8) and glycerol (9) were considered as potential biomarkers involved in the development of CCl4-induced acute liver injury. According to pathway analysis by metabolites identified and correlation network construction by Pearson's correlation coefficency matrix, alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism and glycerolipid metabolism were recognized as the most influenced metabolic pathways associated with CCl4 injury. As a result, notably, deviations of metabolites 1, 3, 4, 7 and 9 in the process of CCl4-induced acute liver injury were improved by CS treatment, which suggested that CS mediated synergistically abnormalities of the metabolic pathways, composed of alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism and glycerolipid metabolism. In this study, it was the first report to investigate the hepatoprotective effect of the CS based on metabonomics strategy, which may be a potentially powerful tool to interpret the action mechanism of traditional Chinese folk medicines. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Han, Hongxing; Xiao, Hailong; Lu, Zhenmei, E-mail: lzhenmei@zju.edu.cn

    4-Epi-oxytetracycline (4-EOTC), one of main oxytetracycline (OTC) metabolites, can be commonly detected in food and environment. The toxicity and effects of OTC on animals have been well characterized; however, its metabolites have never been studied systemically. This study aims to investigate 15-day oral dose toxicity and urine metabonomics changes of 4-EOTC after repeated administration in Wistar rats at daily doses of 0.5, 5.0 and 50.0 mg/kg bw (bodyweight). Hematology and clinical chemistry parameters, including white blood cell count, red blood cell count, total protein, globulin and albumin/globulin, were obviously altered in rats of 5.0 and 50.0 mg/kg bw. Histopathology changesmore » of kidney and liver tissues were also observed in high-dose groups. Urinary metabolites from all groups were analyzed using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS). Seventeen metabolites contributing to the clusters were identified as potential biomarkers from multivariate analysis, including aminoadipic acid, 6-phosphogluconate, sebacic acid, pipecolic acid, etc. The significant changes of these biomarkers demonstrated metabonomic variations in treated rats, especially lysine and purine metabolism. For the first time in this paper, we combined the results of toxicity and metabonomics induced by 4-EOTC for the serious reconsideration of the safety and potential risks of antibiotics and its degradation metabolites. - Highlights: • 4-Epioxytetracycline (4-EOTC) induced damages in liver and kidney. • Metabonomics changes especially amino acid and purine metabolism were observed. • Security of OTC metabolite 4-EOTC should be taken into serious reconsideration.« less

  8. A novel Bayesian approach to quantify clinical variables and to determine their spectroscopic counterparts in 1H NMR metabonomic data

    PubMed Central

    Vehtari, Aki; Mäkinen, Ville-Petteri; Soininen, Pasi; Ingman, Petri; Mäkelä, Sanna M; Savolainen, Markku J; Hannuksela, Minna L; Kaski, Kimmo; Ala-Korpela, Mika

    2007-01-01

    Background A key challenge in metabonomics is to uncover quantitative associations between multidimensional spectroscopic data and biochemical measures used for disease risk assessment and diagnostics. Here we focus on clinically relevant estimation of lipoprotein lipids by 1H NMR spectroscopy of serum. Results A Bayesian methodology, with a biochemical motivation, is presented for a real 1H NMR metabonomics data set of 75 serum samples. Lipoprotein lipid concentrations were independently obtained for these samples via ultracentrifugation and specific biochemical assays. The Bayesian models were constructed by Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) and they showed remarkably good quantitative performance, the predictive R-values being 0.985 for the very low density lipoprotein triglycerides (VLDL-TG), 0.787 for the intermediate, 0.943 for the low, and 0.933 for the high density lipoprotein cholesterol (IDL-C, LDL-C and HDL-C, respectively). The modelling produced a kernel-based reformulation of the data, the parameters of which coincided with the well-known biochemical characteristics of the 1H NMR spectra; particularly for VLDL-TG and HDL-C the Bayesian methodology was able to clearly identify the most characteristic resonances within the heavily overlapping information in the spectra. For IDL-C and LDL-C the resulting model kernels were more complex than those for VLDL-TG and HDL-C, probably reflecting the severe overlap of the IDL and LDL resonances in the 1H NMR spectra. Conclusion The systematic use of Bayesian MCMC analysis is computationally demanding. Nevertheless, the combination of high-quality quantification and the biochemical rationale of the resulting models is expected to be useful in the field of metabonomics. PMID:17493257

  9. A 1HNMR-Based Metabonomics Study of Postmenopausal Osteoporosis and Intervention Effects of Er-Xian Decoction in Ovariectomized Rats

    PubMed Central

    Xue, Liming; Wang, Yin; Liu, Lei; Zhao, Lu; Han, Ting; Zhang, Qiaoyan; Qin, Luping

    2011-01-01

    A metabonomics method using 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1HNMR) was applied to obtain a systematic view of the development and progression of postmenopausal osteoporosis. Using partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), 26 and 34 characteristic resonances were found respectively in urine and plasma of ovariectomized rats (Variable importance, VIP value ≥1.0), and the significant altered metabolites identified in the plasma and urine were 10 and 9, respectively. Changes in these metabolites were related to the pathways of lipid, energy and amino acid metabolism, some of which involved the oxidative system. The described method was also used to analyze the therapeutic effects of Er-Xian Decoction (EXD), a traditional Chinese medicine widely used in the clinical treatment of osteoporosis in China. The results showed that EXD administration could provide satisfactory effects on osteoporosis through partially regulating the perturbed pathways of lipid, energy and amino acid metabolism and improving the anti-oxidative ability. PMID:22174622

  10. Measuring Biological Age via Metabonomics: The Metabolic Age Score.

    PubMed

    Hertel, Johannes; Friedrich, Nele; Wittfeld, Katharina; Pietzner, Maik; Budde, Kathrin; Van der Auwera, Sandra; Lohmann, Tobias; Teumer, Alexander; Völzke, Henry; Nauck, Matthias; Grabe, Hans Jörgen

    2016-02-05

    Chronological age is one of the most important risk factors for adverse clinical outcome. Still, two individuals at the same chronological age could have different biological aging states, leading to different individual risk profiles. Capturing this individual variance could constitute an even more powerful predictor enhancing prediction in age-related morbidity. Applying a nonlinear regression technique, we constructed a metabonomic measurement for biological age, the metabolic age score, based on urine data measured via (1)H NMR spectroscopy. We validated the score in two large independent population-based samples by revealing its significant associations with chronological age and age-related clinical phenotypes as well as its independent predictive value for survival over approximately 13 years of follow-up. Furthermore, the metabolic age score was prognostic for weight loss in a sample of individuals who underwent bariatric surgery. We conclude that the metabolic age score is an informative measurement of biological age with possible applications in personalized medicine.

  11. 1H-NMR METABONOMICS ANALYSIS OF SERA DIFFERENTIATES BETWEEN MAMMARY TUMOR-BEARING MICE AND HEALTHY CONTROLS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Global analysis of 1H-NMR spectra of serum is an appealing approach for the rapid detection of cancer. To evaluate the usefulness of this method in distinguishing between mammary tumor-bearing mice and healthy controls, we conducted 1H-NMR metabonomic analyses on serum samples ob...

  12. A DATABASE FOR TRACKING TOXICOGENOMIC SAMPLES AND PROCEDURES WITH GENOMIC, PROTEOMIC AND METABONOMIC COMPONENTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    A Database for Tracking Toxicogenomic Samples and Procedures with Genomic, Proteomic and Metabonomic Components
    Wenjun Bao1, Jennifer Fostel2, Michael D. Waters2, B. Alex Merrick2, Drew Ekman3, Mitchell Kostich4, Judith Schmid1, David Dix1
    Office of Research and Developmen...

  13. Analysis of the Effects of δ-Tocopherol on RAW264.7 and K562 Cells Based on 1H NMR Metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Lu, Yang; Li, Hui; Geng, Yue

    2018-01-31

    δ-Tocopherol (δ-TOH) is a form of vitamin E with higher bioactivity. In this study, we studied the bioactivity of δ-TOH using the IC 50 of δ-TOH on RAW264.7 (80 μM) and K562 (110 μM) cells. We compared the differential metabolites from the cell lines with and without δ-TOH treatment by 1 H NMR metabonomics analysis. It was found that δ-TOH affected the protein biosynthesis, betaine metabolism, and urea cycle in various ways in both cell lines. Metabolic levels of the cell lines were changed after treatment with δ-TOH as differential metabolites were produced. The betaine level in RAW264.7 cells was reduced significantly, while the l-lactic acid level in K562 cells was significantly enhanced. The metabolic changes might contribute to the switch of the respiration pattern from aerobic respiration to anaerobic respiration in K562 cells. These results are helpful in further understanding the subtoxicity of δ-TOH.

  14. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of biofluids and extracts.

    PubMed

    Emwas, Abdul-Hamid M; Al-Talla, Zeyad A; Yang, Yang; Kharbatia, Najeh M

    2015-01-01

    Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) has been widely used in metabonomics analyses of biofluid samples. Biofluids provide a wealth of information about the metabolism of the whole body and from multiple regions of the body that can be used to study general health status and organ function. Blood serum and blood plasma, for example, can provide a comprehensive picture of the whole body, while urine can be used to monitor the function of the kidneys, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) will provide information about the status of the brain and central nervous system (CNS). Different methods have been developed for the extraction of metabolites from biofluids, these ranging from solvent extracts, acids, heat denaturation, and filtration. These methods vary widely in terms of efficiency of protein removal and in the number of metabolites extracted. Consequently, for all biofluid-based metabonomics studies, it is vital to optimize and standardize all steps of sample preparation, including initial extraction of metabolites. In this chapter, recommendations are made of the optimum experimental conditions for biofluid samples for GC-MS, with a particular focus on blood serum and plasma samples.

  15. Metabolic profiles in serum of mouse after chronic exposure to drinking water.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Yan; Wu, Bing; Zhang, Xuxiang; Li, Aimin; Cheng, Shupei

    2011-08-01

    The toxicity of Nanjing drinking water on mouse (Mus musculus) was detected by (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabonomic method. Three groups of mice were fed with drinking water (produced by Nanjing BHK Water Plant), 3.8 μg/L benzo(a)pyrene as contrast, and clean water as control, respectively, for 90 days. It was observed that the levels of lactate, alanine, and creatinine in the mice fed with drinking water were increased and that of valine was decreased. The mice of drinking water group were successfully separated from control. The total concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), phthalates (PAEs), and other organic pollutants in the drinking water were 0.23 μg/L, 4.57 μg/L, and 0.34 μg/L, respectively. In this study, Nanjing drinking water was found to induce distinct perturbations of metabolic profiles on mouse including disorders of glucose-alanine cycle, branched-chain amino acid and energy metabolism, and dysfunction of kidney. This study suggests that metabonomic method is feasible and sensitive to evaluate potential toxic effects of drinking water.

  16. Role of Bai-Shao towards the antidepressant effect of Chaihu-Shu-Gan-San using metabonomics integrated with chemical fingerprinting.

    PubMed

    Chang, Xing; Jia, Hongmei; Zhou, Chao; Zhang, Hongwu; Yu, Meng; Yang, Junshan; Zou, Zhongmei

    2015-12-01

    Chaihu-Shu-Gan-San (CSGS) is a classical traditional Chinese medicine formula for the treatment of depression. As one of the single herbs in CSGS, Bai-Shao displayed antidepressant effect. In order to explore the role of Bai-Shao towards the antidepressant effect of CSGS, the metabolic regulation and chemical profiles of CSGS with and without Bai-Shao (QBS) were investigated using metabonomics integrated with chemical fingerprinting. At first, partial least squares regression (PLSR) analysis was applied to characterize the potential biomarkers associated with chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS)-induced depression. Among 46 differential metabolites found in the ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS) and (1)H NMR-based urinary metabonomics, 20 were significantly correlated with the preferred sucrose consumption observed in behavior experiments and were considered as biomarkers to evaluate the antidepressant effect of CSGS. Based on differential regulation on CUMS-induced metabolic disturbances with CSGS and QBS treatments, we concluded that Bai-Shao made crucial contribution to CSGS in the improvement of the metabolic deviations of six biomarkers (i.e., glutamate, acetoacetic acid, creatinine, xanthurenic acid, kynurenic acid, and N-acetylserotonin) disturbed in CUMS-induced depression. While the chemical constituents of Bai-Shao contributed to CSGS were paeoniflorin, albiflorin, isomaltopaeoniflorin, and benzoylpaeoniflorin based on the multivariate analysis of the UPLC-Q-TOF/MS chemical profiles from CSGS and QBS extracts. These findings suggested that Bai-Shao played an indispensable role in the antidepressant effect of CSGS. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Application of metabonomic strategy to discover an unreported active ingredient in LiuWeiDiHuang pills suppressing beta-glucuronidase.

    PubMed

    Xie, Baogang; Zhang, Zhirong; Gong, Tao; Zhang, Ningning; Wang, Huiyun; Zou, Huiqing

    2015-01-01

    Identification of the bioactive ingredient from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) remains a challenging task by traditional approach that focuses on chemical isolation coupled with biological activity screening. Here, we present a metabonomics-based approach for bioactive ingredient discovery in LiuWeiDiHuang pills (LWPs). First, a non-targeted high-performance liquid chromatography ultraviolet (HPLC-UV) profiling of rat urine was used to discriminate urinary profiling intervened by LWPs. Orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) revealed that eight chromatographic peaks made a significant contribution to the classification of the LWPs group and the control group. Five of these chromatographic peaks were successfully isolated and identified as hippurate, genistein (GT), daidzein (DZ), and glucuronide conjugate of GT and that of DZ by mass spectroscopy (MS). Subsequently, we found that LWPs significantly decreased the activity of intestinal β-glucuronidase by 18 % and exerted a dose-dependent inhibitory effect on rat liver lysosomal fraction, suggesting that LWPs were a β-glucuronidase inhibitor. In the end, by inhibiting β-glucuronidase-guided isolation, D-glucaro-1,4-lactone, a previously unreported ingredient of LWPs, was identified by MS, MS/MS, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Our findings indicated that metabonomics might increase research productivity toward the drug targets and/or bioactive compounds from TCM.

  18. Metabonomics profiling of marinated meat in soy sauce during processing.

    PubMed

    Yang, Yang; Ye, Yangfang; Pan, Daodong; Sun, Yangying; Wang, Ying; Cao, Jinxuan

    2018-03-01

    Marinated meat in soy sauce is one of the most popular traditional cured meat products in China. Its taste quality is directly related to primary and secondary metabolites. Herein, the change of metabolite composition of marinated meat in soy sauce during processing was systematically characterised using 1 H NMR and multivariate data analysis. The marinated meat in soy sauce metabonome was dominated by 26 metabolites, including amino acids, sugars, organic acids, nucleic aides and their derivatives. PC1 and PC2 explained a total of 78.6% and 16.6% of variables, respectively. Amino acids, sugars, acetate, succinate, uracil and inosine increased during marinating, while lactate, creatine, inosine-5'-monophosphate (5'-IMP) and anserine decreased (P < 0.05). After marinating, most of the metabolites decreased except for acetate and alanine (P < 0.05). There was a negative effect on the taste of marinated meat in soy sauce during the late stage of dry-ripening. These findings indicated that the potential of NMR-based metabonomics is of importance for taste quality of marinated meat in soy sauce, which could contribute to a better understanding of the changes of taste compounds in meat products during processing. Shortening the dry-ripening period could be considered to improve the taste quality. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

  19. Metabonomics study on the hot syndrome of traditional Chinese medicine by rapid resolution liquid chromatography combined with quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yang; Ma, Li; Sun, Yi; Yang, Liman; Yue, Hao; Liu, Shuying

    2014-07-01

    The hot syndrome refers to any feverish conditions during a pathological development, a sub-health phenomenon, and is a potential risk for human health. The metabonomics study on the hot syndrome may provide insight into understanding of its pathology and play a role in the prevention and treatment of its related diseases. In this paper, the rats were dosed with the hot syndrome prescription, ginseng and water. The corresponding urine samples were identified by rapid resolution liquid chromatography combined with quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry. More than 1,000 metabolic compounds from different urine samples could be further differentiated by principal component analysis. As a result, the rat body temperature and weight were recognized as the hot syndrome related factors. Some specific metabolites have been discovered as a pattern of the potential biomarkers for the hot syndrome. The results showed that ginseng cannot cause the hot syndrome in a reasonable dose, but the hot syndrome prescription can. It is suggested that ginseng cannot be used only as a tradition Chinese medicine but also as a nutrient. The work showed metabonomics method is a valuable tool in studying mechanism of the hot syndrome.

  20. Following healthy pregnancy by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) metabolic profiling of human urine.

    PubMed

    Diaz, Sílvia O; Barros, António S; Goodfellow, Brian J; Duarte, Iola F; Carreira, Isabel M; Galhano, Eulália; Pita, Cristina; Almeida, Maria do Céu; Gil, Ana M

    2013-02-01

    In this work, untargeted NMR metabonomics was employed to evaluate the effects of pregnancy on the metabolite composition of maternal urine, thus establishing a control excretory trajectory for healthy pregnancies. Urine was collected for independent groups of healthy nonpregnant and pregnant women (in first, second, third trimesters) and multivariate analysis performed on the corresponding NMR spectra. Models were validated through Monte Carlo Cross Validation and permutation tests and metabolite correlations measured through Statistical Total Correlation Spectroscopy. The levels of 21 metabolites were found to change significantly throughout pregnancy, with variations observed for the first time to our knowledge for choline, creatinine, 4-deoxyerythronic acid, 4-deoxythreonic acid, furoylglycine, guanidoacetate, 3-hydroxybutyrate, and lactate. Results confirmed increased aminoaciduria across pregnancy and suggested (a) a particular involvement of isoleucine and threonine in lipid oxidation/ketone body synthesis, (b) a relation of excreted choline, taurine, and guanidoacetate to methionine metabolism and urea cycle regulation, and (c) a possible relationship of furoylglycine and creatinine to pregnancy, based on a tandem study of nonfasting confounding effects. Results demonstrate the usefulness of untargeted metabonomics in finding biomarker metabolic signatures for healthy pregnancies, against which disease-related deviations may be confronted in future studies, as a base for improved diagnostics and prediction.

  1. Metabonomics and medicine: the Biochemical Oracle.

    PubMed

    Mitchell, Steve; Holmes, Elaine; Carmichael, Paul

    2002-10-01

    Occasionally, a new idea emerges that has the potential to revolutionize an entire field of scientific endeavour. It is now within our grasp to be able to detect subtle perturbations within the phenomenally complex biochemical matrix of living organisms. The discipline of metabonomics promises an all-encompassing approach to understanding total, yet fundamental, changes occurring in disease processes, drug toxicity and cell function.

  2. UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap MS combined with spike-in method for plasma metabonomics analysis of acute myocardial ischemia rats and pretreatment effect of Danqi Tongmai tablet.

    PubMed

    Yan, Bingpeng; Deng, Yanping; Hou, Jinjun; Bi, Qirui; Yang, Min; Jiang, Baohong; Liu, Xuan; Wu, Wanying; Guo, Dean

    2015-02-01

    Undoubtedly, metabonomics can reveal the comprehensive efficacies of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formulae and its complex mechanism at the molecular biological level. In this study, an attempt was made to address the pretreatment effect of a TCM formula. In this case, as a critical point, we should first know how to really reflect the various endogenous metabolites in a disease status before a TCM formula is employed in a therapeutic procedure. Here, we explored an approach that combined high resolution LTQ-Orbitrap mass spectrometry with a spike-in method to characterize endogenous metabolites in acute myocardial ischemia (AMI) rats. As a result, 19 potential biomarkers in rat plasma were identified and 10 related disturbed pathways were perturbed in the early stages of AMI development. Subsequently, the metabonomics method was applied to investigate the pretreatment effect of the TCM formula named the Danqi Tongmai tablet (DQTM). The results revealed that the DQTM pretreatment could reduce the AMI injury and partially regulate the perturbed TCA cycle and amino and nucleotide metabolism, which were presumable related to energy metabolism and myocardial cells apoptosis/necrosis. In conclusion, UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap MS combined with a spike-in method were successfully applied to the metabonomics analysis of DQTM, which demonstrated that not only a comprehensive metabolic profile in the early stages of AMI development was achieved, but also that the underlying holistic efficacies were assessed and it was helpful to understand the possible mechanism of pretreatment with DQTM.

  3. Staging research of human lung cancer tissues by high-resolution magic angle spinning proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (HRMAS 1 H NMR) and multivariate data analysis.

    PubMed

    Chen, Wenxue; Lu, Shaohua; Wang, Guifang; Chen, Fener; Bai, Chunxue

    2017-10-01

    High-resolution magic-angle spinning proton nuclear magnetic resonance (HRMAS 1 H NMR) spectroscopy technique was employed to analyze the metabonomic characterizations of lung cancer tissues in hope to identify potential diagnostic biomarkers for malignancy detection and staging research of lung tissues. HRMAS 1 H NMR spectroscopy technique can rapidly provide important information for accurate diagnosis and staging of cancer tissues owing to its noninvasive nature and limited requirement for the samples, and thus has been acknowledged as an excellent tool to investigate tissue metabolism and provide a more realistic insight into the metabonomics of tissues when combined with multivariate data analysis (MVDA) such as component analysis and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis in particular. HRMAS 1 H NMR spectra displayed the metabonomic differences of 32 lung cancer tissues at the different stages from 32 patients. The significant changes (P < 0.05) of some important metabolites such as lipids, aspartate and choline-containing compounds in cancer tissues at the different stages had been identified. Furthermore, the combination of HRMAS 1 H NMR spectroscopy and MVDA might potentially and precisely provided for a high sensitivity, specificity, prediction accuracy in the positive identification of the staging for the cancer tissues in contrast with the pathological data in clinic. This study highlighted the potential of metabonomics in clinical settings so that the techniques might be further exploited for the diagnosis and staging prediction of lung cancer in future. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

  4. RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY-BASED METABOLOMICS: EVALUATION OF SAMPLE PREPARATION AND OPTICAL ACCESSORIES

    EPA Science Inventory

    The field of metabonomics/metabolomics involves observing endogenous metabolites from organisms that change in response to exposure to a stressor or chemical of interest. Methods are being developed for measuring the Raman spectra of low-concentration metabolites in urine. The ...

  5. The liver-gut microbiota axis modulates hepatotoxicity of tacrine in the rat.

    PubMed

    Yip, Lian Yee; Aw, Chiu Cheong; Lee, Sze Han; Hong, Yi Shuen; Ku, Han Chen; Xu, Winston Hecheng; Chan, Jessalyn Mei Xuan; Cheong, Eleanor Jing Yi; Chng, Kern Rei; Ng, Amanda Hui Qi; Nagarajan, Niranjan; Mahendran, Ratha; Lee, Yuan Kun; Browne, Edward R; Chan, Eric Chun Yong

    2018-01-01

    The gut microbiota possesses diverse metabolic activities, but its contribution toward heterogeneous toxicological responses is poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the role of the liver-gut microbiota axis in underpinning the hepatotoxicity of tacrine. We employed an integrated strategy combining pharmacokinetics, toxicology, metabonomics, genomics, and metagenomics to elucidate and validate the mechanism of tacrine-induced hepatotoxicity in Lister hooded rats. Pharmacokinetic studies in rats demonstrated 3.3-fold higher systemic exposure to tacrine in strong responders that experienced transaminitis, revealing enhanced enterohepatic recycling of deglucuronidated tacrine in this subgroup, not attributable to variation in hepatic disposition gene expression. Metabonomic studies implicated variations in gut microbial activities that mapped onto tacrine-induced transaminitis. Metagenomics delineated greater deglucuronidation capabilities in strong responders, based on differential gut microbial composition (e.g., Lactobacillus, Bacteroides, and Enterobacteriaceae) and approximately 9% higher β-glucuronidase gene abundance compared with nonresponders. In the validation study, coadministration with oral β-glucuronidase derived from Escherichia coli and pretreatment with vancomycin and imipenem significantly modulated the susceptibility to tacrine-induced transaminitis in vivo. This study establishes pertinent gut microbial influences in modifying the hepatotoxicity of tacrine, providing insights for personalized medicine initiatives. (Hepatology 2018;67:282-295). © 2017 by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

  6. Sample collection and preparation of biofluids and extracts for gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Emwas, Abdul-Hamid M; Al-Talla, Zeyad A; Kharbatia, Najeh M

    2015-01-01

    To maximize the utility of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) in metabonomics research, all stages of the experimental design should be standardized, including sample collection, storage, preparation, and sample separation. Moreover, the prerequisite for any GC-MS analysis is that a compound must be volatile and thermally stable if it is to be analyzed using this technique. Since many metabolites are nonvolatile and polar in nature, they are not readily amenable to analysis by GC-MS and require initial chemical derivatization of the polar functional groups in order to reduce the polarity and to increase the thermal stability and volatility of the analytes. In this chapter, an overview is presented of the optimum approach to sample collection, storage, and preparation for gas chromatography-mass spectrometry-based metabonomics with particular focus on urine samples as example of biofluids.

  7. Early Prediction of Lupus Nephritis Using Advanced Proteomics

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-06-01

    spectroscopy-based metabolomic profiling , and apolipoprotein D, lipocalin-like prostaglandin D synthetase, hemopexin, ceruloplasmin, -1-B glycoprotein and...will be confirmed and enhanced using NMR- and MS-based metabonomics , by Dr. Michael Kennedy, Miami University. Changes in proteomic profiles will be...based metabolomic profiling , and apolipoprotein D, lipocalin-like prostaglandin D synthetase, hemopexin, ceruloplasmin, -1-B glycoprotein and

  8. Urinary metabonomics study on toxicity biomarker discovery in rats treated with Xanthii Fructus.

    PubMed

    Lu, Fang; Cao, Min; Wu, Bin; Li, Xu-zhao; Liu, Hong-yu; Chen, Da-zhong; Liu, Shu-min

    2013-08-26

    Xanthii Fructus (XF) is commonly called "Cang-Erzi" in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and widely used for the treatment of sinusitis, headache, rheumatism, and skin itching. However, the clinical utilization of XF is relatively restricted owing to its toxicity. To discover the characteristic potential biomarkers in rats treated with XF by urinary metabonomics. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS) was applied in the study. The total ion chromatograms obtained from control and different dosage groups were distinguishable by a multivariate statistical analysis method. The greatest difference in metabolic profile was observed between high dosage group and control group, and the metabolic characters in rats treated with XF were perturbed in a dose-dependent manner. The metabolic changes in response for XF treatment were observed in urinary samples, which were revealed by orthogonal projection to latent structures discriminate analysis (OPLS-DA), and 10 metabolites could be served as the potential toxicity biomarkers. In addition, the mechanism associated with the damages of lipid per-oxidation and the metabolic disturbances of fatty acid oxidation were investigated. These results indicate that metabonomics analysis in urinary samples may be useful for predicting the toxicity induced by XF. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Plasma metabolic profiling analysis of toxicity induced by brodifacoum using metabonomics coupled with multivariate data analysis.

    PubMed

    Yan, Hui; Qiao, Zheng; Shen, Baohua; Xiang, Ping; Shen, Min

    2016-10-01

    Brodifacoum is one of the most widely used rodenticides for rodent control and eradication; however, human and animal poisoning due to primary and secondary exposure has been reported since its development. Although numerous studies have described brodifacoum induced toxicity, the precise mechanism still needs to be explored. Gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) coupled with an ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) was applied to characterize the metabolic profile of brodifacoum induced toxicity and discover potential biomarkers in rat plasma. The toxicity of brodifacoum was dose-dependent, and the high-dose group obviously manifested toxicity with subcutaneous hemorrhage. The blood brodifacoum concentration showed a positive relation to the ingestion dose in toxicological analysis. Significant changes of twenty-four metabolites were identified and considered as potential toxicity biomarkers, primarily involving glucose metabolism, lipid metabolism and amino acid metabolism associated with anticoagulant activity, nephrotoxicity and hepatic damage. MS-based metabonomics analysis in plasma samples is helpful to search for potential poisoning biomarkers and to understand the underlying mechanisms of brodifacoum induced toxicity. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. ¹H-NMR-Based Metabonomics of the Protective Effect of Coptis chinensis and Berberine on Cinnabar-Induced Hepatotoxicity and Nephrotoxicity in Rats.

    PubMed

    Su, Guangyue; Wang, Haifeng; Gao, Yuxian; Chen, Gang; Pei, Yuehu; Bai, Jiao

    2017-11-02

    Coptis chinensis Franch has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for treating infectious and inflammatory diseases for over two thousand years. Berberine (BN), an isoquinoline alkaloid, is the main component of Coptis chinensis . The pharmacological basis for its therapeutic effects, which include hepatoprotective effects on liver injuries, has been studied intensively, yet the therapy of liver injuries and underlying mechanism remain unclear. We investigated the detoxification mechanism of Coptis chinensis and berberine using metabolomics of urine and serum in the present study. After the treatment with Coptis chinensis and berberine, compared with the cinnabar group, Coptis chinensis and berberine can regulate the concentration of the endogenous metabolites. PLS-DA score plots demonstrated that the urine and serum metabolic profiles in rats of the Coptis chinensis and berberine groups were similar those of the control group, yet remarkably apart from the cinnabar group. The mechanism may be related to the endogenous metabolites including energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism and metabolism of intestinal flora in rats. Meanwhile, liver and kidney histopathology examinations and serum clinical chemistry analysis verified the experimental results of metabonomics.

  11. Biomarkers identification by a combined clinical and metabonomics analysis in Henoch-Schonlein purpura nephritis children

    PubMed Central

    Sun, Lin; Xie, Biao; Zhang, Qiuju; Wang, Yupeng; Wang, Xinyu; Gao, Bing; Liu, Meina; Wang, Maoqing

    2017-01-01

    Background In children with Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP), the severity of Henoch-Schonlein purpura nephritis (HSPN) is considered responsible for the prognosis of HSP. The pathological process from HSP to HSPN is not clear yet and current diagnostic tools have shortcomings in accurate diagnosis of HSPN. This study aims to assess clinical characteristics of HSP and HSPN, to identify metabolic perturbations involved in HSP progress, and to combine metabolic biomarkers and clinical features into a better prediction for HSPN. Methods A total of 162 children were recruited, including 109 HSP patients and 53 healthy children (HC). The clinical characteristics were compared between HSPN and HSP without nephritis (HSPWN). The serum metabonomics analysis was performed to determine the metabolic differences in HSP and HC. Results Among 109 HSP children, 57 progressed to HSPN. The increased D-dimer level was significantly associated with renal damage in HSP. The metabonomic profiles revealed alterations between various subgroups of HSP and HC, making it possible to investigate small-molecule metabolites related to the pathological process of HSP. In total, we identified 9 biomarkers for HSP vs. HC, 7 for HSPWN vs. HC, 9 for HSPN vs. HC, and 3 for HSPN vs. HSPWN. Conclusions (S)-3-hydroxyisobutyric acid, p-Cresol sulfate, and 3-carboxy-4-methyl-5-pentyl-2-furanpropanoic acid were found associated with the progress of HSP to HSPN. Moreover, resulting biomarkers, when combined with D-dimer, allowed improving the HSPN prediction with high sensitivity (94.7%) and specificity (80.8%). Together these findings highlighted the strength of the combination of metabonomics and clinical analysis in the research of HSP. PMID:29371982

  12. Renal metabolic profiling of early renal injury and renoprotective effects of Poria cocos epidermis using UPLC Q-TOF/HSMS/MSE.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Ying-Yong; Lei, Ping; Chen, Dan-Qian; Feng, Ya-Long; Bai, Xu

    2013-01-01

    Poria cocos epidermis is one of ancient traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs), which is usually used for the treatment of chronic kidney disease (CKD) for thousands of years in China. A metabonomic approach based on ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight high-sensitivity mass spectrometry (UPLC Q-TOF/HSMS) and a mass spectrometry(Elevated Energy) (MS(E)) data collection technique was developed to obtained a systematic view of the development and progression of CKD and biochemistry mechanism of therapeutic effects of P. cocos epidermis (Fu-Ling-Pi, FLP). By partial least squares-discriminate analysis, 19 metabolites were identified as potential biomarkers of CKD. Among the 19 biomarkers, 10 biomarkers including eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, lysoPC(20:4), lysoPC(18:2), lysoPC(15:0), lysoPE(20:0/0:0), indoxyl sulfate, hippuric acid, p-cresol sulfate and allantoin were reversed to the control level in FLP-treated groups. The study indicates that FLP treatment can ameliorate CKD by intervening in some dominating metabolic pathways, such as fatty acid metabolism, phospholipid metabolism, purine metabolism and tryptophan metabolism. This work was for the first time to investigate the FLP therapeutic effect based on metabonomics technology, which is a potentially powerful tool to study the TCMs. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. [Evaluation of Brodifacoum-induced Toxicity by Metabonomics Approach Based on HPLC-TOF-MS].

    PubMed

    Yan, H; Zhuo, X Y; Shen, B H; Xiang, P; Shen, M

    2017-06-01

    To analyse the metabolic changes in urine of rats with brodifacoum intoxication, and to reveal the molecular mechanism of brodifacoum-induced toxicity on rats. By establishing a brodifacoum poisoning rats model, the urine metabolic profiling data of rats were acquired using high performance liquid chromatography-time of flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-TOF-MS). The orthogonal partial least squares analysis-discrimination analysis (OPLS-DA) was applied for the multivariate statistics and the discovery of differential metabolites closely related to toxicity of brodifacoum. OPLS-DA score plot showed that the urinary metabolic at different time points before and after drug administration had good similarity within time period and presented clustering phenomenon. Comparing the urine samples of rats before drug administration with which after drug administration, twenty-two metabolites related to brodifacoum-induced toxicity were selected. The toxic effect of brodifacoum worked by disturbing the metabolic pathways in rats such as tricarboxylic cycle, glycolysis, sphingolipid metabolism and tryptophan metabolism, and the toxicity of brodifacoum is characterized of accumulation effect. The metabonomic method based on urine HPLC-TOF-MS can provide a novel insight into the study on molecular mechanism of brodifacoum-induced toxicity. Copyright© by the Editorial Department of Journal of Forensic Medicine

  14. Metabonomics-based analysis of Brachyspira pilosicoli's response to tiamulin reveals metabolic activity despite significant growth inhibition.

    PubMed

    Le Roy, Caroline Ivanne; Passey, Jade Louise; Woodward, Martin John; La Ragione, Roberto Marcello; Claus, Sandrine Paule

    2017-06-01

    Pathogenic anaerobes Brachyspira spp. are responsible for an increasing number of Intestinal Spirochaetosis (IS) cases in livestock against which few approved treatments are available. Tiamulin is used to treat swine dysentery caused by Brachyspira spp. and recently has been used to handle avian intestinal spirochaetosis (AIS). The therapeutic dose used in chickens requires further evaluation since cases of bacterial resistance to tiamulin have been reported. In this study, we evaluated the impact of tiamulin at varying concentrations on the metabolism of B. pilosicoli using a 1 H-NMR-based metabonomics approach allowing the capture of the overall bacterial metabolic response to antibiotic treatment. Based on growth curve studies, tiamulin impacted bacterial growth even at very low concentration (0.008 μg/mL) although its metabolic activity was barely affected 72 h post exposure to antibiotic treatment. Only the highest dose of tiamulin tested (0.250 μg/mL) caused a major metabolic shift. Results showed that below this concentration, bacteria could maintain a normal metabolic trajectory despite significant growth inhibition by the antibiotic, which may contribute to disease reemergence post antibiotic treatment. Indeed, we confirmed that B. pilosicoli remained viable even after exposition to the highest antibiotic dose. This paper stresses the need to ensure new evaluation of bacterial viability post bacteriostatic exposure such as tiamulin to guarantee treatment efficacy and decrease antibiotic resistance development. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. A(1)H NMR-based metabonomic study on the SAMP8 and SAMR1 mice and the effect of electro-acupuncture.

    PubMed

    Qiao-feng, Wu; Ling-ling, Guo; Shu-guang, Yu; Qi, Zhang; Sheng-feng, Lu; Fang, Zeng; Hai-yan, Yin; Yong, Tang; Xian-zhong, Yan

    2011-10-01

    A (1)H NMR-based metabonomic method was used to investigate the metabolic change of plasma in senescence-prone 8 (SAMP8) mice before and after electro-acupuncture (EA). Sixteen SAMP8 male mice (aged 8 months) were randomly divided into model group and acupuncture treatment group while the later group received EA treatment for 21 days. Eight senescence-resistant 1 (SAMR1) mice were used as the control group. Morris water maze was used to evaluate the effects of EA. All mice plasma samples obtained from different groups were analyzed by using 600 MHz (1)H nuclear magnetic resonances ((1)H NMR) spectroscopy. The data sets were analyzed by Principal Components Analysis (PCA) and Partial Least Squares-Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) to discriminate the key plasma metabolites among different groups. Results indicated that both the escape and probe tasks of SAMP8 could be improved by EA treatment. Metabonomic study showed that SAMR1 and SAMP8 were separated clearly in both CPMG_OSC_PLS and LED _OSC_PLS score plots. Interestingly, samples obtained from EA group were distributed closely to SAMR1 group in CPMG_OSC_PLS score plot, but away from SAMP8 group in LED_OSC_PLS score plot. Corresponding loading plots showed that much less lactate was seen in SAMP8 mice plasma. Other changes including higher levels of dimethylamine (DMA) Choline and α-glucose but lower levels of leucine/isoleucine, HDL, LDL/VLDL, 3-Hydroxybutyrate (3-HB), and Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) were observed in the SAMP8 mice plasma than in the SAMR1. After EA treatment, the levels of lactate, DMA, choline and TMAO were improved. Results of this work can provide valuable clues to the understanding of the metabolic changes in the senile impairment of mice. It is also hoped that the methodology can be used in evaluating the effects of EA and understanding the underlying acupuncture mechanism in treating neurodegenerative diseases. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. NMR-based urine analysis in rats: prediction of proximal tubule kidney toxicity and phospholipidosis.

    PubMed

    Lienemann, Kai; Plötz, Thomas; Pestel, Sabine

    2008-01-01

    The aim of safety pharmacology is early detection of compound-induced side-effects. NMR-based urine analysis followed by multivariate data analysis (metabonomics) identifies efficiently differences between toxic and non-toxic compounds; but in most cases multiple administrations of the test compound are necessary. We tested the feasibility of detecting proximal tubule kidney toxicity and phospholipidosis with metabonomics techniques after single compound administration as an early safety pharmacology approach. Rats were treated orally, intravenously, inhalatively or intraperitoneally with different test compounds. Urine was collected at 0-8 h and 8-24 h after compound administration, and (1)H NMR-patterns were recorded from the samples. Variation of post-processing and feature extraction methods led to different views on the data. Support Vector Machines were trained on these different data sets and then aggregated as experts in an Ensemble. Finally, validity was monitored with a cross-validation study using a training, validation, and test data set. Proximal tubule kidney toxicity could be predicted with reasonable total classification accuracy (85%), specificity (88%) and sensitivity (78%). In comparison to alternative histological studies, results were obtained quicker, compound need was reduced, and very importantly fewer animals were needed. In contrast, the induction of phospholipidosis by the test compounds could not be predicted using NMR-based urine analysis or the previously published biomarker PAG. NMR-based urine analysis was shown to effectively predict proximal tubule kidney toxicity after single compound administration in rats. Thus, this experimental design allows early detection of toxicity risks with relatively low amounts of compound in a reasonably short period of time.

  17. Combined metabonomic and quantitative real-time PCR analyses reveal systems metabolic changes in Jurkat T-cells treated with HIV-1 Tat protein.

    PubMed

    Liao, Wenting; Tan, Guangguo; Zhu, Zhenyu; Chen, Qiuli; Lou, Ziyang; Dong, Xin; Zhang, Wei; Pan, Wei; Chai, Yifeng

    2012-11-02

    HIV-1 Tat protein is released by infected cells and can affect bystander uninfected T cells and induce numerous biological responses which contribute to its pathogenesis. To elucidate the complex pathogenic mechanism, we conducted a comprehensive investigation on Tat protein-related extracellular and intracellular metabolic changes in Jurkat T-cells using combined gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), reversed-phase liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (RPLC-MS) and a hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HILIC-MS)-based metabonomics approach. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) analyses were further employed to measure expressions of several relevant enzymes together with perturbed metabolic pathways. Combined metabonomic and qRT-PCR analyses revealed that HIV-1 Tat caused significant and comprehensive metabolic changes, as represented by significant changes of 37 metabolites and 10 relevant enzymes in HIV-1 Tat-treated cells. Using MetaboAnalyst 2.0, it was found that 11 pathways (Impact-value >0.10) among the regulated pathways were acutely perturbed, including sphingolipid metabolism, glycine, serine and threonine metabolism, pyruvate metabolism, inositol phosphate metabolism, arginine and proline metabolism, citrate cycle, phenylalanine metabolism, tryptophan metabolism, pentose phosphate pathway, glycerophospholipid metabolism, glycolysis or gluconeogenesis. These results provide metabolic evidence of the complex pathogenic mechanism of HIV-1 Tat protein as a "viral toxin", and would help obligate Tat protein as "an important target" for therapeutic intervention and vaccine development.

  18. Whole-grain and refined wheat flours show distinct metabolic profiles in rats as assessed by a 1H NMR-based metabonomic approach.

    PubMed

    Fardet, Anthony; Canlet, Cécile; Gottardi, Gaëlle; Lyan, Bernard; Llorach, Rafaël; Rémésy, Christian; Mazur, André; Paris, Alain; Scalbert, Augustin

    2007-04-01

    The protection against diabetes and cardiovascular disease provided by whole-grain cereal consumption has been attributed to the fiber and micronutrients present in the bran. But exactly how this occurs remains unclear due to both diversity of bran constituents and the complexity of the metabolic responses to each of these constituents. We investigated the metabolic responses of 2 groups of rats (n = 10/group) fed 2 diets, for 2 wk each, in a crossover design. One diet contained 60 g/100 g whole-grain wheat flour (WGF) and the other contained 60 g/100 g refined wheat flour (RF). Markers of oxidative stress [urinary isoprostanes and malondialdehydes (MDA), plasma ferric-reducing ability of plasma, MDA, and vitamins E and C] and lipid status (liver and plasma triglycerides and cholesterol) were measured. Urine samples collected during the feeding periods and plasma and liver samples collected at the end of experiment were analyzed by (1)H NMR spectroscopy. Metabonomic analyses showed that each group reached a new metabolic balance within 48 h of changing the diet. Urinary excretion of some tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates, aromatic amino acids, and hippurate was significantly greater in rats fed the WGF diet. Although the diets did not affect conventional lipid and oxidative stress markers, there were decreases in some liver lipids and increases in liver reduced glutathione and betaine as shown by metabonomic analyses. These suggest that the WGF diet improved the redox and lipid status.

  19. NMR-based metabonomics and correlation analysis reveal potential biomarkers associated with chronic atrophic gastritis.

    PubMed

    Cui, Jiajia; Liu, Yuetao; Hu, Yinghuan; Tong, Jiayu; Li, Aiping; Qu, Tingli; Qin, Xuemei; Du, Guanhua

    2017-01-05

    Chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) is one of the most important pre-cancerous states with a high prevalence. Exploring of the underlying mechanism and potential biomarkers is of significant importance for CAG. In the present work, 1 H NMR-based metabonomics with correlative analysis was performed to analyze the metabolic features of CAG. 19 plasma metabolites and 18 urine metabolites were enrolled to construct the circulatory and excretory metabolome of CAG, which was in response to alterations of energy metabolism, inflammation, immune dysfunction, as well as oxidative stress. 7 plasma biomarkers and 7 urine biomarkers were screened to elucidate the pathogenesis of CAG based on the further correlation analysis with biochemical indexes. Finally, 3 plasma biomarkers (arginine, succinate and 3-hydroxybutyrate) and 2 urine biomarkers (α-ketoglutarate and valine) highlighted the potential to indicate risks of CAG in virtue of correlation with pepsin activity and ROC analysis. Here, our results paved a way for elucidating the underlying mechanisms in the development of CAG, and provided new avenues for the diagnosis of CAG and presented potential drug targets for treatment of CAG. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Metabonomic Analysis Reveals Efficient Ameliorating Effects of Acupoint Stimulations on the Menopause-caused Alterations in Mammalian Metabolism

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Limin; Wang, Yulan; Xu, Yunxiang; Lei, Hehua; Zhao, Ying; Li, Huihui; Lin, Xiaosheng; Chen, Guizhen; Tang, Huiru

    2014-01-01

    Acupoint stimulations are effective in ameliorating symptoms of menopause which is an unavoidable ageing consequence for women. To understand the mechanistic aspects of such treatments, we systematically analyzed the effects of acupoint laser-irradiation and catgut-embedding on the ovariectomy-induced rat metabolic changes using NMR and GC-FID/MS methods. Results showed that ovariectomization (OVX) caused comprehensive metabolic changes in lipid peroxidation, glycolysis, TCA cycle, choline and amino acid metabolisms. Both acupoint laser-irradiation and catgut-embedding ameliorated the OVX-caused metabonomic changes more effectively than hormone replacement therapy (HRT) with nilestriol. Such effects of acupoint stimulations were highlighted in alleviating lipid peroxidation, restoring glucose homeostasis and partial reversion of the OVX-altered amino acid metabolism. These findings provided new insights into the menopause effects on mammalian biochemistry and beneficial effects of acupoint stimulations in comparison with HRT, demonstrating metabonomics as a powerful approach for potential applications in disease prognosis and developments of effective therapies. PMID:24407431

  1. Metabonomic Analysis Reveals Efficient Ameliorating Effects of Acupoint Stimulations on the Menopause-caused Alterations in Mammalian Metabolism

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Limin; Wang, Yulan; Xu, Yunxiang; Lei, Hehua; Zhao, Ying; Li, Huihui; Lin, Xiaosheng; Chen, Guizhen; Tang, Huiru

    2014-01-01

    Acupoint stimulations are effective in ameliorating symptoms of menopause which is an unavoidable ageing consequence for women. To understand the mechanistic aspects of such treatments, we systematically analyzed the effects of acupoint laser-irradiation and catgut-embedding on the ovariectomy-induced rat metabolic changes using NMR and GC-FID/MS methods. Results showed that ovariectomization (OVX) caused comprehensive metabolic changes in lipid peroxidation, glycolysis, TCA cycle, choline and amino acid metabolisms. Both acupoint laser-irradiation and catgut-embedding ameliorated the OVX-caused metabonomic changes more effectively than hormone replacement therapy (HRT) with nilestriol. Such effects of acupoint stimulations were highlighted in alleviating lipid peroxidation, restoring glucose homeostasis and partial reversion of the OVX-altered amino acid metabolism. These findings provided new insights into the menopause effects on mammalian biochemistry and beneficial effects of acupoint stimulations in comparison with HRT, demonstrating metabonomics as a powerful approach for potential applications in disease prognosis and developments of effective therapies.

  2. Calcium-deficiency assessment and biomarker identification by an integrated urinary metabonomics analysis

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Calcium deficiency is a global public-health problem. Although the initial stage of calcium deficiency can lead to metabolic alterations or potential pathological changes, calcium deficiency is difficult to diagnose accurately. Moreover, the details of the molecular mechanism of calcium deficiency remain somewhat elusive. To accurately assess and provide appropriate nutritional intervention, we carried out a global analysis of metabolic alterations in response to calcium deficiency. Methods The metabolic alterations associated with calcium deficiency were first investigated in a rat model, using urinary metabonomics based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry and multivariate statistical analysis. Correlations between dietary calcium intake and the biomarkers identified from the rat model were further analyzed to confirm the potential application of these biomarkers in humans. Results Urinary metabolic-profiling analysis could preliminarily distinguish between calcium-deficient and non-deficient rats after a 2-week low-calcium diet. We established an integrated metabonomics strategy for identifying reliable biomarkers of calcium deficiency using a time-course analysis of discriminating metabolites in a low-calcium diet experiment, repeating the low-calcium diet experiment and performing a calcium-supplement experiment. In total, 27 biomarkers were identified, including glycine, oxoglutaric acid, pyrophosphoric acid, sebacic acid, pseudouridine, indoxyl sulfate, taurine, and phenylacetylglycine. The integrated urinary metabonomics analysis, which combined biomarkers with regular trends of change (types A, B, and C), could accurately assess calcium-deficient rats at different stages and clarify the dynamic pathophysiological changes and molecular mechanism of calcium deficiency in detail. Significant correlations between calcium intake and two biomarkers, pseudouridine (Pearson correlation, r = 0.53, P = 0.0001) and citrate (Pearson correlation, r = -0.43, P = 0.001), were further confirmed in 70 women. Conclusions To our knowledge, this is the first report of reliable biomarkers of calcium deficiency, which were identified using an integrated strategy. The identified biomarkers give new insights into the pathophysiological changes and molecular mechanisms of calcium deficiency. The correlations between calcium intake and two of the biomarkers provide a rationale or potential for further assessment and elucidation of the metabolic responses of calcium deficiency in humans. PMID:23537001

  3. Serum metabolite signatures of type 2 diabetes mellitus complications.

    PubMed

    Wu, Tao; Xie, Guoxiang; Ni, Yan; Liu, Tao; Yang, Ming; Wei, Huafeng; Jia, Wei; Ji, Guang

    2015-01-02

    A number of metabolic conditions, including hypoglycemia, high blood pressure (HBP), dyslipidemia, nerve damage and amputation, and vision problems, occur as a result of uncontrolled blood glucose levels over a prolonged period of time. The different components of diabetic complications are not independent but rather interdependent of each other, rendering the disease difficult to diagnose and control. The underlying pathogenesis of those components cannot be easily elucidated because of the heterogeneous, polygenic, and multifactorial nature of the disease. Metabonomics offers a snapshot of distinct biochemical variations that may reflect the unique metabolic phenotype under pathophysiological conditions. Here we report a mass-spectrometry-based metabonomic study designed to identify the distinct metabolic changes associated with several complications of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The 292 patients recruited in the study were divided into five groups, including T2DM with HBP, T2DM with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), T2DM with HBP and NAFLD, T2DM with HBP and coronary heart disease (CHD), and T2DM with HBP, NAFLD, and CHD. Serum differential metabolites were identified in each group of T2DM complication, mainly involving bile acid, fatty acid, amino acid, lipid, carbohydrate, steroids metabolism, and tricarboxylic acids cycle. These broad-spectrum metabolic changes emphasize the complex abnormalities present among these complications with elevated blood glucose levels, providing a novel strategy for stratifying patients with T2DM complications using blood-based metabolite markers.

  4. UPLC-Q-TOF/MS-based urine and plasma metabonomics study on the ameliorative effects of aspirin eugenol ester in hyperlipidemia rats.

    PubMed

    Ma, Ning; Karam, Isam; Liu, Xi-Wang; Kong, Xiao-Jun; Qin, Zhe; Li, Shi-Hong; Jiao, Zeng-Hua; Dong, Peng-Cheng; Yang, Ya-Jun; Li, Jian-Yong

    2017-10-01

    The main objective of this study was to investigate the ameliorative effects of aspirin eugenol ester (AEE) in hyperlipidemic rat. After five-week oral administration of AEE in high fat diet (HFD)-induced hyperlipidemic rats, the impact of AEE on plasma and urine metabonomics was investigated to explore the underlying mechanism by UPLC-Q-TOF/MS analysis. Blood lipid levels and histopathological changes of liver, stomach and duodenum were also evaluated after AEE treatment. Without obvious gastrointestinal (GI) side effects, AEE significantly relieved fatty degeneration of liver and reduced triglyceride (TG), low density lipoprotein (LDL) and total cholesterol (TCH) (P<0.01). Clear separations of metabolic profiles were observed among control, model and AEE groups by using principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal partial least-squares-discriminate analysis (OPLS-DA). 16 endogenous metabolites in plasma and 18 endogenous metabolites in urine involved in glycerophospholipid metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, fatty acid beta-oxidation, amino acid metabolism, TCA cycle, sphingolipid metabolism, gut microflora and pyrimidine metabolism were considered as potential biomarkers of hyperlipidemia and be regulated by AEE administration. It might be concluded that AEE was a promising drug candidate for hyperlipidemia treatment. These findings could contribute to the understanding of action mechanisms of AEE and provide evidence for further studies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Tissue Multiplatform-Based Metabolomics/Metabonomics for Enhanced Metabolome Coverage.

    PubMed

    Vorkas, Panagiotis A; Abellona U, M R; Li, Jia V

    2018-01-01

    The use of tissue as a matrix to elucidate disease pathology or explore intervention comes with several advantages. It allows investigation of the target alteration directly at the focal location and facilitates the detection of molecules that could become elusive after secretion into biofluids. However, tissue metabolomics/metabonomics comes with challenges not encountered in biofluid analyses. Furthermore, tissue heterogeneity does not allow for tissue aliquoting. Here we describe a multiplatform, multi-method workflow which enables metabolic profiling analysis of tissue samples, while it can deliver enhanced metabolome coverage. After applying a dual consecutive extraction (organic followed by aqueous), tissue extracts are analyzed by reversed-phase (RP-) and hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC-) ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. This pipeline incorporates the required quality control features, enhances versatility, allows provisional aliquoting of tissue extracts for future guided analyses, expands the range of metabolites robustly detected, and supports data integration. It has been successfully employed for the analysis of a wide range of tissue types.

  6. Metabonomics: its potential as a tool in toxicology for safety assessment and data integration.

    PubMed

    Griffin, J L; Bollard, M E

    2004-10-01

    The functional genomic techniques of transcriptomics and proteomics promise unparalleled global information during the drug development process. However, if these technologies are used in isolation the large multivariate data sets produced are often difficult to interpret, and have the potential of missing key metabolic events (e.g. as a result of experimental noise in the system). To better understand the significance of these megavariate data the temporal changes in phenotype must be described. High resolution 1H NMR spectroscopy used in conjunction with pattern recognition provides one such tool for defining the dynamic phenotype of a cell, organ or organism in terms of a metabolic phenotype. In this review the benefits of this metabonomics/metabolomics approach to problems in toxicology will be discussed. One of the major benefits of this approach is its high throughput nature and cost effectiveness on a per sample basis. Using such a method the consortium for metabonomic toxicology (COMET) are currently investigating approximately 150 model liver and kidney toxins. This investigation will allow the generation of expert systems where liver and kidney toxicity can be predicted for model drug compounds, providing a new research tool in the field of drug metabolism. The review will also include how metabonomics may be used to investigate co-responses with transcripts and proteins involved in metabolism and stress responses, such as during drug induced fatty liver disease. By using data integration to combine metabolite analysis and gene expression profiling key perturbed metabolic pathways can be identified and used as a tool to investigate drug function.

  7. Biomarkers identified by urinary metabonomics for noninvasive diagnosis of nutritional rickets.

    PubMed

    Wang, Maoqing; Yang, Xue; Ren, Lihong; Li, Songtao; He, Xuan; Wu, Xiaoyan; Liu, Tingting; Lin, Liqun; Li, Ying; Sun, Changhao

    2014-09-05

    Nutritional rickets is a worldwide public health problem; however, the current diagnostic methods retain shortcomings for accurate diagnosis of nutritional rickets. To identify urinary biomarkers associated with nutritional rickets and establish a noninvasive diagnosis method, urinary metabonomics analysis by ultra-performance liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry and multivariate statistical analysis were employed to investigate the metabolic alterations associated with nutritional rickets in 200 children with or without nutritional rickets. The pathophysiological changes and pathogenesis of nutritional rickets were illustrated by the identified biomarkers. By urinary metabolic profiling, 31 biomarkers of nutritional rickets were identified and five candidate biomarkers for clinical diagnosis were screened and identified by quantitative analysis and receiver operating curve analysis. Urinary levels of five candidate biomarkers were measured using mass spectrometry or commercial kits. In the validation step, the combination of phosphate and sebacic acid was able to give a noninvasive and accurate diagnostic with high sensitivity (94.0%) and specificity (71.2%). Furthermore, on the basis of the pathway analysis of biomarkers, our urinary metabonomics analysis gives new insight into the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of nutritional rickets.

  8. Monitoring Healthy Metabolic Trajectories with Nutritional Metabonomics

    PubMed Central

    Collino, Sebastiano; Martin, François-Pierre J.; Kochhar, Sunil; Rezzi, Serge

    2009-01-01

    Metabonomics is a well established analytical approach for the analysis of physiological regulatory processes via the metabolic profiling of biofluids and tissues in living organisms. Its potential is fully exploited in the field of “nutrimetabonomics” that aims at assessing the metabolic effects of active ingredients and foods in individuals. Yet, one of the greatest challenges in nutrition research is to decipher the critical interactions between mammalian organisms and environmental factors, including the gut microbiota. “Nutrimetabonomics” is today foreseen as a powerful approach for future nutritional programs tailored at health maintenance and disease prevention. PMID:22253970

  9. A metabolic profiling analysis of the acute hepatotoxicity and nephrotoxicity of Zhusha Anshen Wan compared with cinnabar in rats using (1)H NMR spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    Wang, Haifeng; Bai, Jiao; Chen, Gang; Li, Wen; Xiang, Rongwu; Su, Guangyue; Pei, Yuehu

    2013-03-27

    Zhusha Anshen Wan (ZSASW), a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) prescription, composed of cinnabar (cinnabaris), Coptidis Rhizoma (Coptis chinensis French.), Angelicae Sinensis Radix (Angelica sinensis (oliv.) Diels), uncooked Rehmanniae Radix (Rehmannia glutinosa Libosch.), honey fried Glycyrrhizae Radix Et Rhizoma (Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch.), has been widely used for sedative therapy. Cinnabar, the chief component of ZSASW, has been proved to possess the toxicities. In this study, a metabonomics approach based on high-resolution (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was applied to investigate the protective effects of ZSASW on the toxic effects induced by cinnabar alone. Male Wistar rats were divided into three groups: control group, ZSASW group and cinnabar group. Partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) was performed to identify different metabolic profiles of urine and serum from rats. Liver and kidney histopathology examinations and serum clinical chemistry analysis were also performed. The significant difference in metabolic profiling of urine and serum of the rats was observed between cinnabar treated group, control group, and the changes of endogenous metabolites related to the toxicities were identified. The results were also certified by the liver and kidney histopathology examinations and biochemical analysis of blood. Our results suggested that the four combined herbal medicines of ZSASW had the effects of protecting from the toxicity induced by cinnabar alone. This work showed that the NMR-based metabonomics approach might be a promising approach to study detoxification of Chinese medicines and reasonable combination of TCM prescriptions. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Serum and kidney metabolic changes of rat nephrotoxicity induced by Morning Glory Seed.

    PubMed

    Ma, Chao; Bi, Kaishun; Su, Dan; Ji, Wei; Zhang, Ming; Fan, Xinxin; Wang, Chao; Chen, Xiaohui

    2010-10-01

    Previous nephrotoxicology study on Morning Glory Seed (MGS) mainly focused on whole animal level, using creatinine and BUN as biochemical indicators to evaluate renal function. This work was designed to delineate the comprehensive metabolic syndromes of MGS-induced nephrotoxicity. An ultra liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (UPLC/MS) metabonomic approach was employed to characterize the metabolic profile of plasma and kidney tissue extract from rats treated with MGS at a single nephrotoxic dose of 15 g/kg/day for 14 consecutive days. Acquired data were subjected to principal component analysis (PCA) for differentiating the model and the control groups. The results indicated that certain metabolic pathways, such as lysophosphatidylcholines formation and sphingolipids cycle were accelerated, while the phenylalanine level in serum was decreased. We believe that metabonomic approach is helpful to further understanding and clinical diagnosis of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) induced nephrotoxicity. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Metabolomics of Oxidative Stress in Recent Studies of Endogenous and Exogenously Administered Intermediate Metabolites

    PubMed Central

    Liu, Jia; Litt, Lawrence; Segal, Mark R.; Kelly, Mark J. S.; Pelton, Jeffrey G.; Kim, Myungwon

    2011-01-01

    Aerobic metabolism occurs in a background of oxygen radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) that originate from the incomplete reduction of molecular oxygen in electron transfer reactions. The essential role of aerobic metabolism, the generation and consumption of ATP and other high energy phosphates, sustains a balance of approximately 3000 essential human metabolites that serve not only as nutrients, but also as antioxidants, neurotransmitters, osmolytes, and participants in ligand-based and other cellular signaling. In hypoxia, ischemia, and oxidative stress, where pathological circumstances cause oxygen radicals to form at a rate greater than is possible for their consumption, changes in the composition of metabolite ensembles, or metabolomes, can be associated with physiological changes. Metabolomics and metabonomics are a scientific disciplines that focuse on quantifying dynamic metabolome responses, using multivariate analytical approaches derived from methods within genomics, a discipline that consolidated innovative analysis techniques for situations where the number of biomarkers (metabolites in our case) greatly exceeds the number of subjects. This review focuses on the behavior of cytosolic, mitochondrial, and redox metabolites in ameliorating or exacerbating oxidative stress. After reviewing work regarding a small number of metabolites—pyruvate, ethyl pyruvate, and fructose-1,6-bisphosphate—whose exogenous administration was found to ameliorate oxidative stress, a subsequent section reviews basic multivariate statistical methods common in metabolomics research, and their application in human and preclinical studies emphasizing oxidative stress. Particular attention is paid to new NMR spectroscopy methods in metabolomics and metabonomics. Because complex relationships connect oxidative stress to so many physiological processes, studies from different disciplines were reviewed. All, however, shared the common goal of ultimately developing “omics”-based, diagnostic tests to help influence therapies. PMID:22072900

  12. Urinary metabonomic study of Panax ginseng in deficiency of vital energy rat using ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Lin, He; Pi, Zifeng; Men, Lihui; Chen, Weijia; Liu, Zhiqiang; Liu, Zhongying

    2016-05-26

    Deficiency of vital energy (DE) is called Qi-deficiency, a traditional Chinese medicine syndrome. It is an indicator of a disease emerging though fuzzy, dynamic, complex, nonspecific and subjective. Ginseng is regarded as the king of herbs. It is famous for the function of replenishing qi in traditional Chinese medicine. It has treatment potential for DE caused by various reasons. This study aimed to investigate the mechanism of ginseng treating symptom DE with the method of metabolomics. Thirty-five rats were randomly divided into three groups: normal control group, DE model group and ginseng treatment group. The DE model rats were administered daily with ginseng decoctiondecoctiondecoction intragastrically and others with water for 15 days. Urine was analyzed with ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS). Principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal projection to latent structures squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) were built to distinguish the three groups in this study and find potential biomarkers. The three groups are clearly separated and find out their metabolic distinction in PCA score plots. It showed that the metabolic profile of ginseng treatment group was changed to normal control group after administration of ginseng. Fifteen potential biomarkers are identified by OPLS-DA including Xanthurenic acid, kynurenic acid, Pantothenic acid, which are chiefly involved in tryptophan metabolism, taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, citric acid cycle, bile acid biosynthesis, alpha linolenic acid and linoleic acid metabolism. These biomarkers and the networks of their corresponding pathways will help to explain the mechanism of DE and ginseng treatment. The results of blood biochemical indicators routine and urinary metabonomic reveal that ginseng have good abilities to regulate the energy metabolism, immune function and antioxidant activities. And UPLC-Q-TOF-MS-based metabolomics can provide useful information for the understanding of metabolic changes in DE rats after administration of ginseng in urine. The biomarkers and their corresponding pathways will provide further information of the mechanisms of ginseng in treating DE. This work also proves that the method of metabonomics is effective in traditional Chinese medicinal research. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. [The metabolic profilings study of serum and spinal cord from acute spinal cord injury rats ¹H NMR spectroscopy].

    PubMed

    Hu, Hua-Hui; Huang, Xiao-Long; Quan, Ren-Fu; Yang, Zong-Bao; Xu, Jing-Jing

    2017-02-25

    To establish the rat model of acute spinal cord injury, followed by aprimary study on this model with ¹H NMR based on metabonomics and to explore the metabonomics and biomarkers of spinal cord injury rat. Twenty eight-week-old adult male SD rats of clean grade, with body weight of (200±10) g, were divided into sham operation group and model group in accordance with the law of random numbers, and every group had 10 rats. The rats of sham operation group were operated without damaging the spinal cord, and rats of model group were made an animal model of spinal cord incomplete injury according to the modified Allen's method. According to BBB score to observate the motor function of rats on the 1th, 5th, and 7th days after surgery. Postoperative spinal cord tissue was collected in order to pathologic observation at the 7th day, and the metabolic profilings of serum and spinal cord from spinal cord injury rats were studied by ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The hindlimb motion of rats did not obviously change in sham operation group, there was no significant difference at each time point;and rats of model group occurred flaccid paralysis of both lower extremities, there was a significant difference at each time; there was significant differences between two groups at each time. Pathological results showed the spinal cord structure was normal with uniform innervation in shame group, while in model group, the spinal cord structure was mussy, and the neurons were decreased, with inflammatory cells and necrotic tissue. Analysis of metabonomics showed that concentration of very low density fat protein (VLDL), low density fat protein (LDL), glutamine, citric acid, dimethylglycine (DMG) in the serum and glutathione, 3-OH-butyrate, N-Acetyl-L-aspartic acid (NAA), glycerophosphocholine (GPC), glutamic acid, and ascorbate in spinal cord had significant changes( P <0.05). There are significant differences in metabolic profile from serum and spinal cord sample between model group and sham operation group, it conduces to explain the changes of small molecular substances in serum and spinal cord tissue after spinal cord injury, this provides the research basis for targeted research on the role of metabolic markers in patients with acute spinal cord injury.

  14. Urinary metabonomics elucidate the therapeutic mechanism of Orthosiphon stamineus in mouse crystal-induced kidney injury.

    PubMed

    Gao, Songyan; Chen, Wei; Peng, Zhongjiang; Li, Na; Su, Li; Lv, Diya; Li, Ling; Lin, Qishan; Dong, Xin; Guo, Zhiyong; Lou, Ziyang

    2015-05-26

    Orthosiphon stamineus (OS), a traditional Chinese herb, is often used for promoting urination and treating nephrolithiasis. Urolithiasis is a major worldwide public health burden due to its high incidence of recurrence and damage to renal function. However, the etiology for urolithiasis is not well understood. Metabonomics, the systematic study of small molecule metabolites present in biological samples, has become a valid and powerful tool for understanding disease phenotypes. In this study, a urinary metabolic profiling analysis was performed in a mouse model of renal calcium oxalate crystal deposition to identify potential biomarkers for crystal-induced renal damage and the anti-crystal mechanism of OS. Thirty six mice were randomly divided into six groups including Saline, Crystal, Cystone and OS at dosages of 0.5g/kg, 1g/kg, and 2g/kg. A metabonomics approach using ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS) was developed to perform the urinary metabolic profiling analysis. Principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were utilized to identify differences between the metabolic profiles of mice in the saline control group and crystal group. Using partial least squares-discriminant analysis, 30 metabolites were identified as potential biomarkers of crystal-induced renal damage. Most of them were primarily involved in amino acid metabolism, taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, purine metabolism, and the citrate cycle (TCA). After the treatment with OS, the levels of 20 biomarkers had returned to the levels of the control samples. Our results suggest that OS has a protective effect for mice with crystal-induced kidney injury via the regulation of multiple metabolic pathways primarily involving amino acid, energy and choline metabolism. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. Aspartame sensitivity? A double blind randomised crossover study.

    PubMed

    Sathyapalan, Thozhukat; Thatcher, Natalie J; Hammersley, Richard; Rigby, Alan S; Courts, Fraser L; Pechlivanis, Alexandros; Gooderham, Nigel J; Holmes, Elaine; le Roux, Carel W; Atkin, Stephen L

    2015-01-01

    Aspartame is a commonly used intense artificial sweetener, being approximately 200 times sweeter than sucrose. There have been concerns over aspartame since approval in the 1980s including a large anecdotal database reporting severe symptoms. The objective of this study was to compare the acute symptom effects of aspartame to a control preparation. This was a double-blind randomized cross over study conducted in a clinical research unit in United Kingdom. Forty-eight individual who has self reported sensitivity to aspartame were compared to 48 age and gender matched aspartame non-sensitive individuals. They were given aspartame (100mg)-containing or control snack bars randomly at least 7 days apart. The main outcome measures were acute effects of aspartame measured using repeated ratings of 14 symptoms, biochemistry and metabonomics. Aspartame sensitive and non-sensitive participants differed psychologically at baseline in handling feelings and perceived stress. Sensitive participants had higher triglycerides (2.05 ± 1.44 vs. 1.26 ± 0.84mmol/L; p value 0.008) and lower HDL-C (1.16 ± 0.34 vs. 1.35 ± 0.54 mmol/L; p value 0.04), reflected in 1H NMR serum analysis that showed differences in the baseline lipid content between the two groups. Urine metabonomic studies showed no significant differences. None of the rated symptoms differed between aspartame and control bars, or between sensitive and control participants. However, aspartame sensitive participants rated more symptoms particularly in the first test session, whether this was placebo or control. Aspartame and control bars affected GLP-1, GIP, tyrosine and phenylalanine levels equally in both aspartame sensitive and non-sensitive subjects. Using a comprehensive battery of psychological tests, biochemistry and state of the art metabonomics there was no evidence of any acute adverse responses to aspartame. This independent study gives reassurance to both regulatory bodies and the public that acute ingestion of aspartame does not have any detectable psychological or metabolic effects in humans. ISRCTN Registry ISRCTN39650237.

  16. Standardized Chinese Formula Xin-Ke-Shu inhibits the myocardium Ca2+ overloading and metabolic alternations in isoproterenol-induced myocardial infarction rats

    PubMed Central

    Liu, Yue-Tao; Zhou, Chao; Jia, Hong-Mei; Chang, Xing; Zou, Zhong-Mei

    2016-01-01

    Xin-Ke-Shu (XKS) is a traditional Chinese patent medicine used for treatment of coronary heart diseases in China. However, its mechanism of action is still unclear. In this paper, the mediation of XKS on the isoproterenol (ISO)-induced myocardial infarction (MI) rat were evaluated based on a tissue-targeted metabonomics in vitro/vivo. The result indicated that twelve metabolic pathways were involved in the therapeutic effect of XKS in vivo, where seven pathways were associated with the Ca2+ overloading mechanism. In agreement with regulation on metabolic variations, XKS markedly reversed the over-expressions of three involved proteins including phospholipase A2 IIA (PLA2 IIA), calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMK II) and Pro-Caspase-3. The metabolic regulations of XKS on H9c2 cell also partially confirmed its metabolic effect. These metabolic characteristics in vitro/vivo and western blotting analysis suggested that XKS protected from MI metabolic perturbation major via inhibition of Ca2+ overloading mechanism. Furthermore, 11 active ingredients of XKS exerted steady affinity with the three proteins through the molecular docking study. Our findings indicate that the metabonomics in vitro/vivo combined with western blotting analysis offers the opportunity to gain insight into the comprehensive efficacy of TCMs on the whole metabolic network. PMID:27457884

  17. The enhanced value of combining conventional and 'omics' analyses in early assessment of drug-induced hepatobiliary injury

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ellinger-Ziegelbauer, Heidrun, E-mail: heidrun.ellinger-ziegelbauer@bayerhealthcare.com; Adler, Melanie; Amberg, Alexander

    2011-04-15

    The InnoMed PredTox consortium was formed to evaluate whether conventional preclinical safety assessment can be significantly enhanced by incorporation of molecular profiling ('omics') technologies. In short-term toxicological studies in rats, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics data were collected and analyzed in relation to routine clinical chemistry and histopathology. Four of the sixteen hepato- and/or nephrotoxicants given to rats for 1, 3, or 14 days at two dose levels induced similar histopathological effects. These were characterized by bile duct necrosis and hyperplasia and/or increased bilirubin and cholestasis, in addition to hepatocyte necrosis and regeneration, hepatocyte hypertrophy, and hepatic inflammation. Combined analysis ofmore » liver transcriptomics data from these studies revealed common gene expression changes which allowed the development of a potential sequence of events on a mechanistic level in accordance with classical endpoint observations. This included genes implicated in early stress responses, regenerative processes, inflammation with inflammatory cell immigration, fibrotic processes, and cholestasis encompassing deregulation of certain membrane transporters. Furthermore, a preliminary classification analysis using transcriptomics data suggested that prediction of cholestasis may be possible based on gene expression changes seen at earlier time-points. Targeted bile acid analysis, based on LC-MS metabonomics data demonstrating increased levels of conjugated or unconjugated bile acids in response to individual compounds, did not provide earlier detection of toxicity as compared to conventional parameters, but may allow distinction of different types of hepatobiliary toxicity. Overall, liver transcriptomics data delivered mechanistic and molecular details in addition to the classical endpoint observations which were further enhanced by targeted bile acid analysis using LC/MS metabonomics.« less

  18. Nutrimetabonomics:applications for nutritional sciences, with specific reference to gut microbial interactions.

    PubMed

    Claus, Sandrine P; Swann, Jonathan R

    2013-01-01

    Understanding the role of the diet in determining human health and disease is one major objective of modern nutrition. Mammalian biocomplexity necessitates the incorporation of systems biology technologies into contemporary nutritional research. Metabonomics is a powerful approach that simultaneously measures the low-molecular-weight compounds in a biological sample, enabling the metabolic status of a biological system to be characterized. Such biochemical profiles contain latent information relating to inherent parameters, such as the genotype, and environmental factors, including the diet and gut microbiota. Nutritional metabonomics, or nutrimetabonomics, is being increasingly applied to study molecular interactions between the diet and the global metabolic system. This review discusses three primary areas in which nutrimetabonomics has enjoyed successful application in nutritional research: the illumination of molecular relationships between nutrition and biochemical processes; elucidation of biomarker signatures of food components for use in dietary surveillance; and the study of complex trans-genomic interactions between the mammalian host and its resident gut microbiome. Finally, this review illustrates the potential for nutrimetabonomics in nutritional science as an indispensable tool to achieve personalized nutrition.

  19. Developmental Changes for the Hemolymph Metabolome of Silkworm (Bombyx moriL.)

    PubMed Central

    Zhou, Lihong; Li, Huihui; Hao, Fuhua; Li, Ning; Liu, Xin; Wang, Guoliang; Wang, Yulan; Tang, Huiru

    2015-01-01

    Silkworm (Bombyx mori) is a lepidopteran-holometabolic model organism. To understand its developmental biochemistry, we characterized the larval hemolymph metabonome from the third instar to prepupa stage using 1H NMR spectroscopy whilst hemolymph fatty acid composition using GC-FID/MS. We unambiguously assigned more than 60 metabolites, among which tyrosine-o-β-glucuronide, mesaconate, homocarnosine, and picolinate were reported for the first time from the silkworm hemolymph. Phosphorylcholine was the most abundant metabolite in all developmental stages with exception for the periods before the third and fourth molting. We also found obvious developmental dependence for the hemolymph metabonome involving multiple pathways including protein biosyntheses, glycolysis, TCA cycle, the metabolisms of choline amino acids, fatty acids, purines, and pyrimidines. Most hemolymph amino acids had two elevations during the feeding period of the fourth instar and prepupa stage. Trehalose was the major blood sugar before day 8 of the fifth instar, whereas glucose became the major blood sugar after spinning. C16:0, C18:0 and its unsaturated forms were dominant fatty acids in hemolymph. The developmental changes of hemolymph metabonome were associated with dietary nutrient intakes, biosyntheses of cell membrane, pigments, proteins, and energy metabolism. These findings offered essential biochemistry information in terms of the dynamic metabolic changes during silkworm development. PMID:25825269

  20. Developmental Changes for the Hemolymph Metabolome of Silkworm (Bombyx mori L.).

    PubMed

    Zhou, Lihong; Li, Huihui; Hao, Fuhua; Li, Ning; Liu, Xin; Wang, Guoliang; Wang, Yulan; Tang, Huiru

    2015-05-01

    Silkworm (Bombyx mori) is a lepidopteran-holometabolic model organism. To understand its developmental biochemistry, we characterized the larval hemolymph metabonome from the third instar to prepupa stage using (1)H NMR spectroscopy whilst hemolymph fatty acid composition using GC-FID/MS. We unambiguously assigned more than 60 metabolites, among which tyrosine-o-β-glucuronide, mesaconate, homocarnosine, and picolinate were reported for the first time from the silkworm hemolymph. Phosphorylcholine was the most abundant metabolite in all developmental stages with exception for the periods before the third and fourth molting. We also found obvious developmental dependence for the hemolymph metabonome involving multiple pathways including protein biosyntheses, glycolysis, TCA cycle, the metabolisms of choline amino acids, fatty acids, purines, and pyrimidines. Most hemolymph amino acids had two elevations during the feeding period of the fourth instar and prepupa stage. Trehalose was the major blood sugar before day 8 of the fifth instar, whereas glucose became the major blood sugar after spinning. C16:0, C18:0 and its unsaturated forms were dominant fatty acids in hemolymph. The developmental changes of hemolymph metabonome were associated with dietary nutrient intakes, biosyntheses of cell membrane, pigments, proteins, and energy metabolism. These findings offered essential biochemistry information in terms of the dynamic metabolic changes during silkworm development.

  1. icoshift: A versatile tool for the rapid alignment of 1D NMR spectra

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Savorani, F.; Tomasi, G.; Engelsen, S. B.

    2010-02-01

    The increasing scientific and industrial interest towards metabonomics takes advantage from the high qualitative and quantitative information level of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. However, several chemical and physical factors can affect the absolute and the relative position of an NMR signal and it is not always possible or desirable to eliminate these effects a priori. To remove misalignment of NMR signals a posteriori, several algorithms have been proposed in the literature. The icoshift program presented here is an open source and highly efficient program designed for solving signal alignment problems in metabonomic NMR data analysis. The icoshift algorithm is based on correlation shifting of spectral intervals and employs an FFT engine that aligns all spectra simultaneously. The algorithm is demonstrated to be faster than similar methods found in the literature making full-resolution alignment of large datasets feasible and thus avoiding down-sampling steps such as binning. The algorithm uses missing values as a filling alternative in order to avoid spectral artifacts at the segment boundaries. The algorithm is made open source and the Matlab code including documentation can be downloaded from www.models.life.ku.dk.

  2. Practical analytical approach for the identification of biomarker candidates in prediabetic state based upon metabonomic study by ultraperformance liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Tsutsui, Haruhito; Maeda, Toshio; Toyo'oka, Toshimasa; Min, Jun Zhe; Inagaki, Shinsuke; Higashi, Tatsuya; Kagawa, Yoshiyuki

    2010-08-06

    The number of diabetic patients has recently been increasing worldwide. Thus, the discovery of potential diabetic biomarker(s), leading to the early detection and/or prevention of diabetes mellitus, is strongly required. The diagnosis of the prediabetic state in humans is a very difficult issue because of the lifestyle differences in each person and ethical consideration. Upon the basis of these considerations, animal experiments using ddY strain mice (ddY-H), which undergo naturally occurring diabetes along with age, were carried out in this study. Biomarker discovery based upon a metabonome study is now quite common, the same as that in the proteome analysis. Reversed-phase liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) has mainly been used for the extensive analysis of low-molecular mass compounds including metabolites. The metabolites in the plasma of diabetic mice (ddY-H) and normal mice (ddY-L) were exhaustively separated and detected by ultraperformance liquid chromatography along with electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-TOF-MS) using T3-C18 and HS-F5 columns. The biomarker candidates related to diabetes mellitus were extracted from the metabolite profiling of ddY-H and ddY-L at 5, 9 13, and 20 weeks old using a multivariate statistical analysis such as orthogonal partial least-squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA). Various metabolites and unknown compounds were detected as biomarker candidates related to diabetic mellitus. Furthermore, the concentration of several metabolites on Lysine biosynthesis and Lysine degradation pathways were remarkably changed between the 9-week old ddY-H and ddY-L mice. Because a couple of biomarker candidates related to the prediabetic state were identified using the present approach, the metabolite profiling study could be helpful for understanding the abnormal state of various diseases.

  3. An automated Pearson's correlation change classification (APC3) approach for GC/MS metabonomic data using total ion chromatograms (TICs).

    PubMed

    Prakash, Bhaskaran David; Esuvaranathan, Kesavan; Ho, Paul C; Pasikanti, Kishore Kumar; Chan, Eric Chun Yong; Yap, Chun Wei

    2013-05-21

    A fully automated and computationally efficient Pearson's correlation change classification (APC3) approach is proposed and shown to have overall comparable performance with both an average accuracy and an average AUC of 0.89 ± 0.08 but is 3.9 to 7 times faster, easier to use and have low outlier susceptibility in contrast to other dimensional reduction and classification combinations using only the total ion chromatogram (TIC) intensities of GC/MS data. The use of only the TIC permits the possible application of APC3 to other metabonomic data such as LC/MS TICs or NMR spectra. A RapidMiner implementation is available for download at http://padel.nus.edu.sg/software/padelapc3.

  4. Gut microbiota composition modifies fecal metabolic profiles in mice.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Ying; Wu, Junfang; Li, Jia V; Zhou, Ning-Yi; Tang, Huiru; Wang, Yulan

    2013-06-07

    The gut microbiome is known to be extensively involved in human health and disease. In order to reveal the metabolic relationship between host and microbiome, we monitored recovery of the gut microbiota composition and fecal profiles of mice after gentamicin and/or ceftriaxone treatments. This was performed by employing (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabonomics and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) fingerprint of gut microbiota. The common features of fecal metabolites postantibiotic treatment include decreased levels of short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), amino acids and primary bile acids and increased oligosaccharides, d-pinitol, choline and secondary bile acids (deoxycholic acid). This suggests suppressed bacterial fermentation, protein degradation and enhanced gut microbial modification of bile acids. Barnesiella, Prevotella, and Alistipes levels were shown to decrease as a result of the antibiotic treatment, whereas levels of Bacteroides, Enterococcus and Erysipelotrichaceae incertae sedis, and Mycoplasma increased after gentamicin and ceftriaxone treatment. In addition, there was a strong correlation between fecal profiles and levels of Bacteroides, Barnesiella, Alistipes and Prevotella. The integration of metabonomics and gut microbiota profiling provides important information on the changes of gut microbiota and their impact on fecal profiles during the recovery after antibiotic treatment. The correlation between gut microbiota and fecal metabolites provides important information on the function of bacteria, which in turn could be important in optimizing therapeutic strategies, and developing potential microbiota-based disease preventions and therapeutic interventions.

  5. The effects of size and surface modification of amorphous silica particles on biodistribution and liver metabolism in mice

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lu, Xiaoyan; Ji, Cai; Jin, Tingting; Fan, Xiaohui

    2015-05-01

    Engineered nanoparticles, with unconventional properties, are promising platforms for biomedical applications. Since they may interact with a wide variety of biomolecules, it is critical to understand the impact of the physicochemical properties of engineered nanoparticles on biological systems. In this study, the effects of particle size and surface modification alone or in combination of amorphous silica particles (SPs) on biological responses were determined using a suite of general toxicological assessments and metabonomics analysis in mice model. Our results suggested that amino or carboxyl surface modification mitigated the liver toxicity of plain-surface SPs. 30 nm SPs with amino surface modification were found to be the most toxic SPs among all the surface-modified SP treatments at the same dosage. When treatment dose was increased, submicro-sized SPs with amino or carboxyl surface modification also induced liver toxicity. Biodistribution studies suggested that 70 nm SPs were mainly accumulated in liver and spleen regardless of surface modifications. Interestingly, these two organs exhibited different uptake trends. Furthermore, metabonomics studies indicated that surface modification plays a more dominant role to affect the liver metabolism than particle size.

  6. Metabonomics applied in exploring the antitumour mechanism of physapubenolide on hepatocellular carcinoma cells by targeting glycolysis through the Akt-p53 pathway

    PubMed Central

    Ma, Ting; Fan, Bo-Yi; Zhang, Chao; Zhao, Hui-Jun; Han, Chao; Gao, Cai-Yun; Luo, Jian-Guang; Kong, Ling-Yi

    2016-01-01

    Metabolomics can be used to identify potential markers and discover new targets for future therapeutic interventions. Here, we developed a novel application of the metabonomics method based on gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis and principal component analysis (PCA) for rapidly exploring the anticancer mechanism of physapubenolide (PB), a cytotoxic withanolide isolated from Physalis species. PB inhibited the proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma cells in vitro and in vivo, accompanied by apoptosis-related biochemical events, including the cleavage of caspase-3/7/9 and PARP. Metabolic profiling analysis revealed that PB disturbed the metabolic pattern and significantly decreased lactate production. This suggests that the suppression of glycolysis plays an important role in the anti-tumour effects induced by PB, which is further supported by the decreased expression of glycolysis-related genes and proteins. Furthermore, the increased level of p53 and decreased expression of p-Akt were observed, and the attenuated glycolysis and enhanced apoptosis were reversed in the presence of Akt cDNA or p53 siRNA. These results confirm that PB exhibits anti-cancer activities through the Akt-p53 pathway. Our study not only reports for the first time the anti-tumour mechanism of PB, but also suggests that PB is a promising therapeutic agent for use in cancer treatments and that metabolomic approaches provide a new strategy to effectively explore the molecular mechanisms of promising anticancer compounds. PMID:27416811

  7. Liquid chromatography and ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry fingerprinting of human urine: sample stability under different handling and storage conditions for metabonomics studies.

    PubMed

    Gika, Helen G; Theodoridis, Georgios A; Wilson, Ian D

    2008-05-02

    Typically following collection biological samples are kept in a freezer for periods ranging from a few days to several months before analysis. Experience has shown that in LC-MS-based metabonomics research the best analytical practice is to store samples as these are collected, complete the sample set and analyse it in a single run. However, this approach is prudent only if the samples stored in the refrigerator or in the freezer are stable. Another important issue is the stability of the samples following the freeze-thaw process. To investigate these matters urine samples were collected from 6 male volunteers and analysed by LC-MS and ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC)-MS [in both positive and negative electrospray ionization (ESI)] on the day of collection or at intervals of up to 6 months storage at -20 degrees C and -80 degrees C. Other sets of these samples underwent a series of up to nine freeze-thaw cycles. The stability of samples kept at 4 degrees C in an autosampler for up to 6 days was also assessed, with clear differences appearing after 48h. Data was analysed using multivariate statistical analysis (principal component analysis). The results show that sample storage at both -20 and -80 degrees C appeared to ensure sample stability. Similarly up to nine freeze thaw cycles were without any apparent effect on the profile.

  8. Metabonomics applied in exploring the antitumour mechanism of physapubenolide on hepatocellular carcinoma cells by targeting glycolysis through the Akt-p53 pathway.

    PubMed

    Ma, Ting; Fan, Bo-Yi; Zhang, Chao; Zhao, Hui-Jun; Han, Chao; Gao, Cai-Yun; Luo, Jian-Guang; Kong, Ling-Yi

    2016-07-15

    Metabolomics can be used to identify potential markers and discover new targets for future therapeutic interventions. Here, we developed a novel application of the metabonomics method based on gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis and principal component analysis (PCA) for rapidly exploring the anticancer mechanism of physapubenolide (PB), a cytotoxic withanolide isolated from Physalis species. PB inhibited the proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma cells in vitro and in vivo, accompanied by apoptosis-related biochemical events, including the cleavage of caspase-3/7/9 and PARP. Metabolic profiling analysis revealed that PB disturbed the metabolic pattern and significantly decreased lactate production. This suggests that the suppression of glycolysis plays an important role in the anti-tumour effects induced by PB, which is further supported by the decreased expression of glycolysis-related genes and proteins. Furthermore, the increased level of p53 and decreased expression of p-Akt were observed, and the attenuated glycolysis and enhanced apoptosis were reversed in the presence of Akt cDNA or p53 siRNA. These results confirm that PB exhibits anti-cancer activities through the Akt-p53 pathway. Our study not only reports for the first time the anti-tumour mechanism of PB, but also suggests that PB is a promising therapeutic agent for use in cancer treatments and that metabolomic approaches provide a new strategy to effectively explore the molecular mechanisms of promising anticancer compounds.

  9. Lysophosphatidylcholine and amide as metabolites for detecting alzheimer disease using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry-based metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Cui, Yu; Liu, Xiuqin; Wang, Maoqing; Liu, Liyan; Sun, Xiaohong; Ma, Lan; Xie, Wei; Wang, Chao; Tang, Sisi; Wang, Decai; Wu, Qunhong

    2014-10-01

    Alzheimer disease (AD) can be diagnosed by clinical and neuropsychologic tests and at autopsy, but there are no simple effective diagnostic methods for detecting biomarkers in patients at early stages of cognitive impairment. Early metabolic alterations that may facilitate AD diagnosis have not been thoroughly explored. We applied a nontargeted metabonomic approach using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry to analyze serum and urine samples from 46 patients with AD and 36 healthy controls. Metabolite profiles were processed using multivariate analysis to identify potential metabolites, which were further confirmed using tandem mass spectrometry. Ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry methods were additionally used to quantify potentially important biomarkers. Independent samples were then selected to validate the identified biomarkers. There was a clear separation between healthy controls and AD patients; AD patient samples had disordered amino acid and phospholipid metabolism and dysregulated palmitic amide. Receiver operator characteristic curve and quantification suggested that palmitic amide, lysophosphatidylcholine (LysoPC, 18:0), LysoPC(18:2), L-glutamine, and 5-L-glutamylglycine were the optimal metabolites. In addition, areas under the curve from the palmitic amide, LysoPC(18:2), and 5-L-glutamylglycine in the validation study were 0.714, 0.996, and 0.734, respectively. These data elucidate the metabolic alterations associated with AD and suggest new biomarkers for AD diagnosis, thereby permitting early intervention designed to prevent disease progression.

  10. Aspartame Sensitivity? A Double Blind Randomised Crossover Study

    PubMed Central

    Sathyapalan, Thozhukat; Thatcher, Natalie J.; Hammersley, Richard; Rigby, Alan S.; Pechlivanis, Alexandros; Gooderham, Nigel J.; Holmes, Elaine; le Roux, Carel W.; Atkin, Stephen L.; Courts, Fraser

    2015-01-01

    Background Aspartame is a commonly used intense artificial sweetener, being approximately 200 times sweeter than sucrose. There have been concerns over aspartame since approval in the 1980s including a large anecdotal database reporting severe symptoms. The objective of this study was to compare the acute symptom effects of aspartame to a control preparation. Methods This was a double-blind randomized cross over study conducted in a clinical research unit in United Kingdom. Forty-eight individual who has self reported sensitivity to aspartame were compared to 48 age and gender matched aspartame non-sensitive individuals. They were given aspartame (100mg)-containing or control snack bars randomly at least 7 days apart. The main outcome measures were acute effects of aspartame measured using repeated ratings of 14 symptoms, biochemistry and metabonomics. Results Aspartame sensitive and non-sensitive participants differed psychologically at baseline in handling feelings and perceived stress. Sensitive participants had higher triglycerides (2.05 ± 1.44 vs. 1.26 ± 0.84mmol/L; p value 0.008) and lower HDL-C (1.16 ± 0.34 vs. 1.35 ± 0.54 mmol/L; p value 0.04), reflected in 1H NMR serum analysis that showed differences in the baseline lipid content between the two groups. Urine metabonomic studies showed no significant differences. None of the rated symptoms differed between aspartame and control bars, or between sensitive and control participants. However, aspartame sensitive participants rated more symptoms particularly in the first test session, whether this was placebo or control. Aspartame and control bars affected GLP-1, GIP, tyrosine and phenylalanine levels equally in both aspartame sensitive and non-sensitive subjects. Conclusion Using a comprehensive battery of psychological tests, biochemistry and state of the art metabonomics there was no evidence of any acute adverse responses to aspartame. This independent study gives reassurance to both regulatory bodies and the public that acute ingestion of aspartame does not have any detectable psychological or metabolic effects in humans. Trial Registration ISRCTN Registry ISRCTN39650237 PMID:25786106

  11. Cerebral metabonomics study on Parkinson's disease mice treated with extract of Acanthopanax senticosus harms.

    PubMed

    Li, Xu-zhao; Zhang, Shuai-nan; Lu, Fang; Liu, Chang-feng; Wang, Yu; Bai, Yu; Wang, Na; Liu, Shu-min

    2013-10-15

    Extract of Acanthopanax senticosus harms (EAS) has neuroprotective effect on Parkinson's disease (PD) mice against dopaminergic neuronal damage. However, studies of its anti-PD mechanism are challenging, owing to the complex pathophysiology of PD, and complexity of EAS with multiple constituents acting on different metabolic pathways. Here, we have investigated the metabolic profiles and potential biomarkers in a mice model of MPTP-induced PD after treatment of EAS. Metabonomics based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS) was used to profile the metabolic fingerprints of mesencephalon obtained from 1-Methyl-4-phenyl-1, 2, 3, 6-tetrahydropyridine Hydrochloride (MPTP-HCl)-induced PD mice model with and without EAS treatment. Through partial least squares-discriminate analysis (PLS-DA), it was observed that metabolic perturbations induced by MPTP were restored after treatment with EAS. Metabolites with significant changes induced by MPTP, including L-dopa, 5'-methylthioadenosine, tetradecanoylcarnitine, phytosphingosine-1-P, Cer(d18:0/18:0), LysoPC(20:4(5Z,8Z,11Z,14Z)), L-palmitoyl -carnitine, tetracosanoylglycine, morphiceptin and stearoylcarnitine, were characterized as potential biomarkers involved in the pathogenesis of PD. The derivations of all those biomarkers can be regulated by EAS treatment except Cer(d18:0/18:0), LysoPC(20:4(5Z,8Z,11Z,14Z)), morphiceptin. The therapeutic effect of EAS on PD may involve in regulating the tyrosine metabolism, mitochondrial beta-oxidation of long chain saturated fatty acids, fatty acid metabolism, methionine metabolism, and sphingolipid metabolism. This study indicated that changed metabolites can be certainly recovered by EAS, and the treatment of EAS can be connected with the regulation of related metabolic pathways. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  12. Integrated metabonomics analysis of the size-response relationship of silica nanoparticles-induced toxicity in mice

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lu, Xiaoyan; Tian, Yu; Zhao, Qinqin; Jin, Tingting; Xiao, Shun; Fan, Xiaohui

    2011-02-01

    Understanding the underlying properties-dependent interactions of nanostructures with biological systems is essential to nanotoxicological research. This study investigates the relationship between particle size and toxicity, and further reveals the mechanism of injury, using silica particles (SP) with diameters of 30, 70, and 300 nm (SP30, SP70, and SP300) as model materials. The biochemical compositions of liver tissues and serum of mice treated with SP30, SP70, and SP300 were analyzed by integrated metabonomics analysis based on gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and in combination with pattern recognition approaches. Histopathological examinations and serum biochemical analysis were simultaneously performed. The toxicity induced by three different sizes of SP mainly involved hepatocytic necrosis, increased serum aminotransferase, and inflammatory cytokines. Moreover, the toxic effects of SP were dose-dependent for each particle size. The doses of SP30, SP70, and SP300 that were toxic to the liver were 10, 40, and 200 mg kg - 1, respectively. In this study, surface area has a greater effect than particle number on the toxicity of SP30, SP70, and SP300 in the liver. The disturbances in energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism, lipid metabolism, and nucleotide metabolism may be attributable to the hepatotoxicity induced by SP. In addition, no major differences were found in the response of biological systems caused by the different SP sizes among the metabolite profiles. The results suggest that not only nano-sized but also submicro-sized SP can cause similar extents of liver injury, which is dependent on the exposure dose, and the mechanism of toxicity may be almost the same.

  13. Serum metabonomics of NAFLD plus T2DM based on liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Chen, Yang; Li, Chunlong; Liu, Liyan; Guo, Fuchuan; Li, Songtao; Huang, Lina; Sun, Changhao; Feng, Rennan

    2016-09-01

    Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a main liver disease around the world, is closely associated with insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and other metabolic diseases. The objective of this study is to identify distinct metabolites of NAFLD patients with or without T2DM. We used a biomarker-discovery population to find distinct metabolites of NAFLD patients with or without T2DM. Then, a validation population was applied to test the model of the biomarker-discovery population. All the individuals received anthropometric and common biochemical measurements. The metabolic data were analyzed by multivariable statistical analyses using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight-tandem mass spectrometry. There were 7, 7, 2 metabolites in the positive electrospray ionization (ESI(+)) mode, which were identified between groups from both the biomarker-discovery and validation population. The NAFLD group showed higher concentrations of oleamide, l-phenylalanine, l-proline, bilirubin, l-palmitoylcarnitine, and PC (20:5) and a lower concentration of Lyso-PAF C-18 than those of control. Compared with the control group, the NAFLD+T2DM group displayed higher oleamide, l-leucine, LysoPC (14:0), bilirubin, tetradecenoylcarnitine, linoleyl carnitine, and tetradecadiencarnitine in serum. Tetradecenoylcarnitine and tetradecadiencarnitine were more elevated in patients with NAFLD+T2DM than in the NAFLD group. Serum metabonomic analyses displayed great metabolic changes in patients with NAFLD and NAFLD plus T2DM. Our study is beneficial in providing a further view into the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of NAFLD and NAFLD plus T2DM, which might be useful for the prevention and therapy of NAFLD and NAFLD plus T2DM. Copyright © 2016 The Canadian Society of Clinical Chemists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Metabolic profiling studies on the toxicological effects of realgar in rats by {sup 1}H NMR spectroscopy

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Wei Lai; Liao Peiqiu; Wu Huifeng

    2009-02-01

    The toxicological effects of realgar after intragastrical administration (1 g/kg body weight) were investigated over a 21 day period in male Wistar rats using metabonomic analysis of {sup 1}H NMR spectra of urine, serum and liver tissue aqueous extracts. Liver and kidney histopathology examination and serum clinical chemistry analyses were also performed. {sup 1}H NMR spectra and pattern recognition analyses from realgar treated animals showed increased excretion of urinary Kreb's cycle intermediates, increased levels of ketone bodies in urine and serum, and decreased levels of hepatic glucose and glycogen, as well as hypoglycemia and hyperlipoidemia, suggesting the perturbation of energymore » metabolism. Elevated levels of choline containing metabolites and betaine in serum and liver tissue aqueous extracts and increased serum creatine indicated altered transmethylation. Decreased urinary levels of trimethylamine-N-oxide, phenylacetylglycine and hippurate suggested the effects on the gut microflora environment by realgar. Signs of impairment of amino acid metabolism were supported by increased hepatic glutamate levels, increased methionine and decreased alanine levels in serum, and hypertaurinuria. The observed increase in glutathione in liver tissue aqueous extracts could be a biomarker of realgar induced oxidative injury. Serum clinical chemistry analyses showed increased levels of lactate dehydrogenase, aspartate aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase as well as increased levels of blood urea nitrogen and creatinine, indicating slight liver and kidney injury. The time-dependent biochemical variations induced by realgar were achieved using pattern recognition methods. This work illustrated the high reliability of NMR-based metabonomic approach on the study of the biochemical effects induced by traditional Chinese medicine.« less

  15. Integration of 1H NMR and UPLC-Q-TOF/MS for a Comprehensive Urinary Metabonomics Study on a Rat Model of Depression Induced by Chronic Unpredictable Mild Stress

    PubMed Central

    Jia, Hong-mei; Feng, Yu-fei; Liu, Yue-tao; Chang, Xing; Chen, Lin; Zhang, Hong-wu; Ding, Gang; Zou, Zhong-mei

    2013-01-01

    Depression is a type of complex psychiatric disorder with long-term, recurrent bouts, and its etiology remains largely unknown. Here, an integrated approach utilizing 1H NMR and UPLC-Q-TOF/MS together was firstly used for a comprehensive urinary metabonomics study on chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) treated rats. More than twenty-nine metabolic pathways were disturbed after CUMS treatment and thirty-six potential biomarkers were identified by using two complementary analytical technologies. Among the identified biomarkers, nineteen (10, 11, 16, 17, 21–25, and 27–36) were firstly reported as potential biomarkers of CUMS-induced depression. Obviously, this paper presented a comprehensive map of the metabolic pathways perturbed by CUMS and expanded on the multitude of potential biomarkers that have been previously reported in the CUMS model. Four metabolic pathways, including valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis; phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis; tryptophan metabolism; synthesis and degradation of ketone bodies had the deepest influence in the pathophysiologic process of depression. Fifteen potential biomarkers (1–2, 4–6, 15, 18, 20–23, 27, 32, 35–36) involved in the above four metabolic pathways might become the screening criteria in clinical diagnosis and predict the development of depression. Moreover, the results of Western blot analysis of aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (DDC) and indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase (IDO) in the hippocampus of CUMS-treated rats indicated that depletion of 5-HT and tryptophan, production of 5-MT and altered expression of DDC and IDO together played a key role in the initiation and progression of depression. In addition, none of the potential biomarkers were detected by NMR and LC-MS simultaneously which indicated the complementary of the two kinds of detection technologies. Therefore, the integration of 1H NMR and UPLC-Q-TOF/MS in metabonomics study provided an approach to identify the comprehensive potential depression-related biomarkers and helpful in further understanding the underlying molecular mechanisms of depression through the disturbance of metabolic pathways. PMID:23696839

  16. [Metabonomics on toxicity reduction of Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma for Aconiti Lateralis Radix Preparata in Sini Tang].

    PubMed

    Li, Ying; Fu, Chao-Mei; Peng, Wei; Li, Bo; Fu, Shu; Zhang, Hui-Min

    2016-04-01

    To analyze the endogenous metabolite changes in rat plasma after intervention by Sini Tang and Sini Tang without Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma based on GC-MS metabonomics technology, and study the toxicity reduction effect of Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma in Sini Tang on Aconiti Lateralis Radix Preparata. Eighteen SD rats were randomly divided into normal group, Sini Tang group and Sini Tang without Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma group on average. The rats in Sini Tang group and Sini Tang without Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma group were treated respectively with physic liquor by intragastric administration at the dose of 0.02 mL•g ⁻¹ (equivalent to 0.8 g•mL ⁻¹ crude drugs) once a day for 7 days. The rats in normal group were given with equal volume of saline solution. The plasma samples were collected from each rat 0.5 h after the last administration for GC-MS detection. The data was used for multivariate statistical analysis to obtain 14 potential metabolic markers(13 of them were identified). Then their relative content and metabolic pathways were analyzed. Compared with Sini Tang without Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma group, seven metabolic markers of were reduced in Sini Tang group. Analysis on physiological functions of these potential metabolic markers showed that the Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma in Sini Tang could reduce the toxicity of Aconiti Lateralis Radix Preparata by adjusting the glycolysis, lipid metabolism, citrate cycle and some amino acids metabolism. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

  17. Fecal Metabolomics of Type 2 Diabetic Rats and Treatment with Gardenia jasminoides Ellis Based on Mass Spectrometry Technique.

    PubMed

    Zhou, Yuan; Men, Lihui; Pi, Zifeng; Wei, Mengying; Song, Fengrui; Zhao, Chunfang; Liu, Zhiqiang

    2018-02-14

    Modern studies have indicated Gardenia jasminoides Ellis (G. jasminoides) showed positive effect in treating type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). In this study, 60 streptozotocin-induced T2DM rats were divided into four groups: type 2 diabetes control group, geniposide-treated group, total iridoid glycosides-treated group, and crude extraction of gardenlae fructus-treated group. The other ten healthy rats were the healthy control group. During 12 weeks of treatment, rat's feces samples were collected for the metabolomics study based on mass spectrometry technique. On the basis of the fecal metabolomics method, 19 potential biomarkers were screened and their relative intensities in each group were compared. The results revealed G. jasminoides mainly regulated dysfunctions in phenylalanine metabolism, tryptophan metabolism, and secondary bile acid biosynthesis pathways induced by diabetes. The current study provides new insight for metabonomics methodology toward T2DM, and the results show that feces can preferably reflect the liver and intestines disorders.

  18. A HILIC-UHPLC-MS/MS untargeted urinary metabonomics combined with quantitative analysis of five polar biomarkers on osteoporosis rats after oral administration of Gushudan.

    PubMed

    Wu, Xiao; Huang, Yue; Sun, Jinghan; Wen, Yongqing; Qin, Feng; Zhao, Longshan; Xiong, Zhili

    2018-01-01

    A HILIC-UHPLC-MS/MS untargeted urinary metabonomic method combined with quantitative analysis of five potential polar biomarkers in rat urine was developed and validated, to further understand the anti-osteoporosis effect of Gushudan(GSD) and its mechanism on prednisolone-induced osteoporosis(OP) rats in this study. The metabolites were separated and identified on Waters BEH HILIC (2.1mm×100mm, 1.7μm) column using the Waters ACQUITY™ ultra performance liquid chromatography system (Waters Corporation, Milford, USA) coupled with a Micromass Quattro Micro™ API mass spectrometer (Waters Corp, Milford, MA, USA). Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to identify potential biomarkers. Primary potential polar biomarkers including creatinine, taurine, betaine, hypoxanthine and cytosine, which were related to energy metabolism, lipid metabolism and amino acid metabolism, were found in the untargeted metabonomic research. Moreover, these targeted biomarkers were further separated and quantified in multiple-reaction monitoring (MRM) with positive ionization mode, using tinidazole as internal standard (I.S.). Good linearities (r>0.99) were obtained for all the analytes with the low limit of quantification from 1.00 to 12.8μg/mL. The relative standard deviation (RSD) of the intra-day and inter-day precisions were within 15.0% and the accuracy ranged from -14.3% to 13.5%. The recovery was more than 85.0%. And the validated method was successfully applied to investigate the urine samples of the control group, prednisolone-induced osteoporosis model group and Gushudan-treatment group in rats. Compared to the control group, the level of creatinine, taurine, betaine, hypoxanthine and cytosine in the model group revealed a significant decrease trend (p<0.05), while the Gushudan-treatment group showed no statistically differences by an independent sample t-test. This paper provided a better understanding of the therapeutic effect and mechanism of GSD on prednisolone-induced osteoporosis rats. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  19. NMR-based metabonomics study on the effect of Gancao in the attenuation of toxicity in rats induced by Fuzi.

    PubMed

    Sun, Bo; Wang, Xubin; Cao, Ruili; Zhang, Qi; Liu, Qiao; Xu, Meifeng; Zhang, Ming; Du, Xiangbo; Dong, Fangting; Yan, Xianzhong

    2016-12-04

    Fuzi, the processed lateral root of Aconitum carmichaelii Debeaux, is a traditional Chinese medicine used for its analgesic, antipyretic, anti-rheumatoid arthritis and anti-inflammation effects; however, it is also well known for its toxicity. Gancao, the root of Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., is often used concurrently with Fuzi to alleviate its toxicity. However, the mechanism of detoxication is still not well clear. In this study, the effect of Gancao on the metabolic changes induced by Fuzi was investigated by NMR-based metabonomic approaches. Fifty male Wistar rats were randomly divided into five groups (group A: control, group B: Fuzi decoction alone, group C: Gancao decoction alone, group D: Fuzi decoction and Gancao decoction simultaneously, group E: Fuzi decoction 5h after Gancao decoction) and urine samples were collected for NMR-based metabolic profiling analysis. Statistical analyses such as unsupervised PCA, t-test, hierarchical cluster, and pathway analysis were used to detect the effects of Gancao on the metabolic changes induced by Fuzi. The behavioral and biochemical characteristics showed that Fuzi exhibited toxic effects on treated rats (group B) and statistical analyses showed that their metabolic profiles were in contrast to those in groups A and C. However, when Fuzi was administered with Gancao, the metabolic profiles became similar to controls, whereby Gancao reduced the levels of trimethylamine N-oxide, betaine, dimethylglycine, valine, acetoacetate, citrate, fumarate, 2-ketoglutarate and hippurate, and regulated the concentrations of taurine and 3-hydroxybutyrate, resulting in a decrease in toxicity. Furthermore, important pathways that are known to be involved in the effect of Gancao on Fuzi, including phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis, the synthesis and degradation of ketone bodies, and the TCA cycle, were altered in co-treated rats. Gancao treatment mitigated the metabolic changes altered by Fuzi administration in rats, demonstrating that dosing with Gancao could reduce the toxicity of Fuzi at the metabolic level. Fuzi and Gancao administered simultaneously resulted in improved toxicity reduction than when Gancao was administrated 5h prior to Fuzi. In summary, co-administration of Gancao with Fuzi reduces toxicity at the metabolic level. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. EPA'S TOXICOGENOMICS PARTNERSHIPS ACROSS GOVERNMENT, ACADEMIA AND INDUSTRY

    EPA Science Inventory

    Genomics, proteomics and metabonomics technologies are transforming the science of toxicology, and concurrent advances in computing and informatics are providing management and analysis solutions for this onslaught of toxicogenomic data. EPA has been actively developing an intra...

  1. Serum profiling of healthy aging identifies phospho- and sphingolipid species as markers of human longevity.

    PubMed

    Montoliu, Ivan; Scherer, Max; Beguelin, Fiona; DaSilva, Laeticia; Mari, Daniela; Salvioli, Stefano; Martin, Francois-Pierre J; Capri, Miriam; Bucci, Laura; Ostan, Rita; Garagnani, Paolo; Monti, Daniela; Biagi, Elena; Brigidi, Patrizia; Kussmann, Martin; Rezzi, Serge; Franceschi, Claudio; Collino, Sebastiano

    2014-01-01

    As centenarians well represent the model of healthy aging, there are many important implications in revealing the underlying molecular mechanisms behind such successful aging. By combining NMR metabonomics and shot-gun lipidomics in serum we analyzed metabolome and lipidome composition of a group of centenarians with respect to elderly individuals. Specifically, NMR metabonomics profiling of serum revealed that centenarians are characterized by a metabolic phenotype distinct from that of elderly subjects, in particular regarding amino acids and lipid species. Shot- gun lipidomics approach displays unique changes in lipids biosynthesis in centenarians, with 41 differently abundant lipid species with respect to elderly subjects. These findings reveal phospho/sphingolipids as putative markers and biological modulators of healthy aging, in humans. Considering the particular actions of these metabolites, these data are suggestive of a better counteractive antioxidant capacity and a well-developed membrane lipid remodelling process in the healthy aging phenotype.

  2. Automatic alignment of individual peaks in large high-resolution spectral data sets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stoyanova, Radka; Nicholls, Andrew W.; Nicholson, Jeremy K.; Lindon, John C.; Brown, Truman R.

    2004-10-01

    Pattern recognition techniques are effective tools for reducing the information contained in large spectral data sets to a much smaller number of significant features which can then be used to make interpretations about the chemical or biochemical system under study. Often the effectiveness of such approaches is impeded by experimental and instrument induced variations in the position, phase, and line width of the spectral peaks. Although characterizing the cause and magnitude of these fluctuations could be important in its own right (pH-induced NMR chemical shift changes, for example) in general they obscure the process of pattern discovery. One major area of application is the use of large databases of 1H NMR spectra of biofluids such as urine for investigating perturbations in metabolic profiles caused by drugs or disease, a process now termed metabonomics. Frequency shifts of individual peaks are the dominant source of such unwanted variations in this type of data. In this paper, an automatic procedure for aligning the individual peaks in the data set is described and evaluated. The proposed method will be vital for the efficient and automatic analysis of large metabonomic data sets and should also be applicable to other types of data.

  3. Application of 1H NMR spectroscopy-based metabonomics to feces of cervical cancer patients with radiation-induced acute intestinal symptoms.

    PubMed

    Chai, Yanlan; Wang, Juan; Wang, Tao; Yang, Yunyi; Su, Jin; Shi, Fan; Wang, Jiquan; Zhou, Xi; He, Bin; Ma, Hailin; Liu, Zi

    2015-11-01

    Radiation-induced acute intestinal symptoms (RIAISs) are a common complication of radiotherapy for cervical cancer. The aim of this study was to use (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance ((1)H NMR) combined with chemometric analysis to develop a metabolic profile of patients with RIAISs. Fecal samples were collected from 66 patients with cervical cancer before and after pelvic radiotherapy. After radiotherapy, RIAISs occurred in eleven patients. We selected another 11 patients from participants without RIAISs whose age, stage, histological type and treatment methods are matched with RIAIS patients as the control group. (1)H NMR spectroscopy combined with multivariate pattern recognition analysis was used to generate metabolic profile data, as well as to establish a RIAIS-specific metabolic phenotype. Orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis was used to distinguish samples between the pre- and post-radiotherapy RIAIS patients and between RIAIS patients and controls. Fecal samples from RIAIS patients after pelvic radiotherapy were characterized by increased concentrations of α-ketobutyrate, valine, uracil, tyrosine, trimethylamine N-oxide, phenylalanine, lysine, isoleucine, glutamine, creatinine, creatine, bile acids, aminohippurate, and alanine, accompanied by reduced concentrations of α-glucose, n-butyrate, methylamine, and ethanol relative to samples from RIAIS patients before pelvic radiotherapy, while in RIAIS patients relative to controls, trimethylamine, n-butyrate, fumarate and acetate were down-regulated and valine, TMAO, taurine, phenylalanine, lactate, isoleucine and creatinine were up-regulated. We obtained the metabolic profile of RIAIS patients from fecal samples using NMR-based metabonomics. This profile has the potential to be developed into a novel clinical tool for RIAIS diagnosis or therapeutic monitoring, and could contribute to an improved understanding of the disease mechanism. However, because of the limitations of methods, technique, bacterial contamination of feces and small sample size, further research and verification are needed. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  4. Prediction of the Pharmacokinetic Parameters of Triptolide in Rats Based on Endogenous Molecules in Pre-Dose Baseline Serum

    PubMed Central

    Aa, Jiye; Zheng, Tian; Shi, Jian; Li, Mengjie; Wang, Xinwen; Zhao, Chunyan; Xiao, Wenjing; Yu, Xiaoyi; Sun, Runbin; Gu, Rongrong; Zhou, Jun; Wu, Liang; Hao, Gang; Zhu, Xuanxuan; Wang, Guangji

    2012-01-01

    Background Individual variances usually affect drug metabolism and disposition, and hence result in either ineffectiveness or toxicity of a drug. In addition to genetic polymorphism, the multiple confounding factors of lifestyles, such as dietary preferences, contribute partially to individual variances. However, the difficulty of quantifying individual diversity greatly challenges the realization of individualized drug therapy. This study aims at quantitative evaluating the association between individual variances and the pharmacokinetics. Methodology/Principal Findings Molecules in pre-dose baseline serum were profiled using gas chromatography mass spectrometry to represent the individual variances of the model rats provided with high fat diets (HFD), routine chows and calorie restricted (CR) chows. Triptolide and its metabolites were determined using high performance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry. Metabonomic and pharmacokinetic data revealed that rats treated with the varied diets had distinctly different metabolic patterns and showed differential Cmax values, AUC and drug metabolism after oral administration of triptolide. Rats with fatty chows had the lowest Cmax and AUC values and the highest percentage of triptolide metabolic transformation, while rats with CR chows had the highest Cmax and AUC values and the least percentage of triptolide transformation. Multivariate linear regression revealed that in baseline serum, the concentrations of creatinine and glutamic acid, which is the precursor of GSH, were linearly negatively correlated to Cmax and AUC values. The glutamic acid and creatinine in baseline serum were suggested as the potential markers to represent individual diversity and as predictors of the disposal and pharmacokinetics of triptolide. Conclusions/Significance These results highlight the robust potential of metabonomics in characterizing individual variances and identifying relevant markers that have the potential to facilitate individualized drug therapy. PMID:22912866

  5. The metabolic disturbances of isoproterenol induced myocardial infarction in rats based on a tissue targeted metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Liu, Yue-tao; Jia, Hong-mei; Chang, Xing; Ding, Gang; Zhang, Hong-wu; Zou, Zhong-Mei

    2013-11-01

    Myocardial infarction (MI) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality but the precise mechanism of its pathogenesis remains obscure. To achieve the most comprehensive screening of the entire metabolome related to isoproterenol (ISO) induced-MI, we present a tissue targeted metabonomic study using an integrated approach of ultra-performance liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q/TOF MS) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR). Twenty-two metabolites were detected as potential biomarkers related to the formation of MI, and the levels of pantothenic acid (), lysoPC(18:0) (), PC(18:4(6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z)/18:0) (), taurine (), lysoPC(20:3(8Z,11Z,14Z)) (), threonine (), alanine (), creatine (), phosphocreatine (), glucose 1-phosphate (), glycine (), xanthosine (), creatinine () and glucose () were decreased significantly, while the concentrations of histamine (), L-palmitoylcarnitine (), GSSG (), inosine (), arachidonic acid (), linoelaidic acid (), 3-methylhistamine () and glycylproline () were increased significantly in the MI rats compared with the control group. The identified potential biomarkers were involved in twelve metabolic pathways and achieved the most entire metabolome contributing to the injury of the myocardial tissue. Five pathways, including taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, glycolysis, arachidonic acid metabolism, glycine, serine and threonine metabolism and histidine metabolism, were significantly influenced by ISO-treatment according to MetPA analysis and suggested that the most prominent changes included inflammation, interference of calcium dynamics, as well as alterations of energy metabolism in the pathophysiologic process of MI. These findings provided a unique perspective on localized metabolic information of ISO induced-MI, which gave us new insights into the pathogenesis of MI, discovery of targets for clinical diagnosis and treatment.

  6. Metabolic Profiling Provides a System Understanding of Hypothyroidism in Rats and Its Application

    PubMed Central

    Dong, Xin; Zhu, Zhenyu; Li, Wuhong; Lou, Ziyang; Chai, Yifeng

    2013-01-01

    Background Hypothyroidism is a chronic condition of endocrine disorder and its precise molecular mechanism remains obscure. In spite of certain efficacy of thyroid hormone replacement therapy in treating hypothyroidism, it often results in other side effects because of its over-replacement, so it is still urgent to discover new modes of treatment for hypothyroidism. Sini decoction (SND) is a well-known formula of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and is considered as efficient agents against hypothyroidism. However, its holistic effect assessment and mechanistic understanding are still lacking due to its complex components. Methodology/Principal Findings A urinary metabonomic method based on ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry was employed to explore global metabolic characters of hypothyroidism. Three typical hypothyroidism models (methimazole-, propylthiouracil- and thyroidectomy-induced hypothyroidism) were applied to elucidate the molecular mechanism of hypothyroidism. 17, 21, 19 potential biomarkers were identified with these three hypothyroidism models respectively, primarily involved in energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism, sphingolipid metabolism and purine metabolism. In order to avert the interference of drug interaction between the antithyroid drugs and SND, the thyroidectomy-induced hypothyroidism model was further used to systematically assess the therapeutic efficacy of SND on hypothyroidism. A time-dependent recovery tendency was observed in SND-treated group from the beginning of model to the end of treatment, suggesting that SND exerted a recovery effect on hypothyroidism in a time-dependent manner through partially regulating the perturbed metabolic pathways. Conclusions/Significance Our results showed that the metabonomic approach is instrumental to understand the pathophysiology of hypothyroidism and offers a valuable tool for systematically studying the therapeutic effects of SND on hypothyroidism. PMID:23409005

  7. EPA SCIENCE FORUM - EPA'S TOXICOGENOMICS PARTNERSHIPS ACROSS GOVERNMENT, ACADEMIA AND INDUSTRY

    EPA Science Inventory

    Over the past decade genomics, proteomics and metabonomics technologies have transformed the science of toxicology, and concurrent advances in computing and informatics have provided management and analysis solutions for this onslaught of toxicogenomic data. EPA has been actively...

  8. MULTIVARIATE CURVE RESOLUTION OF NMR SPECTROSCOPY METABONOMIC DATA

    EPA Science Inventory

    Sandia National Laboratories is working with the EPA to evaluate and develop mathematical tools for analysis of the collected NMR spectroscopy data. Initially, we have focused on the use of Multivariate Curve Resolution (MCR) also known as molecular factor analysis (MFA), a tech...

  9. The investigation of immunoprotective and sedative hypnotic effect of total polysaccharide from Suanzaoren decoction by serum metabonomics approach.

    PubMed

    Niu, Xiaoyi; He, Bosai; Du, Yiyang; Sui, Zhenyu; Rong, Weiwei; Wang, Xiaotong; Li, Qing; Bi, Kaishun

    2018-06-01

    Suanzaoren decoction, as one of the traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions, has been most commonly used in Asian countries and reported to inhibit the process of immunodeficiency insomnia. Polysaccharide is important component which also contributes to the role of immunoprotective and sedative hypnotic effects. This study was aimed to explore the immunoprotective and sedative hypnotic mechanisms of polysaccharide from Suanzaoren decoction by serum metabonomics approach. With this purpose, complex physical and chemical immunodeficiency insomnia models were firstly established according to its multi-target property. Serum samples were analyzed using UHPLC/Q-TOF-MS spectrometry approach to determine endogenous metabolites. Then, principal component analysis was used to distinguish the groups, and partial least squares discriminate analysis was carried out to confirm the important variables. The serum metabolic profiling was identified and pathway analysis was performed after the total polysaccharide administration. The twenty-one potential biomarkers were screened, and the levels were all reversed to different degrees in the total polysaccharide treated groups. These potential biomarkers were mainly related to vitamin, sphingolipid, bile acid, phospholipid and acylcarnitine metabolisms. The result has indicated that total polysaccharide could inhibit insomnia triggered by immunodeficiency stimulation through regulating those metabolic pathways. This study provides a useful approach for exploring the mechanism and evaluating the efficacy of total polysaccharide from Suanzaoren decoction. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. ECOTOXICOGENOMICS: LINKAGES BETWEEN EXPOSURE AND EFFECTS IN ASSESSING RISKS OF AQUATIC CONTAMINANTS TO FISH

    EPA Science Inventory

    Understanding the biological effects of exposures to chemicals in the environment relies on classical and emerging technologies in the areas of genomics, proteomics, and metabonomics. Linkages between the historical and newer toxicological tools are currently being developed in o...

  11. Conceptual Systems Model as a Tool for Hypothesis Generation and Testing in Ecotoxicological Research

    EPA Science Inventory

    Microarray, proteomic, and metabonomic technologies are becoming increasingly accessible as tools for ecotoxicology research. Effective use of these technologies will depend, at least in part, on the ability to apply these techniques within a paradigm of hypothesis driven researc...

  12. DIFFERENTIATING TOXICITIES OF CONAZOLE FUNGICIDES THROUGH METABONOMIC ANALYSES OF MULTIPLE TISSUES

    EPA Science Inventory

    The conazole fungicides represent a large group of compounds widely used agriculturally for the protection of crop plants (Hutson 1998) and pharmaceutically in the treatment of topical and systemic infections (Sheehan 1999). In 1999, the latest period for which agricultural usage...

  13. DIFFERENTIATING TOXICITIES OF CONAZOLE FUNGICIDES THROUGH METABONOMIC ANALYSES OF MULTIPLE TISSUES

    EPA Science Inventory

    The conazole fungicides represent a large group of compounds widely used agriculturally for the protection of crop plants (Hutson 1998) and pharmaceutically in the treatment of topical and systemic infections(Sheehan 1999). In 1999, the latest period for which agricultural usage...

  14. [Plasma metabonomics of Guifu Dihuang Wan in the treatment of yang deficiency].

    PubMed

    Xiao, Ya; Jing, Yuan; Chen, Jie-Yu; Li, Fei; Cheng, Jing-Ru; Bi, Jian-Lu; Luo, Ren; Zhao, Xiao-Shan

    2016-11-20

    To assess the effect of Guifu Dihuang Wan (GFDHW) in the treatment of yang deficiency and explore the underlying molecular mechanism. Sixty-two participants without diseases were randomized into control group (n=31) and experimental group (n=31) and were given lifestyle intervention additional GFDHW treatment for a month. NMR technology was used for metabonomics analysis. Intervention with GFDHW resulted in significantly decreased conversion scores of yang deficiency in the experimental group compared with the control group (P<0.005). The concentrations of lactate, valine, proline, arginine and 3-hydroxybutyrate were increased in the plasma of yang-deficient subjects after lifestyle intervention. GFDHW treatment with lifestyle intervention significantly increased the concentrations of lactate, valine, proline, arginine and 3-hydroxybutyrate and also the levels of alanine, glutamine, alpha glucose, isoleucine, betaine and propylene glycol. GFDHW treatment improves yang deficiency possibly by increasing the concentrations of alanine, glutamine, alpha glucose, isoleucine, betaine and propylene glycol and promoting energy metabolism of the body.

  15. High temperature-ultra performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry for the metabonomic analysis of Zucker rat urine.

    PubMed

    Gika, Helen G; Theodoridis, Georgios; Extance, Jon; Edge, Anthony M; Wilson, Ian D

    2008-08-15

    The applicability and potential of using elevated temperatures and sub 2-microm porous particles in chromatography for metabonomics/metabolomics was investigated using, for the first time, solvent temperatures higher than the boiling point of water (up to 180 degrees C) and thermal gradients to reduce the use of organic solvents. Ultra performance liquid chromatography, combined with mass spectrometry, was investigated for the global metabolite profiling of the plasma and urine of normal and Zucker (fa/fa) obese rats (a well established disease animal model). "Isobaric" high temperature chromatography, where the temperature and flow rate follow a gradient program, was developed and evaluated against a conventional organic solvent gradient. LC-MS data were first examined by established chromatographic criteria in order to evaluate the chromatographic performance and next were treated by special peak picking algorithms to allow the application of multivariate statistics. These studies showed that, for urine (but not plasma), chromatography at elevated temperatures provided better results than conventional reversed-phase LC with higher peak capacity and better peak asymmetry. From a systems biology point of view, better group clustering and separation was obtained with a larger number of variables of high importance when using high temperature-ultra performance liquid chromatography (HT-UPLC) compared to conventional solvent gradients.

  16. Combined effects of a high-fat diet and chronic valproic acid treatment on hepatic steatosis and hepatotoxicity in rats

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Li-fang; Liu, Ling-sheng; Chu, Xiao-man; Xie, Hao; Cao, Li-juan; Guo, Cen; A, Ji-ye; Cao, Bei; Li, Meng-jie; Wang, Guang-ji; Hao, Hai-ping

    2014-01-01

    Aim: To investigate the potential interactive effects of a high-fat diet (HFD) and valproic acid (VPA) on hepatic steatosis and hepatotoxicity in rats. Methods: Male SD rats were orally administered VPA (100 or 500 mg·kg−1·d−1) combined with HFD or a standard diet for 8 weeks. Blood and liver samples were analyzed to determine lipid levels and hepatic function biomarkers using commercial kit assays. Low-molecular-weight compounds in serum, urine and bile samples were analyzed using a metabonomic approach based on GC/TOF-MS. Results: HFD alone induced extensive hepatocyte steatosis and edema in rats, while VPA alone did not cause significant liver lesions. VPA significantly aggravated HFD-induced accumulation of liver lipids, and caused additional spotty or piecemeal necrosis, accompanied by moderate infiltration of inflammatory cells in the liver. Metabonomic analysis of serum, urine and bile samples revealed that HFD significantly increased the levels of amino acids, free fatty acids (FFAs) and 3-hydroxy-butanoic acid, whereas VPA markedly decreased the levels of amino acids, FFAs and the intermediate products of the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) compared with the control group. HFD aggravated VPA-induced inhibition on lipid and amino acid metabolism. Conclusion: HFD magnifies VPA-induced impairment of mitochondrial β-oxidation of FFAs and TCA, thereby increases hepatic steatosis and hepatotoxicity. The results suggest the patients receiving VPA treatment should be advised to avoid eating HFD. PMID:24442146

  17. The toxicity of 3-chloropropane-1,2-dipalmitate in Wistar rats and a metabonomics analysis of rat urine by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Li, Jianshuang; Wang, Sen; Wang, Maoqing; Shi, Wenxiu; Du, Xiaoyan; Sun, Changhao

    2013-11-25

    3-Monochloropropane-1,2-diol(3-MCPD) fatty acid esters can release free 3-MCPD in a certain condition. Free 3-MCPD is a well-known food contaminant and is toxicological well characterized, however, in contrast to free 3-MCPD, the toxicological characterization of 3-MCPD fatty acid esters is puzzling. In this study, toxicological and metabonomics studies of 3-chloropropane-1,2-dipalmitate(3-MCPD dipalmitate) were carried out based on an acute oral toxicity test, a 90-day feeding test and ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) analysis. The LD50 value of 3-MCPD dipalmitate was determined to be 1780 mg/kg body weight (bw) for Wistar rats. The results of the 90-day feeding test in male Wistar rats showed that 3-MCPD dipalmitate caused a significant increase in blood urea nitrogen and creatinine in the high-dose group (267 mg/kg bw/day) compared to control rats. Renal tubular epithelium cell degeneration and renal tubular hyaline cast accumulation were the major histopathological changes in rats administered 3-MCPD dipalmitate. Urine samples obtained after the 90-day feeding test and analyzed by UPLC-MS showed that the differences in metabolic profiles between control and treated rats were clearly distinguished by partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) of the chromatographic data. Five metabolite biomarkers which had earlier and significant variations had been identified, they were first considered to be the early, sensitive biomarkers in evaluating the effect of 3-MCPD dipalmitate exposure, and the possible mechanism of these biomarkers variation was elucidated. The combination of histopathological examination, clinical chemistry and metabolomics analyses in rats resulted in a systematic and comprehensive assessment of the long-term toxicity of 3-MCPD dipalmitate. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. [Material base on Chinese medical theory of 'Fei and Dachang being interior-exteriorly correlated'].

    PubMed

    Li, Jie; Cheng, Xin; Jia, Yu-Hua

    2011-02-01

    By reviewing pertinent literatures, we found that there existed some defects in studying material base on Chinese medical theory of "Fei and Dachang being interior-exteriorly related", such as the low efficacy of research methods; the neglect of intestinal and respiratory microhabitat and Chinese medical functional condition; and the unconformity of research design with evidence-based medicinal requirements. Thereby, the authors offered that the researches method of initiating merely from sole material or line linkage path should be rejected. The new research strategy should be established based on the feature of the lung and large intestine network connective structure, cutting-in from correlative changes in the two terminals (respiratory system and intestinal tissue), and the intermedial key knot of connection (blood serum), screen out in high throughput the relevant materials adopting microecological, proteomic and metabonomic techniques, and catch hold of the knots of network as much as possible. Based on these to perfect the researches on coordinating mechanism of the network, and to establish a new strategy for future researching.

  19. ECOTOXICOGENOMICS: LINKAGES BETWEEN EXPOSURE AND EFFECTS IN ASSESSING RISKS OF AQUATIC CONTAMINANTS TO FISH (JOURNAL ARTICLE)

    EPA Science Inventory

    Understanding the biological effects of exposures to chemicals in the environment relies on classical methods and emerging technologies in the areas of genomics, proteomics, and metabonomics. Linkages between the historical and newer toxicological tools are currently being devel...

  20. A System for Information Management in BioMedical Studies—SIMBioMS

    PubMed Central

    Krestyaninova, Maria; Zarins, Andris; Viksna, Juris; Kurbatova, Natalja; Rucevskis, Peteris; Neogi, Sudeshna Guha; Gostev, Mike; Perheentupa, Teemu; Knuuttila, Juha; Barrett, Amy; Lappalainen, Ilkka; Rung, Johan; Podnieks, Karlis; Sarkans, Ugis; McCarthy, Mark I; Brazma, Alvis

    2009-01-01

    Summary: SIMBioMS is a web-based open source software system for managing data and information in biomedical studies. It provides a solution for the collection, storage, management and retrieval of information about research subjects and biomedical samples, as well as experimental data obtained using a range of high-throughput technologies, including gene expression, genotyping, proteomics and metabonomics. The system can easily be customized and has proven to be successful in several large-scale multi-site collaborative projects. It is compatible with emerging functional genomics data standards and provides data import and export in accepted standard formats. Protocols for transferring data to durable archives at the European Bioinformatics Institute have been implemented. Availability: The source code, documentation and initialization scripts are available at http://simbioms.org. Contact: support@simbioms.org; mariak@ebi.ac.uk PMID:19633095

  1. U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY'S COMPUTATIONAL TOXCIOLOGY PROGRAM - METABOLISM AND METABONOMICS

    EPA Science Inventory

    The mission of the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is to safeguard public health and the environment from adverse effects that may be caused by exposure to pollutants in the air, water, soil and food. Protecting human health and the environment carries with it the ch...

  2. Metabonomics by proton nuclear magnetic resonance in human pleural effusions: A route to discriminate between benign and malignant pleural effusions and to target small molecules as potential cancer biomarkers.

    PubMed

    Zennaro, Lucio; Vanzani, Paola; Nicolè, Lorenzo; Cappellesso, Rocco; Fassina, Ambrogio

    2017-05-01

    Cytopathology is a noninvasive and cost-effective method for detecting cancer cells in pleural effusions (PEs), although in many cases, the diagnostic performance is hindered by the paucity of significant cells or the lack of clear morphological criteria. This study presents the results of an omics approach to improving the diagnostic performance of PE cytology. Metabolic profiling with proton nuclear magnetic resonance ( 1 H-NMR) was performed for 92 PEs (44 malignant cases of 8 different cancers and 48 benign cases of 7 nonneoplastic conditions). Light's criteria were used to further classify PEs as transudates or exudates, and 1 H-NMR spectroscopy was used to differentiate malignant pleural effusions (mPEs) from benign pleural effusions (bPEs). 1 H-NMR metabolic analysis showed clearly different spectra for mPEs and bPEs in the regions of the signals due to lipids, branched amino acids, and lactate, which were increased in mPEs. Transudates and exudates in bPEs were differentiated as well on the basis of the 1 H-NMR signals from lipids and lipoproteins, which were increased in exudates. Subject to validation in further larger studies, 1 H-NMR metabonomics could be an effective and reliable ancillary tool for PE investigations and diagnoses. Cancer Cytopathol 2017;125:341-348. © 2017 American Cancer Society. © 2017 American Cancer Society.

  3. The investigation of anti-inflammatory activity of Yi Guanjian decoction by serum metabonomics approach.

    PubMed

    Shui, Sufang; Cai, Xiaorong; Huang, Rongqing; Xiao, Bingkun; Yang, Jianyun

    2017-01-30

    Yi Guanjian (YGJ), one of the Chinese herbal medicines most commonly used in western countries, reported to possess significant anti-inflammatary effects that inhibit the process of inflammation. However, the mechanisms underlying its anti-inflammation effects remain largely unresolved. This study was aimed to investigate the anti-inflammatory activity of YGJ and to explore its potential anti-inflammatory mechanisms by serum metabonomics approach. An xylene-induced mouse right-ear-edema model was used as an inflammatory response in vivo model. Ear edema, prostaglandin E2 (PGE 2 ) and Tumor-Necrosis-Factor-alpha (TNF-α) were detected. Then, serum metabolic profiling was analyzed and pathway analysis performed on the biomarkers reversed after YGJ administration and further integration of metabolic networks. The results showed that YGJ alleviated ear edema and decreased serum PGE 2 and TNF-α levels. Fourteen biomarkers were screened, and the levels were all reversed to different degrees after YGJ administration. These biomarkers were mainly related to linoleic acid metabolism, taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism, glycine, serine and threonine metabolism and citrate cycle (TCA cycle). In metabolic networks, glycine and pyruvate were node molecules. This indicated that YGJ could significantly inhibit inflammatory response triggered by acute local stimulation and exerted anti-inflammatory activity mainly by regulating node molecules. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. The urinary proteome and metabonome differ from normal in adults with mitochondrial disease.

    PubMed

    Hall, Andrew M; Vilasi, Annalisa; Garcia-Perez, Isabel; Lapsley, Marta; Alston, Charlotte L; Pitceathly, Robert D S; McFarland, Robert; Schaefer, Andrew M; Turnbull, Doug M; Beaumont, Nick J; Hsuan, Justin J; Cutillas, Pedro R; Lindon, John C; Holmes, Elaine; Unwin, Robert J; Taylor, Robert W; Gorman, Grainne S; Rahman, Shamima; Hanna, Michael G

    2015-03-01

    We studied the extent and nature of renal involvement in a cohort of 117 adult patients with mitochondrial disease, by measuring urinary retinol-binding protein (RBP) and albumin; established markers of tubular and glomerular dysfunction, respectively. Seventy-five patients had the m.3243A>G mutation and the most frequent phenotypes within the entire cohort were 14 with MELAS, 33 with MIDD, and 17 with MERRF. Urinary RBP was increased in 29 of 75 of m.3243A>G patients, whereas albumin was increased in 23 of the 75. The corresponding numbers were 16 and 14, respectively, in the 42 non-m.3243A>G patients. RBP and albumin were higher in diabetic m.3243A>G patients than in nondiabetics, but there were no significant differences across the three major clinical phenotypes. The urine proteome (mass spectrometry) and metabonome (nuclear magnetic resonance) in a subset of the m.3243A>G patients were markedly different from controls, with the most significant alterations occurring in lysosomal proteins, calcium-binding proteins, and antioxidant defenses. Differences were also found between asymptomatic m.3243A>G carriers and controls. No patients had an elevated serum creatinine level, but 14% had hyponatremia, 10% had hypophosphatemia, and 14% had hypomagnesemia. Thus, abnormalities in kidney function are common in adults with mitochondrial disease, exist in the absence of elevated serum creatinine, and are not solely explained by diabetes.

  5. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Conotte, R.; Colet, J.-M., E-mail: jean-marie.colet@umons.ac.be

    The main curative treatment of colorectal cancer remains the surgery. However, when metastases are suspected, surgery is followed by a preventive chemotherapy using oxaliplatin which, unfortunately, may cause liver sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS). Such hepatic damage is barely detected during or after chemotherapy due to a lack of effective diagnostic procedures, but liver biopsy. The primary objective of the present study was to identify potential early diagnosis biomarkers of SOS using a metabonomic approach. SOS was induced in rats by monocrotaline, a prototypical toxic substance. {sup 1}H NMR spectroscopy analysis of urine samples collected from rats treated with monocrotaline showedmore » significant metabolic changes as compared to controls. During a first phase, cellular protective mechanisms such as an increased synthesis of GSH (reduced taurine) and the recruitment of cell osmolytes in the liver (betaine) were seen. In the second phase, the disturbance of the urea cycle (increased ornithine and urea reduction) leading to the depletion of NO, the alteration in the GSH synthesis (increased creatine and GSH precursors (glutamate, dimethylglycine and sarcosine)), and the liver necrosis (decrease taurine and increase creatine) all indicate the development of SOS. - Highlights: • Urine metabonomic profiles of SOS have been identified. • Urine osmoprotectants and anti-oxidants indicated an initial liver protection. • Liver necrosis was demonstrated by increased urine levels of taurine and creatine. • NO depletion was suggested by changes in ornithine and urea.« less

  6. An investigation of the antidepressant action of xiaoyaosan in rats using ultra performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry combined with metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Gao, Xiao-Xia; Cui, Jie; Zheng, Xing-Yu; Li, Zhen-Yu; Choi, Young-Hae; Zhou, Yu-Zhi; Tian, Jun-Sheng; Xing, Jie; Tan, Xiao-Jie; Du, Guan-Hua; Qin, Xue-Mei

    2013-07-01

    A rapid, highly sensitive, and selective method was applied in a non-invasive way to investigate the antidepressant action of Xiaoyaosan (XYS) using ultra performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) and chemometrics. Many significantly altered metabolites were used to explain the mechanism. Venlafaxine HCl and fluoxetine HCl were used as chemical positive control drugs with a relatively clear mechanism of action to evaluate the efficiency and to predict the mechanism of action of XYS. Urine obtained from rats subjected to chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) was analyzed by UPLC-MS. Distinct changes in the pattern of metabolites in the rat urine after CUMS production and drug intervention were observed using partial least squares-discriminant analysis. The results of behavioral tests and multivariate analysis showed that CUMS was successfully reproduced, and a moderate-dose XYS produced significant therapeutic effects in the rodent model, equivalent to those of the positive control drugs, venlafaxine HCl and fluoxetine HCl. Metabolites with significant changes induced by CUMS were identified, and 17 biomarker candidates for stress and drug intervention were identified. The therapeutic effect of XYS on depression may involve regulation of the dysfunctions of energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism, and gut microflora changes. Metabonomic methods are valuable tools for measuring efficacy and mechanisms of action in the study of traditional Chinese medicines. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  7. Microbiota-based Signature of Gingivitis Treatments: A Randomized Study.

    PubMed

    Huang, Shi; Li, Zhen; He, Tao; Bo, Cunpei; Chang, Jinlan; Li, Lin; He, Yanyan; Liu, Jiquan; Charbonneau, Duane; Li, Rui; Xu, Jian

    2016-04-20

    Plaque-induced gingivitis can be alleviated by various treatment regimens. To probe the impacts of various anti-gingivitis treatments on plaque microflora, here a double blinded, randomized controlled trial of 91 adults with moderate gingivitis was designed with two anti-gingivitis regimens: the brush-alone treatment and the brush-plus-rinse treatment. In the later group, more reduction in both Plaque Index (TMQHI) and Gingival Index (mean MGI) at Day 3, Day 11 and Day 27 was evident, and more dramatic changes were found between baseline and other time points for both supragingival plaque microbiota structure and salivary metabonomic profiles. A comparison of plaque microbiota changes was also performed between these two treatments and a third dataset where 50 subjects received regimen of dental scaling. Only Actinobaculum, TM7 and Leptotrichia were consistently reduced by all the three treatments, whereas the different microbial signatures of the three treatments during gingivitis relieve indicate distinct mechanisms of action. Our study suggests that microbiota based signatures can serve as a valuable approach for understanding and potentially comparing the modes of action for clinical treatments and oral-care products in the future.

  8. Microbiota-based Signature of Gingivitis Treatments: A Randomized Study

    PubMed Central

    Huang, Shi; Li, Zhen; He, Tao; Bo, Cunpei; Chang, Jinlan; Li, Lin; He, Yanyan; Liu, Jiquan; Charbonneau, Duane; Li, Rui; Xu, Jian

    2016-01-01

    Plaque-induced gingivitis can be alleviated by various treatment regimens. To probe the impacts of various anti-gingivitis treatments on plaque microflora, here a double blinded, randomized controlled trial of 91 adults with moderate gingivitis was designed with two anti-gingivitis regimens: the brush-alone treatment and the brush-plus-rinse treatment. In the later group, more reduction in both Plaque Index (TMQHI) and Gingival Index (mean MGI) at Day 3, Day 11 and Day 27 was evident, and more dramatic changes were found between baseline and other time points for both supragingival plaque microbiota structure and salivary metabonomic profiles. A comparison of plaque microbiota changes was also performed between these two treatments and a third dataset where 50 subjects received regimen of dental scaling. Only Actinobaculum, TM7 and Leptotrichia were consistently reduced by all the three treatments, whereas the different microbial signatures of the three treatments during gingivitis relieve indicate distinct mechanisms of action. Our study suggests that microbiota based signatures can serve as a valuable approach for understanding and potentially comparing the modes of action for clinical treatments and oral-care products in the future. PMID:27094556

  9. [Study on three different species tibetan medicine sea buckthorn by 1H-NMR-based metabonomics].

    PubMed

    Su, Yong-Wen; Tan, Er; Zhang, Jing; You, Jia-Li; Liu, Yue; Liu, Chuan; Zhou, Xiang-Dong; Zhang, Yi

    2014-11-01

    The 1H-NMR fingerprints of three different species tibetan medicine sea buckthorn were established by 1H-HMR metabolomics to find out different motablism which could provide a new method for the quality evaluation of sea buckthorn. The obtained free induction decay (FID) signal will be imported into MestReNova software and into divide segments. The data will be normalized and processed by principal component analysis and.partial least squares discriminant analysis to perform pattern recognition. The results showed that 25 metabolites belonging to different chemical types were detected from sea buckthorn,including flavonoids, triterpenoids, amino acids, carbohydrates, fatty acids, etc. PCA and PLS-DA analysis showed three different varietiest of sea buckthorn that can be clearly separated by the content of L-quebrachitol, malic acid and some unidentified sugars, which can be used as the differences metabolites of three species of sea buckthorn. 1H-NMR-based metabonomies method had a holistic characteristic with sample preparation and handling. The results of this study can offer an important reference for the species identification and quality control of sea buckthorn.

  10. Metabonomics Analysis of Plasma Reveals the Lactate to Cholesterol Ratio as an Independent Prognostic Factor of Short-Term Mortality in Acute Heart Failure

    PubMed Central

    Desmoulin, Franck; Galinier, Michel; Trouillet, Charlotte; Berry, Matthieu; Delmas, Clément; Turkieh, Annie; Massabuau, Pierre; Taegtmeyer, Heinrich; Smih, Fatima; Rouet, Philippe

    2013-01-01

    Objective Mortality in heart failure (AHF) remains high, especially during the first days of hospitalization. New prognostic biomarkers may help to optimize treatment. The aim of the study was to determine metabolites that have a high prognostic value. Methods We conducted a prospective study on a training cohort of AHF patients (n = 126) admitted in the cardiac intensive care unit and assessed survival at 30 days. Venous plasmas collected at admission were used for 1H NMR – based metabonomics analysis. Differences between plasma metabolite profiles allow determination of discriminating metabolites. A cohort of AHF patients was subsequently constituted (n = 74) to validate the findings. Results Lactate and cholesterol were the major discriminating metabolites predicting 30-day mortality. Mortality was increased in patients with high lactate and low total cholesterol concentrations at admission. Accuracies of lactate, cholesterol concentration and lactate to cholesterol (Lact/Chol) ratio to predict 30-day mortality were evaluated using ROC analysis. The Lact/Chol ratio provided the best accuracy with an AUC of 0.82 (P < 0.0001). The acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE) II scoring system provided an AUC of 0.76 for predicting 30-day mortality. APACHE II score, Cardiogenic shock (CS) state and Lact/Chol ratio ≥ 0.4 (cutoff value with 82% sensitivity and 64% specificity) were significant independent predictors of 30-day mortality with hazard ratios (HR) of 1.11, 4.77 and 3.59, respectively. In CS patients, the HR of 30-day mortality risk for plasma Lact/Chol ratio ≥ 0.4 was 3.26 compared to a Lact/Chol ratio of < 0.4 (P  =  0.018). The predictive power of the Lact/Chol ratio for 30-day mortality outcome was confirmed with the independent validation cohort. Conclusion This study identifies the plasma Lact/Chol ratio as a useful objective and simple parameter to evaluate short term prognostic and could be integrated into quantitative guidance for decision making in heart failure care. PMID:23573279

  11. MWASTools: an R/bioconductor package for metabolome-wide association studies.

    PubMed

    Rodriguez-Martinez, Andrea; Posma, Joram M; Ayala, Rafael; Neves, Ana L; Anwar, Maryam; Petretto, Enrico; Emanueli, Costanza; Gauguier, Dominique; Nicholson, Jeremy K; Dumas, Marc-Emmanuel

    2018-03-01

    MWASTools is an R package designed to provide an integrated pipeline to analyse metabonomic data in large-scale epidemiological studies. Key functionalities of our package include: quality control analysis; metabolome-wide association analysis using various models (partial correlations, generalized linear models); visualization of statistical outcomes; metabolite assignment using statistical total correlation spectroscopy (STOCSY); and biological interpretation of metabolome-wide association studies results. The MWASTools R package is implemented in R (version  > =3.4) and is available from Bioconductor: https://bioconductor.org/packages/MWASTools/. m.dumas@imperial.ac.uk. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

  12. Urinary metabolomic profiling in rats exposed to dietary di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) using ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC/Q-TOF-MS).

    PubMed

    Dong, Xinwen; Zhang, Yunbo; Dong, Jin; Zhao, Yue; Guo, Jipeng; Wang, Zhanju; Liu, Mingqi; Na, Xiaolin; Wang, Cheng

    2017-07-01

    Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is an omnipresent environmental chemical with widespread nonoccupational human exposure through multiple ways. Although considerable efforts have been invested to investigate mechanisms of DEHP toxicity, the key metabolic biomarkers of DEHP toxicity remain to be identified. The aim of this study was to assess the urinary metabonomics of dietary DEHP in rats using the technique of ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC/Q-TOF-MS). Fourteen female Wistar rats were divided into two groups and given increasing dietary doses of DEHP for 30 consecutive days. The urinary metabolite profile was studied using ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry. Principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) enabled clusters to be clearly separated. Eleven principal urinary metabolites were identified as contributing to the clusters. The clusters in the positive electrospray ionization (ESI) mode were xanthurenic acid, kynurenic acid, nonate, N6-methyladenosine, and L-isoleucyl-L-proline. The clusters in the negative ESI mode were hippuric acid, tetrahydrocortisol, citric acid, phenylpropionylglycine, cPA(18:2(9Z, 12Z)/0:0), and LysoPC(14:1(9Z)). The urinary metabonomic changes indicated that exposure to dietary DEHP can affect energy-related metabolism, liver and renal function, fatty acid metabolism, and cause DNA damage in rats. The findings of this study on the urinary metabolites and metabolic pathways of DEHP may form the basis for future studies on the mechanisms of toxicity of this commonly found environmental chemical.

  13. Chemiluminescence of creatinine/H2O2/Co(2+) and its application for selective creatinine detection.

    PubMed

    Hanif, Saima; John, Peter; Gao, Wenyue; Saqib, Muhammad; Qi, Liming; Xu, Guobao

    2016-01-15

    Creatinine is an important biomarker in clinical diagnosis and biomonitoring programs as well as urinary metabolomic/metabonomics research. Current methods are either nonselective, time consuming or require heavy and expensive instruments. In this study, chemiluminescence of creatinine with hydrogen peroxide has been reported for the first time, and its chemiluminescence is remarkably enhanced in the presence of cobalt ions. By utilizing these phenomena, we have developed a sensitive and selective chemiluminescence method for creatinine determination by coupling with flow injection analysis. The calibration curve is linear in the range of 1×10(-7)-3×10(-5)mol/L with a limit of detection (S/N=3) of 7.2×10(-8)mol/L, which is adequate for detecting creatinine in the clinically accepted range. The relative standard deviation for seven measurements of 3×10(-5)mol/L creatinine is 1.2%. The chemiluminescence method was then utilized to detect creatinine in human urine samples after simple dilution with water. It takes less than 1min each measurement and the recoveries for spiked urine samples were 100-103%. The interference study demonstrates that some common species in urine, such as amino acids, ascorbic acid and creatine, have negligible effects on creatinine detection. The present method does not use expensive instruments, enzymes and separation technique. This method has the advantages of sensitivity, selectivity, simplicity, rapidity, and low cost. It holds great promise for basic or comprehensive metabolic panel, drug screening, anti-dopping, and urinary metabolomic/metabonomics research. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. ¹H NMR-based metabolic profiling of human rectal cancer tissue

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Rectal cancer is one of the most prevalent tumor types. Understanding the metabolic profile of rectal cancer is important for developing therapeutic approaches and molecular diagnosis. Methods Here, we report a metabonomics profiling of tissue samples on a large cohort of human rectal cancer subjects (n = 127) and normal controls (n = 43) using 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) based metabonomics assay, which is a highly sensitive and non-destructive method for the biomarker identification in biological systems. Principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and orthogonal projection to latent structure with discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) were applied to analyze the 1H-NMR profiling data to identify the distinguishing metabolites of rectal cancer. Results Excellent separation was obtained and distinguishing metabolites were observed among the different stages of rectal cancer tissues (stage I = 35; stage II = 37; stage III = 37 and stage IV = 18) and normal controls. A total of 38 differential metabolites were identified, 16 of which were closely correlated with the stage of rectal cancer. The up-regulation of 10 metabolites, including lactate, threonine, acetate, glutathione, uracil, succinate, serine, formate, lysine and tyrosine, were detected in the cancer tissues. On the other hand, 6 metabolites, including myo-inositol, taurine, phosphocreatine, creatine, betaine and dimethylglycine were decreased in cancer tissues. These modified metabolites revealed disturbance of energy, amino acids, ketone body and choline metabolism, which may be correlated with the progression of human rectal cancer. Conclusion Our findings firstly identify the distinguishing metabolites in different stages of rectal cancer tissues, indicating possibility of the attribution of metabolites disturbance to the progression of rectal cancer. The altered metabolites may be as potential biomarkers, which would provide a promising molecular diagnostic approach for clinical diagnosis of human rectal cancer. The role and underlying mechanism of metabolites in rectal cancer progression are worth being further investigated. PMID:24138801

  15. Metabonomic profiling in studying anti-osteoporosis effects of strontium fructose 1,6-diphosphate on estrogen deficiency-induced osteoporosis in rats by GC/TOF-MS.

    PubMed

    Ma, Bo; Li, Xiaotian; Zhang, Qi; Wu, Di; Wang, Guangji; A, Jiye; Sun, Jianguo; Li, Jing; Liu, Yinhui; Wang, Yonglu; Ying, Hanjie

    2013-10-15

    A novel strontium salt compound strontium fructose 1, 6-diphosphate (FDP-Sr) has been proved to have highly effective for bone loss via dual effects of stimulating bone formation and suppressing bone absorption. In the present study, metabolomic approach was used to identify and study potential biomarkers associated with the effect and safety of FDP-Sr. The metabolomic profiles of bone loss induced by estrogen deficiency in a rat model was described to attain a system-level map of the shift on the metabolic response in plasma using GC/TOF-MS, after FDP-Sr was orally administered at the dose of 110 mg/kg/day for the prevention and 220 mg/kg/day for the treatment. Meanwhile, bone turnover biomarkers and bone mineral density were investigated to identify the specific changes of potential anti-osteoporosis effects of FDP-Sr. The differences in metabolic profiles between osteoporosis rats and FDP-Sr treated rats were well observed by the partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) to the MS spectra. Some metabolites including homocysteine, arachidonic acid, alanine, and hydroxyproline, which significantly changed during osteoporosis progression could be effectively reversed after FDP-Sr therapy. Of course some metabolites such as uric acid, glyceric acid, octadecadienoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, oleic acid, and hexadecanoic acid were not found to reverse significantly after FDP-Sr administration. These results delineated the FDP-Sr effects-related metabolic alterations in the bone loss rats, suggesting that metabonomic analysis could provide helpful information on the new potential biomarkers relating to the mechanism of anti-osteoporosis action and side effects of FDP-Sr against estrogen deficiency induced bone loss. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. Dynamic metabolic response of mice to acute mequindox exposure.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Xiu-Ju; Huang, Chongyang; Lei, Hehua; Nie, Xiu; Tang, Huiru; Wang, Yulan

    2011-11-04

    Mequindox is used as a veterinary antibiotic drug. As part of systematic investigations into mequindox as a veterinary medicine and its subsequent applications in food safety, we conducted the investigation to assess the metabolic response of mice to mequindox using metabonomics, which combines NMR metabolic profiles of biofluids or tissues and pattern recognition data analysis. In this study, we delivered a single dose of mequindox to mice with dosage levels of 15, 75, and 350 mg/kg body weight and collected urine samples over a 7 day period, as well as plasma and liver tissues at 7 days postdose. Principal components analysis (PCA) and orthogonal projection to latent structure discriminant analysis (O-PLS-DA) were performed on (1)H NMR spectra of biofluids and liver, showing that low dose levels of mequindox exposure had no adverse effects, consistent with histological observations of the liver. High and moderate levels of mequindox exposure caused suppression of glycolysis and stimulation of fatty acid oxidation accompanied with increased levels of oxidative stress. Our metabonomic analyses also showed disruption of amino acid metabolism, consistent with liver damage observed from histopathological examinations. Furthermore, mequindox perturbed gut microbial activity manifested in the altered excretion of urinary trimethylamine (TMA), trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), hippurate, phenylacetylglycine (PAG), and phenylacetate. The putative gut microbial function may also contribute to the assembly and secretion of very-low-density lipoproteins from the liver to the plasma. Our work provides important insights on the metabolic responses of mequindox.

  17. Phytochemical diversity of cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton) cultivars by anthocyanin determination and metabolomic profiling with chemometric analysis.

    PubMed

    Brown, Paula N; Murch, Susan J; Shipley, Paul

    2012-01-11

    Originally native to the eastern United States, American cranberry ( Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton, family Ericaceae) cultivation of native and hybrid varieties has spread across North America. Herein is reported the phytochemical diversity of five cranberry cultivars (Stevens, Ben Lear, Bergman, Pilgrim, and GH1) collected in the Greater Vancouver Regional District, by anthocyanin content and UPLC-TOF-MS metabolomic profiling. The anthocyanin content for biological replicates (n = 5) was determined as 7.98 ± 5.83, Ben Lear; 7.02 ± 1.75, Bergman; 6.05 ± 2.51, GH1; 3.28 ± 1.88, Pilgrim; and 2.81 ± 0.81, Stevens. Using subtractive metabonomic algorithms 6481 compounds were found conserved across all varietals, with 136 (Ben Lear), 84 (Bergman), 91 (GH1), 128 (Pilgrim), and 165 (Stevens) unique compounds observed. Principal component analysis (PCA) did not differentiate varieties, whereas partial least-squares discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) exhibited clustering patterns. Univariate statistical approaches were applied to the data set, establishing significance of values and assessing quality of the models. Metabolomic profiling with chemometric analysis proved to be useful for characterizing metabonomic changes across cranberry varieties.

  18. Systems Level Metabolic Phenotype of Methotrexate Administration in the Context of Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis in the Rat

    PubMed Central

    Kyriakides, Michael; Hardwick, Rhiannon N.; Jin, Zhaosheng; Goedken, Michael J.; Holmes, Elaine; Cherrington, Nathan J.; Coen, Muireann

    2014-01-01

    Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) represent a significant clinical challenge with respect to patient morbidity and mortality. We investigated the hepatotoxicity and systems level metabolic phenotype of methotrexate (MTX) in the context of a prevalent liver disease; non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). A nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic-based metabonomic approach was employed to analyze the metabolic consequences of MTX (0, 10, 40, and 100 mg/kg) in the urine and liver of healthy rats (control diet) and in a model of NASH (methionine-choline deficient diet). Histopathological analysis confirmed baseline (0 mg/kg) liver necrosis, liver inflammation, and lipid accumulation in the NASH model. Administration of MTX (40 and 100 mg/kg) led to liver necrosis in the control cohort, whereas the NASH cohort also displayed biliary hyperplasia and liver fibrosis (100 mg/kg), providing evidence of the synergistic effect of MTX and NASH. The complementary hepatic and urinary metabolic phenotypes of the NASH model, at baseline, revealed perturbation of multiple metabolites associated with oxidative and energetic stress, and folate homeostasis. Administration of MTX in both diet cohorts showed dose-dependent metabolic consequences affecting gut microbial, energy, nucleobase, nucleoside, and folate metabolism. Furthermore, a unique panel of metabolic changes reflective of the synergistic effect of MTX and NASH was identified, including the elevation of hepatic phenylalanine, urocanate, acetate, and both urinary and hepatic formiminoglutamic acid. This systems level metabonomic analysis of the hepatotoxicity of MTX in the context of NASH provided novel mechanistic insight of potential wider clinical relevance for further understanding the role of liver pathology as a risk factor for ADRs. PMID:25145655

  19. Urinary metabolic insights into host-gut microbial interactions in healthy and IBD children

    PubMed Central

    Martin, Francois-Pierre; Su, Ming-Ming; Xie, Guo-Xiang; Guiraud, Seu Ping; Kussmann, Martin; Godin, Jean-Philippe; Jia, Wei; Nydegger, Andreas

    2017-01-01

    AIM To identify metabolic signatures in urine samples from healthy and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) children. METHODS We applied liquid chromatography and gas chromatography coupled to targeted mass spectrometry (MS)-based metabolite profiling to identify and quantify bile acids and host-gut microbial metabolites in urine samples collected from 21 pediatric IBD patients monitored three times over one year (baseline, 6 and 12 mo), and 27 age- and gender-matched healthy children. RESULTS urinary metabolic profiles of IBD children differ significantly from healthy controls. Such metabolic differences encompass central energy metabolism, amino acids, bile acids and gut microbial metabolites. In particular, levels of pyroglutamic acid, glutamic acid, glycine and cysteine, were significantly higher in IBD children in the course of the study. This suggests that glutathione cannot be optimally synthesized and replenished. Whilst alterations of the enterohepatic circulation of bile acids in pediatric IBD patients is known, we show here that non-invasive urinary bile acid profiling can assess those altered hepatic and intestinal barrier dysfunctions. CONCLUSION The present study shows how non-invasive sampling of urine followed by targeted MS-based metabonomic analysis can elucidate and monitor the metabolic status of children with different GI health/disease status. PMID:28611517

  20. Celecoxib-Induced Self-Assembly of Smart Albumin-Doxorubicin Conjugate for Enhanced Cancer Therapy.

    PubMed

    Shi, Leilei; Xu, Li; Wu, Chenwei; Xue, Bai; Jin, Xin; Yang, Jiapei; Zhu, Xinyuan

    2018-03-14

    Recent years have witnessed the great contributions that drug combination therapy has made for enhanced cancer therapy. However, because of the complicated pharmacokinetics of combined drug formulations, the majority of combination strategies show severe adverse effects at high dosage and poor biodistribution in vivo. To overcome these deficiencies and achieve enhanced cancer therapy, we put forward a method to construct a smart albumin-based nanoplatform, denoted as K237-HSA-DC, for codelivery of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor (celecoxib) and chemotherapeutic agent (doxorubicin, DOX). Both in vitro and in vivo studies indicate that K237-HSA-DC exhibits the best therapeutic efficacy on tumor cells compared with all the other formulations. Moreover, K237-HSA-DC shows fewer side effects on normal organs in contrast to other formulations. To understand the reasons behind the improved drug efficacy in depth, we performed a cell metabonomics-based mechanism study and found that celecoxib could enhance the inhibitory effect of DOX on the transport of glucose into cells and then lead to subsequent significant energy metabolism inhibition. Considering the above-mentioned advantages of K237-HSA-DC, we believe the smart albumin-based nanoplatform can serve as a promising drug delivery system for enhanced cancer therapy.

  1. 1H NMR spectroscopy analysis of metabolites in the kidneys provides new insight into pathophysiological mechanisms: applications for treatment with Cordyceps sinensis.

    PubMed

    Zhong, Fang; Liu, Xia; Zhou, Qiao; Hao, Xu; Lu, Ying; Guo, Shanmai; Wang, Weiming; Lin, Donghai; Chen, Nan

    2012-02-01

    The number of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is continuously growing worldwide. Treatment with traditional Chinese medicine might slow the progression of CKD. In this study, we evaluated the renal protective effects of the Chinese herb Cordyceps sinensis in rats with 5/6 nephrectomy. Male Sprague-Dawley mice (weighing 150-200 g) were subjected to 5/6 nephrectomy. The rats were divided into three groups: (i) untreated nephrectomized group (OP group, n = 16), (ii) oral administration of C. sinensis-treated (4 mg/kg/day) nephrectomized group (CS group, n = 16) and (iii) sham-operated group (SO group, n = 16). The rats were sacrificed at 4 and 8 weeks after 5/6 nephrectomy, and the kidneys, serum and urine were collected for (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance spectral analysis. Multivariate statistical techniques and statistical metabolic correlation comparison analysis were performed to identify metabolic changes in aqueous kidney extracts between these groups. Significant differences between these groups were discovered in the metabolic profiles of the biofluids and kidney extracts. Pathways including the citrate cycle, branched-chain amino acid metabolism and the metabolites that regulate permeate pressure were disturbed in the OP group compared to the SO group; in addition, these pathways were reversed by C. sinensis treatment. Biochemistry and electron microscopic images verified that C. sinensis has curative effects on chronic renal failure. These results were confirmed by metabonomics results. Our study demonstrates that C. sinensis has potential curative effects on CKD, and our metabonomics results provided new insight into the mechanism of treatment of this traditional Chinese medicine.

  2. Fisher Discrimination of Metabolic Changes in Rats Treated with Aspirin and Ibuprofen.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Jing; Song, Huanchun; Jiang, Shuying; Chen, Zhibin; Tong, Shuhua; Lin, Feiyan; Wen, Congcong; Zhang, Xiuhua; Hu, Lufeng

    2017-01-01

    Aspirin and ibuprofen are the most frequently prescribed non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in the world. However, both are associated with a variety of toxicities. We applied serum metabonomics and Fisher discrimination for the early diagnosis of its toxic reaction in order to help diagnose these toxicities. A total of 45 rats were randomly divided into Control group, Aspirin group, and Ibuprofen groups. The experiment groups were given intragastric aspirin (15 mg/kg) or ibuprofen (15 mg/kg) for 3 weeks. Liver function tests were performed and blood metabonomics were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The most important compounds altered were trihydroxybutyric acid and l-alanine in the aspirin group, and acetoacetic acid, l-alanine, and trihydroxybutyric acid in the ibuprofen group. With respect to metabolic profiles, all 3 groups were completely distinct from one another. Fisher discrimination showed that 91.1% of the original grouped cases were correctly classified by the third week. However, only 55.6% of liver function tests were able to classify grouped cases correctly. Trihydroxybutyric acid, l-alanine, and acetoacetic acid were the most significant indicators of altered serum metabolites following intragastric administration of aspirin and ibuprofen in rates. These metabolomic data may be used for classification of aspirin and ibuprofen toxicity. © 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  3. Urinary metabonomics study of the hepatoprotective effects of total alkaloids from Corydalis saxicola Bunting on carbon tetrachloride-induced chronic hepatotoxicity in rats using 1H NMR analysis.

    PubMed

    Wu, Fang; Zheng, Hua; Yang, Zheng-Teng; Cheng, Bang; Wu, Jin-Xia; Liu, Xu-Wen; Tang, Chao-Ling; Lu, Shi-Yin; Chen, Zhao-Ni; Song, Fang-Ming; Ruan, Jun-Xiang; Zhang, Hong-Ye; Liang, Yong-Hong; Song, Hui; Su, Zhi-Heng

    2017-06-05

    Chronic liver injury has been shown to cause liver fibrosis due to the sustained pathophysiological wound healing response of the liver, and eventually progresses to cirrhosis. The total alkaloids of Corydalis saxicola Bunting (TACS), a collection of important bioactive ingredients derived from the traditional Chinese folk medicine Corydalis saxicola Bunting (CS), have been reported to have protective effects on the liver. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms need further elucidation. In this study, the urinary metabonomics and the biochemical changes in rats with carbon tetrachloride (CCl 4 )-induced chronic liver injury due to treatment TACS or administration of the positive control drug-bifendate were studied via proton nuclear magnetic resonance ( 1 H NMR) analysis. Partial least squares-discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) suggested that metabolic perturbation caused by CCl 4 damage was recovered with TACS and bifendate treatment. A total of seven metabolites including 2-oxoglutarate, citrate, dimethylamine, taurine, phenylacetylglycine, creatinine and hippurate were considered as potential biomarkers involved in the development of CCl 4 -induced chronic liver injury. According to pathway analysis using identified metabolites and correlation network construction, the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, gut microbiota metabolism and taurine and hypotaurine metabolism were recognized as the most affected metabolic pathways associated with CCl 4 chronic hepatotoxicity. Notably, the changes in 2-oxoglutarate, citrate, taurine and hippurate during the process of CCl 4 -induced chronic liver injury were significantly restored by TACS treatment, which suggested that TACS synergistically mediated the regulation of multiple metabolic pathways including the TCA cycle, gut microbiota metabolism and taurine and hypotaurine metabolism. This study could bring valuable insight to evaluating the efficacy of TACS intervention therapy, help deepen the understanding of the hepatoprotective mechanisms of TACS and enable optimal diagnosis of chronic liver injury. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. [Urine metabonomic study on long-term use of total ginsenosides in rats].

    PubMed

    Xie, Xie; Chen, Shao-Qiu; Lv, Ying-Fang; Wang, Xiao-Yan; Jia, Wei

    2014-12-01

    Due to its effect of systems regulation and promotion on body, Ginseng is always referred to be long-term used as a dietary supplement. But it was still unclear about its target of the tonic effects and also the side-effects long-term use may bring. Urine metabolomic method is suitable for long-term studies of pharmaco-dynamics, pharmacology and toxicology of traditional Chinese medicine because of its characteristics of non-invasive and monitoring the whole-body metabolism. This study was designed to detect the dynamic variation of rat urine metabolome along with a long-term administration of total ginsenosides using GC-TOF based metabolomic technology. Our result showed that either short-term or chronic administration of ginsenosides did not impact the rat urine metabolome significantly (as the PCA subgroup was not successful). By comparison, the short-term (1-3 w) dose of ginsenosides had the biggest metabolic influence including TCA cycle, catecholamines and neurotransmitter amino acids. Medium-term (6-10 w) dose had a gradually lower effect and long-term (27 w) dose almost had no effect. Our study indicates that both short and long-term administration of ginsenosides showed almost no obvious side-effect on the experimental animals.

  5. Qishen Yiqi Drop Pill improves cardiac function after myocardial ischemia.

    PubMed

    JianXin, Chen; Xue, Xu; ZhongFeng, Li; Kuo, Gao; FeiLong, Zhang; ZhiHong, Li; Xian, Wang; HongCai, Shang

    2016-04-14

    Myocardial ischemia (MI) is one of the leading causes of death, while Qishen Yiqi Drop Pill (QYDP) is a representative traditional Chinese medicine to treat this disease. Unveiling the pharmacological mechanism of QYDP will provide a great opportunity to promote the development of novel drugs to treat MI. 64 male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were divided into four groups: MI model group, sham operation group, QYDP treatment group and Fosinopril treatment group. Echocardiography results showed that QYDP exhibited significantly larger LV end-diastolic dimension (LVEDd) and LV end-systolic dimension (LVEDs), compared with the MI model group, indicating the improved cardiac function by QYDP. (1)H-NMR based metabonomics further identify 9 significantly changed metabolites in the QYDP treatment group, and the QYDP-related proteins based on the protein-metabolite interaction networks and the corresponding pathways were explored, involving the pyruvate metabolism pathway, the retinol metabolism pathway, the tyrosine metabolism pathway and the purine metabolism pathway, suggesting that QYDP was closely associated with blood circulation. ELISA tests were further employed to identify NO synthase (iNOS) and cathepsin K (CTSK) in the networks. For the first time, our work combined experimental and computational methods to study the mechanism of the formula of traditional Chinese medicine.

  6. Hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx)-induced abnormalities of nucleic acid metabolism revealed by (1)H-NMR-based metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Dan Yue; Zhang, Yuwei; Cheng, Liuliu; Ma, Jinhu; Xi, Yufeng; Yang, Liping; Su, Chao; Shao, Bin; Huang, Anliang; Xiang, Rong; Cheng, Ping

    2016-04-14

    Hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx) plays an important role in HBV-related hepatocarcinogenesis; however, mechanisms underlying HBx-mediated carcinogenesis remain unclear. In this study, an NMR-based metabolomics approach was applied to systematically investigate the effects of HBx on cell metabolism. EdU incorporation assay was conducted to examine the effects of HBx on DNA synthesis, an important feature of nucleic acid metabolism. The results revealed that HBx disrupted metabolism of glucose, lipids, and amino acids, especially nucleic acids. To understand the potential mechanism of HBx-induced abnormalities of nucleic acid metabolism, gene expression profiles of HepG2 cells expressing HBx were investigated. The results showed that 29 genes involved in DNA damage and DNA repair were differentially expressed in HBx-expressing HepG2 cells. HBx-induced DNA damage was further demonstrated by karyotyping, comet assay, Western blotting, immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry analyses. Many studies have previously reported that DNA damage can induce abnormalities of nucleic acid metabolism. Thus, our results implied that HBx initially induces DNA damage, and then disrupts nucleic acid metabolism, which in turn blocks DNA repair and induces the occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). These findings further contribute to our understanding of the occurrence of HCC.

  7. Metabonomics Approach to Biomarker Discovery, Volume VI: Dose and Time Response of Liver Toxicant

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2009-05-01

    arginine, betaine, creatinine, L-threonine, L-phenylalanine, cytidylic acid , D- pyroglutamic acid , creatine, and 4-guanidinobutyric acid . However, none...Much is known about the systemic response to ANIT exposure, such as the increase in plasma levels of bile acid , cholesterol and phospholipids in...supernanant was transferred to a 5 mm NMR tube. An internal standard consisting of 150 µL of trimethylsilylpropionic (2, 2, 3, 3 d4) acid (TSP

  8. Safety assessment of genetically modified rice expressing human serum albumin from urine metabonomics and fecal bacterial profile.

    PubMed

    Qi, Xiaozhe; Chen, Siyuan; Sheng, Yao; Guo, Mingzhang; Liu, Yifei; He, Xiaoyun; Huang, Kunlun; Xu, Wentao

    2015-02-01

    The genetically modified (GM) rice expressing human serum albumin (HSA) is used for non-food purposes; however, its food safety assessment should be conducted due to the probability of accidental mixture with conventional food. In this research, Sprague Dawley rats were fed diets containing 50% (wt/wt) GM rice expressing HSA or non-GM rice for 90 days. Urine metabolites were detected by (1)H NMR to examine the changes of the metabolites in the dynamic process of metabolism. Fecal bacterial profiles were detected by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis to reflect intestinal health. Additionally, short chain fatty acids and fecal enzymes were investigated. The results showed that compared with rats fed the non-GM rice, some significant differences were observed in rats fed with the GM rice; however, these changes were not significantly different from the control diet group. Additionally, the gut microbiota was associated with blood indexes and urine metabolites. In conclusion, the GM rice diet is as safe as the traditional daily diet. Furthermore, urine metabonomics and fecal bacterial profiles provide a non-invasive food safety assessment rat model for genetically modified crops that are used for non-food/feed purposes. Fecal bacterial profiles have the potential for predicting the change of blood indexes in future. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Systems responses of rats to aflatoxin B1 exposure revealed with metabonomic changes in multiple biological matrices.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Limin; Ye, Yangfang; An, Yanpeng; Tian, Yuan; Wang, Yulan; Tang, Huiru

    2011-02-04

    Exposure to aflatoxins causes liver fibrosis and hepatocellular carcinoma posing a significant health risk for human populations and livestock. To understand the mammalian systems responses to aflatoxin-B1 (AFB1) exposure, we analyzed the AFB1-induced metabonomic changes in multiple biological matrices (plasma, urine, and liver) of rats using (1)H NMR spectroscopy together with clinical biochemistry and histopathologic assessments. We found that AFB1 exposure caused significant elevation of glucose, amino acids, and choline metabolites (choline, phosphocholine, and glycerophosphocholine) in plasma but reduction of plasma lipids. AFB1 also induced elevation of liver lipids, amino acids (tyrosine, histidine, phenylalanine, leucine, isoleucine, and valine), choline, and nucleic acid metabolites (inosine, adenosine, and uridine) together with reduction of hepatic glycogen and glucose. AFB1 further caused decreases in urinary TCA cycle intermediates (2-oxoglutarate and citrate) and elevation of gut microbiota cometabolites (phenylacetylglycine and hippurate). These indicated that AFB1 exposure caused hepatic steatosis accompanied with widespread metabolic changes including lipid and cell membrane metabolisms, protein biosynthesis, glycolysis, TCA cycle, and gut microbiota functions. This implied that AFB1 exposure probably caused oxidative-stress-mediated impairments of mitochondria functions. These findings provide an overview of biochemical consequences of AFB1 exposure and comprehensive insights into the metabolic aspects of AFB1-induced hepatotoxicity in rats.

  10. Application of metabonomics on an experimental model of fibrosis and cirrhosis induced by thioacetamide in rats

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Constantinou, Maria A.; Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Medical School, University of Athens, 75, Mikras Asias str., 11527 Athens; Theocharis, Stamatios E.

    2007-01-01

    Metabonomics has already been used to discriminate different pathological states in biological fields. The metabolic profiles of chronic experimental fibrosis and cirrhosis induction in rats were investigated using {sup 1}H NMR spectroscopy of liver extracts and serum combined with pattern recognition techniques. Rats were continuously administered with thioacetamide (TAA) in the drinking water (300 mg TAA/L), and sacrificed on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd month of treatment. {sup 1}H NMR spectra of aqueous and lipid liver extracts, together with serum were subjected to Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Liver portions were also subjected to histopathological examination and biochemical determination of malondialdehyde (MDA).more » Liver fibrosis and cirrhosis were progressively induced in TAA-treated rats, verified by the histopathological examination and the alterations of MDA levels. TAA administration revealed a number of changes in the {sup 1}H NMR spectra compared to control samples. The performance of PCA in liver extracts and serum, discriminated the control samples from the fibrotic and cirrhotic ones. Metabolic alterations revealed in NMR spectra during experimental liver fibrosis and cirrhosis induction, characterize the stage of fibrosis and could be illustrated by subsequent PCA of the spectra. Additionally, the PCA plots of the serum samples presented marked clustering during fibrosis progression and could be extended in clinical diagnosis for the management of cirrhotic patients.« less

  11. The study on serum and urine of renal interstitial fibrosis rats induced by unilateral ureteral obstruction based on metabonomics and network analysis methods.

    PubMed

    Xiang, Zheng; Sun, Hao; Cai, Xiaojun; Chen, Dahui

    2016-04-01

    Transmission of biological information is a biochemical process of multistep cascade from genes/proteins to metabolites. However, because most metabolites reflect the terminal information of the biochemical process, it is difficult to describe the transmission process of disease information in terms of the metabolomics strategy. In this paper, by incorporating network and metabolomics methods, an integrated approach was proposed to systematically investigate and explain the molecular mechanism of renal interstitial fibrosis. Through analysis of the network, the cascade transmission process of disease information starting from genes/proteins to metabolites was putatively identified and uncovered. The results indicated that renal fibrosis was involved in metabolic pathways of glycerophospholipid metabolism, biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids and arachidonic acid metabolism, riboflavin metabolism, tyrosine metabolism, and sphingolipid metabolism. These pathways involve kidney disease genes such as TGF-β1 and P2RX7. Our results showed that combining metabolomics and network analysis can provide new strategies and ideas for the interpretation of pathogenesis of disease with full consideration of "gene-protein-metabolite."

  12. An in vivo assessment of the cholesterol-lowering efficacy of Lactobacillus plantarum ECGC 13110402 in normal to mildly hypercholesterolaemic adults

    PubMed Central

    Buttarazzi, Ivan; Kolida, Sofia; Quercia, Sara; Baldini, Jessica; Swann, Jonathan R.; Brigidi, Patrizia; Gibson, Glenn R.

    2017-01-01

    Coronary heart disease (CHD) is one of the major causes of death and disability in industrialised countries, with elevated blood cholesterol an established risk factor. Total plasma cholesterol reduction in populations suffering from primary hypercholesterolemia may lower CHD incidence. This study investigated the cholesterol reducing capacity of Lactobacillus plantarum ECGC 13110402, a strain selected for its high bile salt hydrolase activity, in 49 normal to mildly hypercholesterolaemic adults. Primary efficacy outcomes included effect on blood lipids (total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoproteins (LDL-C), high density lipoproteins (HDL-C) and triacylgycerides (TAG), inflammatory biomarkers and occurrence/severity of gastrointestinal side effects to establish safety and tolerance of the intervention. Secondary outcomes included blood pressure, immune biomarkers, gut microbiota characterisation and metabonome changes. The study was run in a parallel, double blind, placebo controlled, randomised design in which the active group ingested 2x109 CFU encapsulated Lactobacillus plantarum ECGC 13110402 twice daily. Daily ingestion of the active treatment resulted in a statistically significant reduction in LDL-C in volunteers with baseline TC<5mM during the 0–12 week period (13.9%, P = 0.030), a significant reduction in TC in volunteers with baseline TC≥6mM in the 0–6 week period (37.6%, P = 0.045), a significant decrease in TAG (53.9% P = 0.030) and an increase in HDL-C (14.7%, P = 0.007) in the over 60 years population in the 6–12 week period. A statistically significant reduction in systolic blood pressure was also observed across the active study group in the 6-12-week period (6.6%, P = 0.003). No impact on gastrointestinal function and side effects was observed during the study. Similar to blood and urine metabonomic analyses, faecal metagenomics did not reveal significant changes upon active or placebo intake. The results of this study suggest that Lactobacillus plantarum ECGC 13110402 is a well-tolerated, natural probiotic, that may be used as an alternative or supplement to existing treatments to reduce cardiovascular risk. Trial registration: Clinical trials.gov NCT03263104 PMID:29228000

  13. A multichannel nanosensor for instantaneous readout of cancer drug mechanisms

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rana, Subinoy; Le, Ngoc D. B.; Mout, Rubul; Saha, Krishnendu; Tonga, Gulen Yesilbag; Bain, Robert E. S.; Miranda, Oscar R.; Rotello, Caren M.; Rotello, Vincent M.

    2015-01-01

    Screening methods that use traditional genomic, transcriptional, proteomic and metabonomic signatures to characterize drug mechanisms are known. However, they are time consuming and require specialized equipment. Here, we present a high-throughput multichannel sensor platform that can profile the mechanisms of various chemotherapeutic drugs in minutes. The sensor consists of a gold nanoparticle complexed with three different fluorescent proteins that can sense drug-induced physicochemical changes on cell surfaces. In the presence of cells, fluorescent proteins are rapidly displaced from the gold nanoparticle surface and fluorescence is restored. Fluorescence ‘turn on’ of the fluorescent proteins depends on the drug-induced cell surface changes, generating patterns that identify specific mechanisms of cell death induced by drugs. The nanosensor is generalizable to different cell types and does not require processing steps before analysis, offering an effective way to expedite research in drug discovery, toxicology and cell-based sensing.

  14. NMR Based Cerebrum Metabonomic Analysis Reveals Simultaneous Interconnected Changes during Chick Embryo Incubation.

    PubMed

    Feng, Yue; Zhu, Hang; Zhang, Xu; Wang, Xuxia; Xu, Fuqiang; Tang, Huiru; Ye, Chaohui; Liu, Maili

    2015-01-01

    To find out if content changes of the major functional cerebrum metabolites are interconnected and formed a network during the brain development, we obtained high-resolution magic-angle-spinning (HR-MAS) 1H NMR spectra of cerebrum tissues of chick embryo aged from incubation day 10 to 20, and postnatal day 1, and analyzed the data with principal component analysis (PCA). Within the examined time window, 26 biological important molecules were identified and 12 of them changed their relative concentration significantly in a time-dependent manner. These metabolites are generally belonged to three categories, neurotransmitters, nutrition sources, and neuronal or glial markers. The relative concentration changes of the metabolites were interconnected among/between the categories, and, more interestingly, associated with the number and size of Nissl-positive neurons. These results provided valuable biochemical and neurochemical information to understand the development of the embryonic brain.

  15. NMR Based Cerebrum Metabonomic Analysis Reveals Simultaneous Interconnected Changes during Chick Embryo Incubation

    PubMed Central

    Feng, Yue; Zhu, Hang; Zhang, Xu; Wang, Xuxia; Xu, Fuqiang; Tang, Huiru; Ye, Chaohui; Liu, Maili

    2015-01-01

    To find out if content changes of the major functional cerebrum metabolites are interconnected and formed a network during the brain development, we obtained high-resolution magic-angle-spinning (HR-MAS) 1H NMR spectra of cerebrum tissues of chick embryo aged from incubation day 10 to 20, and postnatal day 1, and analyzed the data with principal component analysis (PCA). Within the examined time window, 26 biological important molecules were identified and 12 of them changed their relative concentration significantly in a time-dependent manner. These metabolites are generally belonged to three categories, neurotransmitters, nutrition sources, and neuronal or glial markers. The relative concentration changes of the metabolites were interconnected among/between the categories, and, more interestingly, associated with the number and size of Nissl-positive neurons. These results provided valuable biochemical and neurochemical information to understand the development of the embryonic brain. PMID:26485040

  16. Association between urinary metabolic profile and the intestinal effects of cocoa in rats.

    PubMed

    Massot-Cladera, Malen; Mayneris-Perxachs, Jordi; Costabile, Adele; Swann, Jonathan R; Franch, Àngels; Pérez-Cano, Francisco J; Castell, Margarida

    2017-03-01

    The aim of this study was to elucidate the relationship between the urinary metabolic fingerprint and the effects of cocoa and cocoa fibre on body weight, hormone metabolism, intestinal immunity and microbiota composition. To this effect, Wistar rats were fed, for 3 weeks, a diet containing 10 % cocoa (C10) or two other diets with same the proportion of fibres: one based on cocoa fibre (CF) and another containing inulin as a reference (REF) diet. The rats' 24 h urine samples were analysed by an untargeted 1H NMR spectroscopy-based metabonomic approach. Concentrations of faecal IgA and plasma metabolic hormones were also quantified. The C10 diet decreased the intestinal IgA, plasma glucagon-like peptide-1 and glucagon concentrations and increased ghrelin levels compared with those in the REF group. Clear differences were observed between the metabolic profiles from the C10 group and those from the CF group. Urine metabolites derived from cocoa correlated with the cocoa effects on body weight, immunity and the gut microbiota. Overall, cocoa intake alters the host and bacterial metabolism concerning energy and amino acid pathways, leading to a metabolic signature that can be used as a marker for consumption. This metabolic profile correlates with body weight, metabolic hormones, intestinal immunity and microbiota composition.

  17. Systems biology of human atherosclerosis.

    PubMed

    Shalhoub, Joseph; Sikkel, Markus B; Davies, Kerry J; Vorkas, Panagiotis A; Want, Elizabeth J; Davies, Alun H

    2014-01-01

    Systems biology describes a holistic and integrative approach to understand physiology and pathology. The "omic" disciplines include genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolic profiling (metabonomics and metabolomics). By adopting a stance, which is opposing (yet complimentary) to conventional research techniques, systems biology offers an overview by assessing the "net" biological effect imposed by a disease or nondisease state. There are a number of different organizational levels to be understood, from DNA to protein, metabolites, cells, organs and organisms, even beyond this to an organism's context. Systems biology relies on the existence of "nodes" and "edges." Nodes are the constituent part of the system being studied (eg, proteins in the proteome), while the edges are the way these constituents interact. In future, it will be increasingly important to collaborate, collating data from multiple studies to improve data sets, making them freely available and undertaking integrative analyses.

  18. Magic Angle Spinning NMR Metabolomics

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zhi Hu, Jian

    Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a non-destructive, quantitative, reproducible, untargeted and unbiased method that requires no or minimal sample preparation, and is one of the leading analytical tools for metabonomics research [1-3]. The easy quantification and the no need of prior knowledge about compounds present in a sample associated with NMR are advantageous over other techniques [1,4]. 1H NMR is especially attractive because protons are present in virtually all metabolites and its NMR sensitivity is high, enabling the simultaneous identification and monitoring of a wide range of low molecular weight metabolites.

  19. [The human variome project and its progress].

    PubMed

    Gao, Shan; Zhang, Ning; Zhang, Lei; Duan, Guang-You; Zhang, Tao

    2010-11-01

    The main goal of post genomics is to explain how the genome, the map of which has been constructed in the Human Genome Project, affacts activities of life. This leads to generate multiple "omics": structural genomics, functional genomics, proteomics, metabonomics, et al. In Jun. 2006, Melbourne, Australia, Human Genome Variation Society (HGVS) initiated the Human Variome Project (HVP) to collect all the sequence variation and polymorphism data worldwidely. HVP is to search and determine those mutations related with human diseases by association study between genetype and phenotype on the scale of genome level and other methods. Those results will be translated into clinical application. Considering the potential effects of this project on human health, this paper introduced its origin and main content in detail and discussed its meaning and prospect.

  20. Utilization of metabonomics to identify serum biomarkers in murine H22 hepatocarcinoma and deduce antitumor mechanism of Rhizoma Paridis saponins.

    PubMed

    Qiu, Peiyu; Man, Shuli; Yang, He; Fan, Wei; Yu, Peng; Gao, Wenyuan

    2016-08-25

    Murine H22 hepatocarcinoma model is so popular to be used for the preclinical anticancer candidate's evaluation. However, the metabolic biomarkers of this model were not identified. Meanwhile, Rhizoma Paridis saponins (RPS) as natural products have been found to show strong antitumor activity, while its anti-cancer mechanism is not clear. To search for potential metabolite biomarkers of this model, serum metabonomics approach was applied to detect the variation of metabolite biomarkers and the related metabolism genes and signaling pathway were used to deduce the antitumor mechanisms of RPS. As a result, ten serum metabolites were identified in twenty-four mice including healthy mice, non-treated cancer mice, RPS-treated cancer mice and RPS-treated healthy mice. RPS significantly decreased tumor weight correlates to down-regulating lactate, acetate, N-acetyl amino acid and glutamine signals (p < 0.05), which were marked metabolites screened according to the very important person (VIP), loading plot and receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) tests. For the analysis of metabolic enzyme related genes, RPS reversed the aerobic glycolysis through activating tumor suppressor p53 and PTEN, and suppressed FASN to inhibit lipogenesis. What's more, RPS repressed Myc and GLS expression and decreased glutamine level. The regulating PI3K/Akt/mTOR and HIF-1α/Myc/Ras networks also participated in these metabolic changes. Taken together, RPS suppressed ATP product made the tumor growth slow, which indicated a good anti-cancer effect and new angle for understanding the mechanism of RPS. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that the utility of (1)H NMR metabolic profiles taken together with tumor weight and viscera index was a promising screening tool for evaluating the antitumor effect of candidates. In addition, RPS was a potent anticancer agent through inhibiting cancer cellular metabolism to suppress proliferation in hepatoma H22 tumor murine, which promoted the application of RPS in the future. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Mycoprotein reduces energy intake and postprandial insulin release without altering glucagon-like peptide-1 and peptide tyrosine-tyrosine concentrations in healthy overweight and obese adults: a randomised-controlled trial.

    PubMed

    Bottin, Jeanne H; Swann, Jonathan R; Cropp, Eleanor; Chambers, Edward S; Ford, Heather E; Ghatei, Mohammed A; Frost, Gary S

    2016-07-01

    Dietary mycoprotein decreases energy intake in lean individuals. The effects in overweight individuals are unclear, and the mechanisms remain to be elucidated. This study aimed to investigate the effect of mycoprotein on energy intake, appetite regulation, and the metabolic phenotype in overweight and obese volunteers. In two randomised-controlled trials, fifty-five volunteers (age: 31 (95 % CI 27, 35) years), BMI: 28·0 (95 % CI 27·3, 28·7) kg/m2) consumed a test meal containing low (44 g), medium (88 g) or high (132 g) mycoprotein or isoenergetic chicken meals. Visual analogue scales and blood samples were collected to measure appetite, glucose, insulin, peptide tyrosine-tyrosine (PYY) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). Ad libitum energy intake was assessed after 3 h in part A (n 36). Gastric emptying by the paracetamol method, resting energy expenditure and substrate oxidation were recorded in part B (n 14). Metabonomics was used to compare plasma and urine samples in response to the test meals. Mycoprotein reduced energy intake by 10 % (280 kJ (67 kcal)) compared with chicken at the high content (P=0·009). All mycoprotein meals reduced insulin concentrations compared with chicken (incremental AUClow (IAUClow): -8 %, IAUCmedium: -12 %, IAUChigh: -21 %, P=0·004). There was no significant difference in glucose, PYY, GLP-1, gastric emptying rate and energy expenditure. Following chicken intake, paracetamol-glucuronide was positively associated with fullness. After mycoprotein, creatinine and the deamination product of isoleucine, α-keto-β-methyl-N-valerate, were inversely related to fullness, whereas the ketone body, β-hydroxybutyrate, was positively associated. In conclusion, mycoprotein reduces energy intake and insulin release in overweight volunteers. The mechanism does not involve changes in PYY and GLP-1. The metabonomics analysis may bring new understanding to the appetite regulatory properties of food.

  2. Methods, applications and concepts of metabolite profiling: primary metabolism.

    PubMed

    Steinhauser, Dirk; Kopka, Joachim

    2007-01-01

    In the 1990s the concept of a comprehensive analysis of the metabolic complement in biological systems, termed metabolomics or alternately metabonomics, was established as the last of four cornerstones for phenotypic studies in the post-genomic era. With genomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic technologies in place and metabolomic phenotyping under rapid development all necessary tools appear to be available today for a fully functional assessment of biological phenomena at all major system levels of life. This chapter attempts to describe and discuss crucial steps of establishing and maintaining a gas chromatography/electron impact ionization/ mass spectrometry (GC-EI-MS)-based metabolite profiling platform. GC-EI-MS can be perceived as the first and exemplary profiling technology aimed at simultaneous and non-biased analysis of primary metabolites from biological samples. The potential and constraints of this profiling technology are among the best understood. Most problems are solved as well as pitfalls identified. Thus GC-EI-MS serves as an ideal example for students and scientists who intend to enter the field of metabolomics. This chapter will be biased towards GC-EI-MS analyses but aims at discussing general topics, such as experimental design, metabolite identification, quantification and data mining.

  3. Evidence for altered metabolic pathways during environmental stress: (1)H-NMR spectroscopy based metabolomics and clinical studies on subjects of sea-voyage and Antarctic-stay.

    PubMed

    Yadav, Anand Prakash; Chaturvedi, Shubhra; Mishra, Kamla Prasad; Pal, Sunil; Ganju, Lilly; Singh, Shashi Bala

    2014-08-01

    The Antarctic context is an analogue of space travel, with close similarity in ambience of extreme climate, isolation, constrained living spaces, disrupted sleep cycles, and environmental stress. The present study examined the impact of the harsh habitat of Antarctica on human physiology and its metabolic pathways, by analyzing human serum samples, using (1)H-NMR spectroscopy for identification of metabolites; and quantifying other physiological and clinical parameters for correlation between expression data and metabolite data. Sera from seven adult males (of median age 36years) who participated in this study, from the 28th Indian Expeditionary group to the Antarctica station Maitri, were collected in chronological sequence. These included: i) baseline control; ii) during ship journey; iii) at Antarctica, in the months of March, May, August and November; to enable study of temporal evolution of monitored physiological states. 29 metabolites in serum were identified from the 400MHz (1)H-NMR spectra. Out of these, 19 metabolites showed significant variations in levels, during the ship journey and the stay at Maitri, compared to the base-line levels. Further biochemical analysis also supported these results, indicating that the ship journey, and the long-term Antarctic exposure, affected kidney and liver functioning. Our metabolite data highlights for the first time the effect of environmental stress on the patho-physiology of the human system. Multivariate analysis tools were employed for this metabonomics study, using (1)H-NMR spectroscopy. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  4. From Metabonomics to Pharmacometabonomics: The Role of Metabolic Profiling in Personalized Medicine

    PubMed Central

    Everett, Jeremy R.

    2016-01-01

    Variable patient responses to drugs are a key issue for medicine and for drug discovery and development. Personalized medicine, that is the selection of medicines for subgroups of patients so as to maximize drug efficacy and minimize toxicity, is a key goal of twenty-first century healthcare. Currently, most personalized medicine paradigms rely on clinical judgment based on the patient's history, and on the analysis of the patients' genome to predict drug effects i.e., pharmacogenomics. However, variability in patient responses to drugs is dependent upon many environmental factors to which human genomics is essentially blind. A new paradigm for predicting drug responses based on individual pre-dose metabolite profiles has emerged in the past decade: pharmacometabonomics, which is defined as “the prediction of the outcome (for example, efficacy or toxicity) of a drug or xenobiotic intervention in an individual based on a mathematical model of pre-intervention metabolite signatures.” The new pharmacometabonomics paradigm is complementary to pharmacogenomics but has the advantage of being sensitive to environmental as well as genomic factors. This review will chart the discovery and development of pharmacometabonomics, and provide examples of its current utility and possible future developments. PMID:27660611

  5. Chemical profiling with HPLC-FTMS of exogenous and endogenous chemicals susceptible to the administration of chotosan in an animal model of type 2 diabetes-induced dementia.

    PubMed

    Niu, Yimin; Li, Feng; Inada, Chikako; Tanaka, Ken; Watanabe, Shiro; Fujiwara, Hironori; Sasaki-Hamada, Sachie; Oka, Jun-Ichiro; Matsumoto, Kinzo

    2015-02-01

    In our previous study, the daily administration of chotosan (CTS), a Kampo formula consisting of Uncaria and other 10 different crude drugs, ameliorated cognitive deficits in several animal models of dementia including type 2 diabetic db/db mice in a similar manner to tacrine, an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. The present study investigated the metabonomics of CTS in db/db mice, a type 2 diabetes model, and m/m mice, a non-diabetes control strain, to identify the exogenous and endogenous chemicals susceptible to the administration of CTS using high performance liquid chromatography equipped with an orbitrap hybrid Fourier transform mass spectrometer. The results obtained revealed that the systemic administration of CTS for 20 days led to the distribution of Uncalia plant-derived alkaloids such as rhynchophylline, hirsuteine, and corynoxeine in the plasma and brains of db/db and m/m mice and induced alterations in four major metabolic pathways; i.e., (1) purine, (2) tryptophan, (3) cysteine and methionine, (4) glycerophospholipids in db/db mice. Moreover, glycerophosphocholine (GPC) levels in the plasma and brain were significantly higher in CTS-treated db/db mice than in vehicle-treated control animals. The results of the in vitro experiment using organotypic hippocampal slice cultures demonstrated that GPC (10-30 μM), as well as tacrine, protected hippocampal cells from N-methyl-d-aspartate-induced excitotoxicity in a manner that was reversible with the muscarinic receptor antagonist scopolamine, whereas GPC had no effect on the activity of acetylcholinesterase in vitro. Our results demonstrated that some CTS constituents with neuropharmacological activity were distributed in the plasma and brain tissue following the systemic administration of CTS and may subsequently have affected some metabolic pathways including glycerophospholipid metabolism and cognitive function in db/db mice. Moreover, the present metabonomic analysis suggested that GPC is a putative endogenous chemical that may be involved in the tacrine-like actions of CTS in the present diabetic animal model. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Novel hydrated graphene ribbon unexpectedly promotes aged seed germination and root differentiation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hu, Xiangang; Zhou, Qixing

    2014-01-01

    It is well known that graphene (G) induces nanotoxicity towards living organisms. Here, a novel and biocompatible hydrated graphene ribbon (HGR) unexpectedly promoted aged (two years) seed germination. HGR formed at the normal temperature and pressure (120 days hydration), presented 17.1% oxygen, 0.9% nitrogen groups, disorder-layer structure, with 0.38 nm thickness ribbon morphology. Interestingly, there were bulges around the edges of HGR. Compared to G and graphene oxide (GO), HGR increased seed germination by 15% root differentiation between 52 and 59% and enhanced resistance to oxidative stress. The metabonomics analysis discovered that HGR upregulated carbohydrate, amino acid, and fatty acids metabolism that determined secondary metabolism, nitrogen sequestration, cell membrane integrity, permeability, and oxidation resistance. Hexadecanoic acid as a biomarker promoted root differentiation and increased the germination rate. Our discovery is a novel HGR that promotes aged seed germination, illustrates metabolic specificity among graphene-based materials, and inspires innovative concepts in the regulation of seed development.

  7. Metabonomic study of the fruits of Alpinia oxyphylla as an effective treatment for chronic renal injury in rats.

    PubMed

    Li, Yong-Hui; Tan, Yin-Feng; Cai, Hong-Die; Zhang, Jun-Qing

    2016-05-30

    Alpinia oxyphylla (Zingiberaceae) is a well-known medicinal plant. Its fruit ("Yi-Zhi-Ren" in Chinese) is used as an anti-diuretic and traditionally used for the treatment of enuresis and reduce urination. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a disease with the characteristic of the slowly loss of kidney function and has a prevalence of up to 7-10% in adults. Recent advances in its etiology and pathogenesis are providing more speculative hypotheses focused on integral systems. Using a UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS-based metabolomic platform, we explored the changes of metabolic profiling in plasma/urine simultaneously between chronic kidney disease (CKD) induced from adenine excess and the protective effects of A. oxyphylla extract (AOE). The total twenty-one metabolites (twelve in urine and nine in plasma), up-regulated or down-regulated, were identified and contributed to CKD progress. Among these biomarkers, agmatine, CAMP, 7-methylguanine, hippuric acid, indoxyl sulfate, asparagines, kynurenic acid and p-cresol sulfate were restored back to the control-like level after the treatment of AOE (p<0.05 or 0.01), These findings may be promising to yield a valuable insight into the pathophysiology of CKD and serve as characteristics to explain the mechanisms of AOE. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Metabolic and microbial signatures in rat hepatocellular carcinoma treated with caffeic acid and chlorogenic acid.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Zhan; Wang, Di; Qiao, Shanlei; Wu, Xinyue; Cao, Shuyuan; Wang, Li; Su, Xiaojian; Li, Lei

    2017-07-03

    Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treatment remains lack of effective chemopreventive agents, therefore it is very attractive and urgent to discover novel anti-HCC drugs. In the present study, the effects of chlorogenic acid (ChA) and caffeic acid (CaA) on HCC induced by diethylnitrosamine (DEN) were evaluated. ChA or CaA could reduce the histopathological changes and liver injury markers, such as alanine transarninase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, total bile acid, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol. The underlying mechanisms were investigated by a data integration strategy based on correlation analyses of metabonomics data and 16 S rRNA gene sequencing data. ChA or CaA could inhibit the increase of Rumincoccaceae UCG-004 and reduction of Lachnospiraceae incertae sedis, and Prevotella 9 in HCC rats. The principal component analysis and partial least squares discriminant analysis were applied to reveal the metabolic differences among these groups. 28 different metabolites showed a trend to return to normal in both CaA and ChA treatment. Among them, Bilirubin, L-Tyrosine, L-Methionine and Ethanolamine were correlated increased Rumincoccaceae UCG-004 and decreased of Lachnospiraceae incertae sedis and Prevotella 9. These correlations could be identified as metabolic and microbial signatures of HCC onset and potential therapeutic targets.

  9. [Intervention effects of Jiaotai pills on PCPA-induced insomnia in rats].

    PubMed

    Yue, He; Zhou, Xiang-Yu; Li, Chun-Yuan; Zou, Zhong-Jie; Wang, Shu-Mei; Liang, Sheng-Wang; Gong, Meng-Juan

    2016-09-01

    To elucidate the intervention effects of Jiaotai pills(JTP) on p-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA)-induced insomnia in rats and its underlying mechanism, the insomnia model was established by single intraperitoneal injection with PCPA in rats. The locomotor activity of rats was observed, and the levels of nerve growth factor(NGF) in hypothalamus, hippocampus, prefrontal cortex and serum of rats were determined by using ELISA. Moreover, a proton nuclear magnetic resonance(¹H-NMR)-based metabonomic approach was developed to profile insomnia-related metabolites in rat serum and hippocampus and analyze the intervention effects of JTP on changes in underlying biomarkers related to locomotor activity, NGF and insomnia. According to the results, JTP could significantly suppress the locomotor activity of insomnia rats, and increase the NGF levels in hypothalamus, hippocampus, prefrontal cortex and serum of rats with insomnia. The disturbed metabolic state associated with PCPA-induced insomnia in rat serum and hippocampus could be intervened by JTP. Meanwhile, six and five potential biomarkers related to insomnia in rat serum and hippocampus were reversed by administration of JTP. In conclusion, the current study demonstrated that JTP had protective effects against PCPA-induced insomnia in rats, which was probably correlated with regulation of NGF level and metabolism of amino acids, lipids and choline. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

  10. Metabolic effects of dark chocolate consumption on energy, gut microbiota, and stress-related metabolism in free-living subjects.

    PubMed

    Martin, Francois-Pierre J; Rezzi, Serge; Peré-Trepat, Emma; Kamlage, Beate; Collino, Sebastiano; Leibold, Edgar; Kastler, Jürgen; Rein, Dietrich; Fay, Laurent B; Kochhar, Sunil

    2009-12-01

    Dietary preferences influence basal human metabolism and gut microbiome activity that in turn may have long-term health consequences. The present study reports the metabolic responses of free living subjects to a daily consumption of 40 g of dark chocolate for up to 14 days. A clinical trial was performed on a population of 30 human subjects, who were classified in low and high anxiety traits using validated psychological questionnaires. Biological fluids (urine and blood plasma) were collected during 3 test days at the beginning, midtime and at the end of a 2 week study. NMR and MS-based metabonomics were employed to study global changes in metabolism due to the chocolate consumption. Human subjects with higher anxiety trait showed a distinct metabolic profile indicative of a different energy homeostasis (lactate, citrate, succinate, trans-aconitate, urea, proline), hormonal metabolism (adrenaline, DOPA, 3-methoxy-tyrosine) and gut microbial activity (methylamines, p-cresol sulfate, hippurate). Dark chocolate reduced the urinary excretion of the stress hormone cortisol and catecholamines and partially normalized stress-related differences in energy metabolism (glycine, citrate, trans-aconitate, proline, beta-alanine) and gut microbial activities (hippurate and p-cresol sulfate). The study provides strong evidence that a daily consumption of 40 g of dark chocolate during a period of 2 weeks is sufficient to modify the metabolism of free living and healthy human subjects, as per variation of both host and gut microbial metabolism.

  11. Knowledge Discovery in Spectral Data by Means of Complex Networks

    PubMed Central

    Zanin, Massimiliano; Papo, David; Solís, José Luis González; Espinosa, Juan Carlos Martínez; Frausto-Reyes, Claudio; Anda, Pascual Palomares; Sevilla-Escoboza, Ricardo; Boccaletti, Stefano; Menasalvas, Ernestina; Sousa, Pedro

    2013-01-01

    In the last decade, complex networks have widely been applied to the study of many natural and man-made systems, and to the extraction of meaningful information from the interaction structures created by genes and proteins. Nevertheless, less attention has been devoted to metabonomics, due to the lack of a natural network representation of spectral data. Here we define a technique for reconstructing networks from spectral data sets, where nodes represent spectral bins, and pairs of them are connected when their intensities follow a pattern associated with a disease. The structural analysis of the resulting network can then be used to feed standard data-mining algorithms, for instance for the classification of new (unlabeled) subjects. Furthermore, we show how the structure of the network is resilient to the presence of external additive noise, and how it can be used to extract relevant knowledge about the development of the disease. PMID:24957895

  12. Knowledge discovery in spectral data by means of complex networks.

    PubMed

    Zanin, Massimiliano; Papo, David; Solís, José Luis González; Espinosa, Juan Carlos Martínez; Frausto-Reyes, Claudio; Anda, Pascual Palomares; Sevilla-Escoboza, Ricardo; Jaimes-Reategui, Rider; Boccaletti, Stefano; Menasalvas, Ernestina; Sousa, Pedro

    2013-03-11

    In the last decade, complex networks have widely been applied to the study of many natural and man-made systems, and to the extraction of meaningful information from the interaction structures created by genes and proteins. Nevertheless, less attention has been devoted to metabonomics, due to the lack of a natural network representation of spectral data. Here we define a technique for reconstructing networks from spectral data sets, where nodes represent spectral bins, and pairs of them are connected when their intensities follow a pattern associated with a disease. The structural analysis of the resulting network can then be used to feed standard data-mining algorithms, for instance for the classification of new (unlabeled) subjects. Furthermore, we show how the structure of the network is resilient to the presence of external additive noise, and how it can be used to extract relevant knowledge about the development of the disease.

  13. Plasma metabonomics study on toxicity biomarker in rats treated with Euphorbia fischeriana based on LC-MS.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yingfeng; Man, Hongxue; Gao, Jian; Liu, Xinfeng; Ren, Xiaolei; Chen, Jianxin; Zhang, Jiayu; Gao, Kuo; Li, Zhongfeng; Zhao, Baosheng

    2016-09-01

    Lang-du (LD) has been traditionally used to treat human diseases in China. Plasma metabolic profiling was applied in this study based on LC-MS to elucidate the toxicity in rats induced by injected ethanol extract of LD. LD injection was given by intraperitoneal injection at doses of 0.1, 0.05, 0.025 and 0 g kg(-1) body weight per day to rats. The blood biochemical levels of alanine aminotransferase, direct bilirubin, creatinine, serum β2-microglobulin and low-density lipoprotein increased in LD-injected rats, and the levels of total protein and albumin decreased in these groups. The metabolic profiles of the samples were analyzed by multivariate statistics analysis, including principal component analysis, partial least squares discriminant analysis and orthogonal projection to latent structures discriminate analysis (OPLS-DA). The metabolic characters in rats injected with LD were perturbed in a dose-dependent manner. By OPLS-DA, 18 metabolites were served as the potential toxicity biomarkers. Moreover, LD treatment resulted in an increase in the p-cresol, p-cresol sulfate, lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE) (18:0), LPE (16:0), lysophosphatidylcholine (16:0) and 12-HETE concentrations, and a decrease in hippuric acid, cholic acid and N-acetyl-l-phenylalanine. These results suggested that chronic exposure to LD could cause a disturbance in lipids metabolism and amino acids metabolism, etc. Therefore, an analysis of the metabolic profiles can contribute to a better understanding of the adverse effects of LD. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  14. An Integrated Strategy to Qualitatively Differentiate Components of Raw and Processed Viticis Fructus Based on NIR, HPLC and UPLC-MS Analysis.

    PubMed

    Diao, Jiayin; Xu, Can; Zheng, Huiting; He, Siyi; Wang, Shumei

    2018-06-21

    Viticis Fructus is a traditional Chinese herbal drug processed by various methods to achieve different clinical purposes. Thermal treatment potentially alters chemical composition, which may impact on effectiveness and toxicity. In order to interpret the constituent discrepancies of raw versus processed (stir-fried) Viticis Fructus, a multivariate detection method (NIR, HPLC, and UPLC-MS) based on metabonomics and chemometrics was developed. Firstly, synergy interval partial least squares and partial least squares-discriminant analysis were employed to screen the distinctive wavebands (4319 - 5459 cm -1 ) based on preprocessed near-infrared spectra. Then, HPLC with principal component analysis was performed to characterize the distinction. Subsequently, a total of 49 compounds were identified by UPLC-MS, among which 42 compounds were eventually characterized as having a significant change during processing via the semiquantitative volcano plot analysis. Moreover, based on the partial least squares-discriminant analysis, 16 compounds were chosen as characteristic markers that could be in close correlation with the discriminatory near-infrared wavebands. Together, all of these characterization techniques effectively discriminated raw and processed products of Viticis Fructus. In general, our work provides an integrated way of classifying Viticis Fructus, and a strategy to explore discriminatory chemical markers for other traditional Chinese herbs, thus ensuring safety and efficacy for consumers. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  15. A robust automatic phase correction method for signal dense spectra

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bao, Qingjia; Feng, Jiwen; Chen, Li; Chen, Fang; Liu, Zao; Jiang, Bin; Liu, Chaoyang

    2013-09-01

    A robust automatic phase correction method for Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectra is presented. In this work, a new strategy combining ‘coarse tuning' with ‘fine tuning' is introduced to correct various spectra accurately. In the ‘coarse tuning' procedure, a new robust baseline recognition method is proposed for determining the positions of the tail ends of the peaks, and then the preliminary phased spectra are obtained by minimizing the objective function based on the height difference of these tail ends. After the ‘coarse tuning', the peaks in the preliminary corrected spectra can be categorized into three classes: positive, negative, and distorted. Based on the classification result, a new custom negative penalty function used in the step of ‘fine tuning' is constructed to avoid the negative peak points in the spectra excluded in the negative peaks and distorted peaks. Finally, the fine phased spectra can be obtained by minimizing the custom negative penalty function. This method is proven to be very robust for it is tolerant to low signal-to-noise ratio, large baseline distortion and independent of the starting search points of phasing parameters. The experimental results on both 1D metabonomics spectra with over-crowded peaks and 2D spectra demonstrate the high efficiency of this automatic method.

  16. Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics study of rhein treating renal fibrosis based on metabonomics approach.

    PubMed

    Sun, Hao; Luo, Guangwen; Xiang, Zheng; Cai, Xiaojun; Chen, Dahui

    2016-12-01

    The selection of effect indicators in the pharmacokinetic/ pharmacodynamic study of complex diseases to describe the relationship between plasma concentration and effect indicators is difficult. Three effect indicators of renal fibrosis were successfully determined. The relationship between pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of rhein in rhubarb was elucidated. The study was a metabolomics analysis of rat plasma and pharmacokinetics/ pharmacodynamics of rhein. A sensitive and simple ultra performance liquid chromatography-tandem triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) method was applied to determine the rhein plasma concentration in the rat model of renal fibrosis and rat sham-operated group after the administration of rhubarb decoction. Then, the ultra performance liquid chromatography-Micromass quadrupole-time of flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF/MS) metabolomics method was used to screen biomarkers of renal fibrosis in rat plasma. Furthermore, the relationship between the plasma concentration of rhein and the concentration of three biomarkers directly related to renal fibrosis were analyzed. The three screened biomarkers could represent the effect of rhein treatment on renal fibrosis. Increasing the plasma concentration of rhein tended to restore the concentration of the three biomarkers in the model group compared with that in the sham-operated group. Evident differences in the area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC) of rhein were also observed under different pathological states. The results provide valuable information for the clinical application of rhubarb. Rhein intervention could recover the physiological balance in living organisms from the pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic levels. New information on the pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic study of complex diseases is provided. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  17. NMR-based metabonomic and quantitative real-time PCR in the profiling of metabolic changes in carbon tetrachloride-induced rat liver injury.

    PubMed

    Li, Xiaowei; Zhang, Fusheng; Wang, Dongqin; Li, Zhenyu; Qin, Xuemei; Du, Guanhua

    2014-02-01

    Carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) is commonly used as a model toxicant to induce chronic and acute liver injuries. In this study, metabolite profiling and gene expression analysis of liver tissues were performed by nuclear magnetic resonance and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction to understand the responses of acute liver injury system in rats to CCl4. Acute liver injury was successfully induced by CCl4 as revealed by histopathological results and significant increase in alanine aminotransferase and serum aspartate aminotransferase. We found that CCl4 caused a significant increase in lactate, succinate, citrate, dimethylgycine, choline and taurine. CCl4 also caused a decrease in some of the amino acids such as leucine/isoleucine, glutamine/glutathione and betaine. Gene function analysis revealed that 10 relevant enzyme genes exhibited changes in expressions in the acute liver injury model. In conclusion, the metabolic pathways, including tricarboxylic acid cycle, antioxidant defense systems, fatty acid β-oxidation, glycolysis and choline and mevalonate metabolisms were impaired in CCl4-treated rat livers. These findings provided an overview of the biochemical consequences of CCl4 exposure and comprehensive insights into the metabolic aspects of CCl4-induced hepatotoxicity in rats. These findings may also provide reference of the mechanisms of acute liver injury that could be used to study the changes in functional genes and metabolites. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. Applications of mass spectrometry to metabolomics and metabonomics: detection of biomarkers of aging and of age-related diseases.

    PubMed

    Mishur, Robert J; Rea, Shane L

    2012-01-01

    Every 5 years or so new technologies, or new combinations of old ones, seemingly burst onto the science scene and are then sought after until they reach the point of becoming commonplace. Advances in mass spectrometry instrumentation, coupled with the establishment of standardized chemical fragmentation libraries, increased computing power, novel data-analysis algorithms, new scientific applications, and commercial prospects have made mass spectrometry-based metabolomics the latest sought-after technology. This methodology affords the ability to dynamically catalogue and quantify, in parallel, femtomole quantities of cellular metabolites. The study of aging, and the diseases that accompany it, has accelerated significantly in the last decade. Mutant genes that alter the rate of aging have been found that increase lifespan by up to 10-fold in some model organisms, and substantial progress has been made in understanding fundamental alterations that occur at both the mRNA and protein level in tissues of aging organisms. The application of metabolomics to aging research is still relatively new, but has already added significant insight into the aging process. In this review we summarize these findings. We have targeted our manuscript to two audiences: mass spectrometrists interested in applying their technical knowledge to unanswered questions in the aging field, and gerontologists interested in expanding their knowledge of both mass spectrometry and the most recent advances in aging-related metabolomics. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  19. Strategy of metabolic phenotype modulation in Portunus trituberculatus exposed to low salinity.

    PubMed

    Ye, Yangfang; An, Yanpeng; Li, Ronghua; Mu, Changkao; Wang, Chunlin

    2014-04-16

    Extreme low salinity influences normal crab growth, morphogenesis, and production. Some individuals of swimming crab Portunus trituberculatus have, however, an inherent ability to adapt to such a salinity fluctuation. This study investigated the dynamic metabolite alterations of two P. trituberculatus strains, namely, a wild one and a screened (low-salinity tolerant) one in response to low-salinity challenge by combined use of NMR spectroscopy and high-throughput data analysis. The dominant metabolites in crab muscle were found to comprise amino acids, sugars, carboxylic acids, betaine, trimethylamine-N-oxide, 2-pyridinemethanol, trigonelline, and nucleotides. These results further showed that the strategy of metabolic modulation of P. trituberculatus after low-salinity stimulus includes osmotic rebalancing, enhanced gluconeogenesis from amino acids, and energy accumulation. These metabolic adaptations were manifested in the accumulation of trimethylamine-N-oxide, ATP, 2-pyridinemethanol, and trigonelline and in the depletion of the amino acid pool as well as in the fluctuation of inosine levels. This lends support to the fact that the low-salinity training accelerates the responses of crabs to low-salinity stress. These findings provide a comprehensive insight into the mechanisms of metabolic modulation in P. trituberculatus in response to low salinity. This work highlights the approach of NMR-based metabonomics in conjunction with multivariate data analysis and univariate data analysis in understanding the strategy of metabolic phenotype modulation against stressors.

  20. Strategies, models and biomarkers in experimental non-alcoholic fatty liver disease research

    PubMed Central

    Willebrords, Joost; Pereira, Isabel Veloso Alves; Maes, Michaël; Yanguas, Sara Crespo; Colle, Isabelle; Van Den Bossche, Bert; Da silva, Tereza Cristina; Oliveira, Cláudia P; Andraus, Wellington; Alves, Venâncio Avancini Ferreira; Cogliati, Bruno; Vinken, Mathieu

    2015-01-01

    Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease encompasses a spectrum of liver diseases, including simple steatosis, steatohepatitis, liver fibrosis and cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is currently the most dominant chronic liver disease in Western countries due to the fact that hepatic steatosis is associated with insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes mellitus, obesity, metabolic syndrome and drug-induced injury. A variety of chemicals, mainly drugs, and diets is known to cause hepatic steatosis in humans and rodents. Experimental non-alcoholic fatty liver disease models rely on the application of a diet or the administration of drugs to laboratory animals or the exposure of hepatic cell lines to these drugs. More recently, genetically modified rodents or zebrafish have been introduced as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease models. Considerable interest now lies in the discovery and development of novel non-invasive biomarkers of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, with specific focus on hepatic steatosis. Experimental diagnostic biomarkers of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, such as (epi)genetic parameters and ‘-omics’-based read-outs are still in their infancy, but show great promise. . In this paper, the array of tools and models for the study of liver steatosis is discussed. Furthermore, the current state-of-art regarding experimental biomarkers such as epigenetic, genetic, transcriptomic, proteomic and metabonomic biomarkers will be reviewed. PMID:26073454

  1. Toxicogenomic analysis of the particle dose- and size-response relationship of silica particles-induced toxicity in mice

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lu, Xiaoyan; Jin, Tingting; Jin, Yachao; Wu, Leihong; Hu, Bin; Tian, Yu; Fan, Xiaohui

    2013-01-01

    This study investigated the relationship between particle size and toxicity of silica particles (SP) with diameters of 30, 70, and 300 nm, which is essential to the safe design and application of SP. Data obtained from histopathological examinations suggested that SP of these sizes can all induce acute inflammation in the liver. In vivo imaging showed that intravenously administrated SP are mainly present in the liver, spleen and intestinal tract. Interestingly, in gene expression analysis, the cellular response pathways activated in the liver are predominantly conserved independently of particle dose when the same size SP are administered or are conserved independently of particle size, surface area and particle number when nano- or submicro-sized SP are administered at their toxic doses. Meanwhile, integrated analysis of transcriptomics, previous metabonomics and conventional toxicological results support the view that SP can result in inflammatory and oxidative stress, generate mitochondrial dysfunction, and eventually cause hepatocyte necrosis by neutrophil-mediated liver injury.

  2. Intervention of pumpkin seed oil on metabolic disease revealed by metabonomics and transcript profile.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Xiu-Ju; Chen, Yu-Lian; Fu, Bing; Zhang, Wen; Liu, Zhiguo; Zhuo, Hexian

    2017-03-01

    Understanding the metabolic and transcription basis of pumpkin seed oil (PSO) intervention on metabolic disease (MD) is essential to daily nutrition and health. This study analyzed the liver metabolic variations of Wistar rats fed normal diet (CON), high-fat diet (HFD) and high-fat plus PSO diet (PSO) to establish the relationship between the liver metabolite composition/transcript profile and the effects of PSO on MD. By using proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy together with multivariate data analysis, it was found that, compared with CON rats, HFD rats showed clear dysfunctions of choline metabolism, glucose metabolism and nucleotide and amino acid metabolism. Using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), it was found that, compared with HFD rats, PSO rats showed alleviated endoplasmic reticulum stress accompanied by lowered unfolded protein response. These findings provide useful information to understand the metabolic alterations triggered by MD and to evaluate the effects of PSO intervention. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

  3. Urine and plasma metabonomics coupled with UHPLC-QTOF/MS and multivariate data analysis on potential biomarkers in anemia and hematinic effects of herb pair Gui-Hong.

    PubMed

    Li, Shujiao; Lin, Hang; Qu, Cheng; Tang, Yuping; Shen, Juan; Li, Weixia; Yue, Shijun; Kai, Jun; Shang, Guanxiong; Zhu, Zhenhua; Zhang, Changbin; Liu, Pei; Yan, Hui; Zhang, Li; Qian, Li; Qian, Dawei; Duan, Jin-ao

    2015-07-21

    The compatibility of Angelicae Sinensis Radix (Danggui) and Carthami Flos (Honghua), a famous herb pair Gui-Hong, can produce synergistic and complementary hematinic effects. Our previous studies have indicated that Gui-Hong has therapeutic potential treatment in hemolytic and aplastic anemia (HAA). The present study aimed to investigate the hematinic effects of Danggui, Honghua and Gui-Hong on HAA rats induced by acetyl phenylhydrazine (APH) and cyclophosphamide (CP) and to explore the underlying hematinic regulation mechanisms. Rats were divided into 5 groups, and drugs were administered by oral gavage one time each day for continuous 7 days from the experiment began. Urine and plasma were analyzed by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTOF/MS). Partial least-squares discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) models were built to evaluate the therapeutic effects of Danggui, Honghua and Gui-Hong. Pearson correlation matrix analysis method was used to discover the correlations between potential biomarkers and biochemical indicators of HAA rats. Seven potential biomarkers contribute to the separation of model group and control group were tentatively identified. The levels of l-kynurenine, phenylalanine, nicotinic acid and sphingosine increased significantly (P<0.05) in HAA rats, while the levels of l-isoleucine, l-tyrosine and serotonin decreased significantly (P<0.05) in comparison with control rats. Those endogenous metabolites were chiefly involved in phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis, valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis, tryptophan metabolism and tyrosine metabolism. The metabolic deviations could be regulated closer to normal level after Danggui, Honghua and Gui-Hong intervention. In term of hematinic effects, Gui-Hong was the most effective as shown by the relative distance in PLS-DA score plots and relative intensity of potential biomarkers. The result reflected the synergic action between Danggui and Honghua. The above results were found to be reasonable in explaining the hematinic effects mechanism of Gui-Hong. The results of routine blood, urinary metabolic pattern and plasma metabolic pattern show the Danggui, Honghua and Gui-Hong groups are moving toward the control group and the HAA was being prevented and alleviated. The effect of Gui-Hong group is more remarkable than Danggui and Honghua groups. Some potential biomarkers like l-kynurenine, phenylalanine, l-isoleucine, l-tyrosine, serotonin, nicotinic acid and sphingosine have been found and identified. The work shows that the metabonomics method is a promising tool in the efficacy and mechanism research of traditional Chinese medicines. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. 1 H NMR-based water-soluble lower molecule characterization and fatty acid composition of boiled Wuding chicken during processing.

    PubMed

    Xiao, Zhichao; Luo, Yuting; Wang, Guiying; Ge, Changrong; Zhou, Guanghong; Zhang, Wangang; Liao, Guozhou

    2018-06-13

    Boiled Wuding chicken was produced using whole chicken by washing, boiling 1 h with salt, deep frying and boiling 2 h. The effect of process on the WLOM (water-soluble lower molecule) profiles of products was characterized using proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy ( 1 H-NMR) and fatty acid composition of products was analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The metabonome was dominated by 49 WLOM and 22 fatty acid compounds were detected. PC1 and PC2 explained a total of 93.4% and 3% of variance, respectively. Compared with control group, the total WLOM and fatty acid content of the chicken breast were significantly decreased in other three processing stages (P<0.05). Comprehensive multivariate data analysis showed significant differences about precursor substance between the different processing including creatine, lactate, creatinine, glucose, taurine, anserine and acetate (P<0.05). These results contribute to a more accurate understanding of precursor substance changes of flavor in chicken meat during processing. Boiled treated chicken had significant effects on fatty acid and WLOM compounds. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  5. Chiral metabonomics: 1H NMR-based enantiospecific differentiation of metabolites in human urine via direct cosolvation with β-cyclodextrin.

    PubMed

    Pérez-Trujillo, Míriam; Lindon, John C; Parella, Teodor; Keun, Hector C; Nicholson, Jeremy K; Athersuch, Toby J

    2012-03-20

    Differences in molecular chirality remain an important issue in drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics for the pharmaceutical industry and regulatory authorities, and chirality is an important feature of many endogenous metabolites. We present a method for the rapid, direct differentiation and identification of chiral drug enantiomers in human urine without pretreatment of any kind. Using the well-known anti-inflammatory chemical ibuprofen as one example, we demonstrate that the enantiomers of ibuprofen and the diastereoisomers of one of its main metabolites, the glucuronidated carboxylate derivative, can be resolved by (1)H NMR spectroscopy as a consequence of direct addition of the chiral cosolvating agent (CSA) β-cyclodextrin (βCD). This approach is simple, rapid, and robust, involves minimal sample manipulation, and does not require derivatization or purification of the sample. In addition, the method should allow the enantiodifferentiation of endogenous chiral metabolites, and this has potential value for differentiating metabolites from mammalian and microbial sources in biofluids. From these initial findings, we propose that more extensive and detailed enantiospecific metabolic profiling could be possible using CSA-NMR spectroscopy than has been previously reported.

  6. A novel reversed-phase HPLC method for the determination of urinary creatinine by pre-column derivatization with ethyl chloroformate: comparative studies with the standard Jaffé and isotope-dilution mass spectrometric assays.

    PubMed

    Leung, Elvis M K; Chan, Wan

    2014-02-01

    Creatinine is an important biomarker for renal function diagnosis and normalizing variations in urinary drug/metabolites concentration. Quantification of creatinine in biological fluids such as urine and plasma is important for clinical diagnosis as well as in biomonitoring programs and urinary metabolomics/metabonomics research. Current methods for creatinine determination either are nonselective or involve the use of expensive mass spectrometers. In this paper, a novel reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for the determination of creatinine of high hydrophilicity by pre-column derivatization with ethyl chloroformate is presented. N-Ethyloxycarbonylation of creatinine significantly enhanced the hydrophobicity of creatinine, facilitating its chromatographic retention as well as quantification by HPLC. Factors governing the derivatization reaction were studied and optimized. The developed method was validated and applied for the determination of creatinine in rat urine samples. Comparative studies with isotope-dilution mass spectrometric method revealed that the two methods do not yield systematic differences in creatinine concentrations, indicating the HPLC method is suitable for the determination of creatinine in urine samples.

  7. Metabonomics study of the effects of pretreatment with glycyrrhetinic acid on mesaconitine-induced toxicity in rats.

    PubMed

    Sun, Bo; Zhang, Ming; Zhang, Qi; Ma, Kunpeng; Li, Haijing; Li, Famei; Dong, Fangting; Yan, Xianzhong

    2014-07-03

    Aconitum carmichaelii Debx. (Fuzi), a commonly use traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has often been used in combination with Rhizoma Glycyrrhizae (Gancao) to reduce its toxicity due to diester diterpenoid alkaloids aconitine, mesaconitine, and hypaconitine. However, the mechanism of detoxication is still unclear. Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) is the metabolite of glycyrrhizinic acid (GL), the major component of Gancao. In present study, the effect of GA on the changes of metabolic profiles induced by mesaconitine was investigated using NMR-based metabolomic approaches. Fifteen male Wistar rats were divided into a control group, a group administered mesaconitine alone, and a group administered mesaconitine with one pretreatment with GA. Their urine samples were used for NMR spectroscopic metabolic profiling. Statistical analyses such as orthogonal projections to latent structures-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA), t-test, hierarchical cluster, and pathway analysis were used to detect the effects of pretreatment with GA on mesaconitine-induced toxicity. The OPLS-DA score plots showed the metabolic profiles of GA-pretreated rats apparently approach to those of normal rats compared to mesaconitine-induced rats. From the t-test and boxplot results, the concentrations of leucine/isoleucine, lactate, acetate, succinate, trimethylamine (TMA), dimethylglycine (DMG), 2-oxo-glutarate, creatinine/creatine, glycine, hippurate, tyrosine and benzoate were significantly changed in metabolic profiles of mesaconitine-induced rats. The disturbed metabolic pathways include amino acid biosynthesis and metabolism. GA-pretreatment can mitigate the metabolic changes caused by mesaconitine-treatment on rats, indicating that prophylaxis with GA could reduce the toxicity of mesaconitine at the metabolic level. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Arachidonic acid metabonomics study for understanding therapeutic mechanism of Huo Luo Xiao Ling Dan on rat model of rheumatoid arthritis.

    PubMed

    Wang, Nannan; Zhao, Xiaoning; Huai, Jiaxin; Li, Yiran; Cheng, Congcong; Bi, Kaishun; Dai, Ronghua

    2018-05-10

    Huo Luo Xiao Ling Dan (HLXLD), a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), is commonly used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). To explore the potential therapeutic mechanism of HLXLD on anti-inflammatory activity. A metabolomic approach based on UFLC-MS/MS to profile arachidonic acid (AA) metabolic changes was used. The cyclooxygenase (COX) and lipoxygenase (LOX) catalyzed metabolites in plasma were quantified on 7, 14, 21, and 28 days after the rats injected with Complete Freund's adjuvant and orally administrated with HLXLD, methotrexate and dexamethasone in parallel as the positive control drugs. Nineteen metabolites involved in COX and LOX pathways in RA model group were significant increased compared with normal group (P < 0.05), including 12-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (12-HETE), 15-HETE, 8-HETE, leukotriene B 4 (LTB 4 ), prostaglandin E 2 (PGE 2 ), PGI 2 , PGD 2 , PGF 2α , thromboxane B 2 (TXB 2 ), etc. From day 7 to day 28, the trajectory direction of HLXLD group and positive control groups gradually moved towards the initial space, and the concentrations of AA and its metabolites after HLXLD treatment were significantly reduced in dual pathways compared to control groups. HLXLD induced a substantial change in the AA metabolic profiles through refrain the expression of COX and LOX. The present investigation also highlights that distinct ingredients of this formula tend to inhibit different target to achieve a therapeutic effect. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  9. High-Throughput Microbore UPLC-MS Metabolic Phenotyping of Urine for Large-Scale Epidemiology Studies.

    PubMed

    Gray, Nicola; Lewis, Matthew R; Plumb, Robert S; Wilson, Ian D; Nicholson, Jeremy K

    2015-06-05

    A new generation of metabolic phenotyping centers are being created to meet the increasing demands of personalized healthcare, and this has resulted in a major requirement for economical, high-throughput metabonomic analysis by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Meeting these new demands represents an emerging bioanalytical problem that must be solved if metabolic phenotyping is to be successfully applied to large clinical and epidemiological sample sets. Ultraperformance (UP)LC-MS-based metabolic phenotyping, based on 2.1 mm i.d. LC columns, enables comprehensive metabolic phenotyping but, when employed for the analysis of thousands of samples, results in high solvent usage. The use of UPLC-MS employing 1 mm i.d. columns for metabolic phenotyping rather than the conventional 2.1 mm i.d. methodology shows that the resulting optimized microbore method provided equivalent or superior performance in terms of peak capacity, sensitivity, and robustness. On average, we also observed, when using the microbore scale separation, an increase in response of 2-3 fold over that obtained with the standard 2.1 mm scale method. When applied to the analysis of human urine, the 1 mm scale method showed no decline in performance over the course of 1000 analyses, illustrating that microbore UPLC-MS represents a viable alternative to conventional 2.1 mm i.d. formats for routine large-scale metabolic profiling studies while also resulting in a 75% reduction in solvent usage. The modest increase in sensitivity provided by this methodology also offers the potential to either reduce sample consumption or increase the number of metabolite features detected with confidence due to the increased signal-to-noise ratios obtained. Implementation of this miniaturized UPLC-MS method of metabolic phenotyping results in clear analytical, economic, and environmental benefits for large-scale metabolic profiling studies with similar or improved analytical performance compared to conventional UPLC-MS.

  10. Metabonomics uncovers a reversible proatherogenic lipid profile during infliximab therapy of inflammatory bowel disease.

    PubMed

    Bjerrum, Jacob Tveiten; Steenholdt, Casper; Ainsworth, Mark; Nielsen, Ole Haagen; Reed, Michelle Ac; Atkins, Karen; Günther, Ulrich Leonhard; Hao, Fuhua; Wang, Yulan

    2017-10-16

    One-third of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients show no response to infliximab (IFX) induction therapy, and approximately half of patients responding become unresponsive over time. Thus, identification of potential treatment response biomarkers are of great clinical significance. This study employs spectroscopy-based metabolic profiling of serum from patients with IBD treated with IFX and healthy subjects (1) to substantiate the use of spectroscopy as a semi-invasive diagnostic tool, (2) to identify potential biomarkers of treatment response and (3) to characterise the metabolic changes during management of patients with tumour necrosis factor-α inhibitors. Successive serum samples collected during IFX induction treatment (weeks 0, 2, 6 and 14) from 87 IBD patients and 37 controls were analysed by 1 H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Data were analysed with principal components analysis and orthogonal projection to latent structures discriminant analysis using SIMCA-P+ v12 and MATLAB. Metabolic profiles were significantly different between active ulcerative colitis and controls, active Crohn's disease and controls, and quiescent Crohn's disease and controls. Metabolites holding differential power belonged primarily to lipids and phospholipids with proatherogenic characteristics and metabolites in the pyruvate metabolism, suggestive of an intense inflammation-driven energy demand. IBD patients not responding to IFX were identified as a potentially distinct group based on their metabolic profile, although no applicable response biomarkers could be singled out in the current setting. 1 H NMR spectroscopy of serum samples is a powerful semi-invasive diagnostic tool in flaring IBD. With its use, we provide unique insights into the metabolic changes taking place during induction treatment with IFX. Of distinct clinical relevance is the identification of a reversible proatherogenic lipid profile in IBD patients with active disease, which partially explains the increased risk of cardiovascular disease associated with IBD.

  11. Curcumin Attenuates N-Nitrosodiethylamine-Induced Liver Injury in Mice by Utilizing the Method of Metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Qiu, Peiyu; Sun, Jiachen; Man, Shuli; Yang, He; Ma, Long; Yu, Peng; Gao, Wenyuan

    2017-03-08

    N-Nitrosodiethylamine (DEN) exists as a food additive in cheddar cheese, processed meats, beer, water, and so forth. It is a potent hepatocarcinogen in animals and humans. Curcumin as a natural dietary compound decreased DEN-induced hepatocarcinogenesis in this research. According to the histopathological examination of liver tissues and biomarker detection in serum and livers, it was demonstrated that curcumin attenuated DEN-induced hepatocarcinogenesis through parts of regulating the oxidant stress enzymes (T-SOD and CAT), liver function (ALT and AST) and LDHA, AFP level, and COX-2/PGE2 pathway. Furthermore, curcumin attenuated metabolic disorders via increasing concentration of glucose and fructose, and decreasing levels of glycine and proline, and mRNA expression of GLUT1, PKM and FASN. Docking study indicated that curcumin presented strong affinity with key metabolism enzymes such as GLUT1, PKM, FASN and LDHA. There were a number of amino acid residues involved in curcumin-targeting enzymes of hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions. All in all, curcumin exhibited a potent liver protective agent inhibiting chemically induced liver injury through suppressing liver cellular metabolism in the prospective application.

  12. Perturbation of metabonome of embryo/larvae zebrafish after exposure to fipronil.

    PubMed

    Yan, Lu; Gong, Chenxue; Zhang, Xiaofeng; Zhang, Quan; Zhao, Meirong; Wang, Cui

    2016-12-01

    The escalating demand for fipronil by the increasing insects' resistance to synthetic pyrethroids placed a burden on aquatic vertebrates. Although awareness regarding the toxicity of fipronil to fish is arising, the integral alteration caused by fipronil remains unexplored. Here, we investigated on the development toxicity of fipronil and the metabolic physiology perturbation at 120h post fertilization through GC-MS metabolomics on zebrafish embryo. We observed that fipronil dose-dependently induced malformations including uninflated swim bladder and bent spine. Further, the "omic" technique hit 26 differential metabolites after exposure to fipronil and five significant signaling pathways. We speculated that changes in primary bile acid synthesis pathway and the content of saturated fatty acid in the chemical-related group indicated the liver toxicity. Pathway of Aminoacyl-tRNA biosynthesis changed by fipronil may relate to the macromolecular synthesis. Concurrently, methane metabolism pathway was also identified while the role in zebrafish needs further determination. Overall, this study revealed several new signaling pathways in fipronil-treated zebrafish embryo/larval. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. Chemometric strategy for modeling metabolic biological space along the gastrointestinal tract and assessing microbial influences.

    PubMed

    Martin, François-Pierre J; Montoliu, Ivan; Kochhar, Sunil; Rezzi, Serge

    2010-12-01

    Over the past decade, the analysis of metabolic data with advanced chemometric techniques has offered the potential to explore functional relationships among biological compartments in relation to the structure and function of the intestine. However, the employed methodologies, generally based on regression modeling techniques, have given emphasis to region-specific metabolic patterns, while providing only limited insights into the spatiotemporal metabolic features of the complex gastrointestinal system. Hence, novel approaches are needed to analyze metabolic data to reconstruct the metabolic biological space associated with the evolving structures and functions of an organ such as the gastrointestinal tract. Here, we report the application of multivariate curve resolution (MCR) methodology to model metabolic relationships along the gastrointestinal compartments in relation to its structure and function using data from our previous metabonomic analysis. The method simultaneously summarizes metabolite occurrence and contribution to continuous metabolic signatures of the different biological compartments of the gut tract. This methodology sheds new light onto the complex web of metabolic interactions with gut symbionts that modulate host cell metabolism in surrounding gut tissues. In the future, such an approach will be key to provide new insights into the dynamic onset of metabolic deregulations involved in region-specific gastrointestinal disorders, such as Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis.

  14. Chemometric and biological validation of a capillary electrophoresis metabolomic experiment of Schistosoma mansoni infection in mice.

    PubMed

    Garcia-Perez, Isabel; Angulo, Santiago; Utzinger, Jürg; Holmes, Elaine; Legido-Quigley, Cristina; Barbas, Coral

    2010-07-01

    Metabonomic and metabolomic studies are increasingly utilized for biomarker identification in different fields, including biology of infection. The confluence of improved analytical platforms and the availability of powerful multivariate analysis software have rendered the multiparameter profiles generated by these omics platforms a user-friendly alternative to the established analysis methods where the quality and practice of a procedure is well defined. However, unlike traditional assays, validation methods for these new multivariate profiling tools have yet to be established. We propose a validation for models obtained by CE fingerprinting of urine from mice infected with the blood fluke Schistosoma mansoni. We have analysed urine samples from two sets of mice infected in an inter-laboratory experiment where different infection methods and animal husbandry procedures were employed in order to establish the core biological response to a S. mansoni infection. CE data were analysed using principal component analysis. Validation of the scores consisted of permutation scrambling (100 repetitions) and a manual validation method, using a third of the samples (not included in the model) as a test or prediction set. The validation yielded 100% specificity and 100% sensitivity, demonstrating the robustness of these models with respect to deciphering metabolic perturbations in the mouse due to a S. mansoni infection. A total of 20 metabolites across the two experiments were identified that significantly discriminated between S. mansoni-infected and noninfected control samples. Only one of these metabolites, allantoin, was identified as manifesting different behaviour in the two experiments. This study shows the reproducibility of CE-based metabolic profiling methods for disease characterization and screening and highlights the importance of much needed validation strategies in the emerging field of metabolomics.

  15. Dynamic changes in metabolic profiles of rats subchronically exposed to mequindox.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Limiao; Zhao, Xiuju; Huang, Chongyang; Lei, Hehua; Tang, Huiru; Wang, Yulan

    2014-11-01

    Mequindox is widely used as an antibacterial veterinary drug and a feeding additive for farm animals in China. Although its toxicity has been widely studied, little is known regarding the metabolic effects of subchronic exposure to mequindox, which is vital for the health of meat producing livestock. Here, we characterized the dose- and time-dependent metabolic alterations in female Wistar rats subchronically exposed to mequindox through dietary supplementation at the level of 40, 110 and 280 mg kg(-1) for 13 weeks, employing a NMR based metabonomics approach with supplementary information from serum clinical chemistry. We found that urinary metabolic profiles were significantly affected in all dosed groups during the supplementation period; plasma and hepatic metabolic profiles were significantly affected only in rats dosed with moderate and high levels of mequindox. We also observed a return to control levels, for the profiles of urine and liver, at all dose levels after a two weeks washout period. However, this was not the case for the metabolic profiles of plasma from rats dosed at high levels. At the molecular level, we showed that subchronic exposure to mequindox resulted in tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA cycle) stimulation, suppression of glycolysis, and promotion of gluconeogenesis and lipid oxidation in rats. In addition, subchronic exposure to mequindox induced oxidative stress in rats. Furthermore, a disturbance of gut microbiota, manifested by alterations in the urinary excretion of hippurate, phenylacetylglycine, 3-(3-hydroxyphenyl)propionate, p-cresol glucuronide, methylamine, dimethylamine, and formate, was associated with mequindox exposure. The present study provided important holistic metabolic information on the effects of subchronic dosage of mequindox on rats, which is useful for evaluating the safety of mequindox usage in meat producing animals.

  16. Bidirectional communication between the Aryl hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR) and the microbiome tunes host metabolism.

    PubMed

    Korecka, Agata; Dona, Anthony; Lahiri, Shawon; Tett, Adrian James; Al-Asmakh, Maha; Braniste, Viorica; D'Arienzo, Rossana; Abbaspour, Afrouz; Reichardt, Nicole; Fujii-Kuriyama, Yoshiaki; Rafter, Joseph; Narbad, Arjan; Holmes, Elaine; Nicholson, Jeremy; Arulampalam, Velmurugesan; Pettersson, Sven

    2016-01-01

    The ligand-induced transcription factor, aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is known for its capacity to tune adaptive immunity and xenobiotic metabolism-biological properties subject to regulation by the indigenous microbiome. The objective of this study was to probe the postulated microbiome-AhR crosstalk and whether such an axis could influence metabolic homeostasis of the host. Utilising a systems-biology approach combining in-depth 1 H-NMR-based metabonomics (plasma, liver and skeletal muscle) with microbiome profiling (small intestine, colon and faeces) of AhR knockout (AhR -/- ) and wild-type (AhR +/+ ) mice, we assessed AhR function in host metabolism. Microbiome metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids were found to regulate AhR and its target genes in liver and intestine. The AhR signalling pathway, in turn, was able to influence microbiome composition in the small intestine as evident from microbiota profiling of the AhR +/+ and AhR -/- mice fed with diet enriched with a specific AhR ligand or diet depleted of any known AhR ligands. The AhR -/- mice also displayed increased levels of corticosterol and alanine in serum. In addition, activation of gluconeogenic genes in the AhR -/- mice was indicative of on-going metabolic stress. Reduced levels of ketone bodies and reduced expression of genes involved in fatty acid metabolism in the liver further underscored this observation. Interestingly, exposing AhR -/- mice to a high-fat diet showed resilience to glucose intolerance. Our data suggest the existence of a bidirectional AhR-microbiome axis, which influences host metabolic pathways.

  17. Nuclear magnetic resonance magnet actively cooled by pulse tube refrigerator

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kirichek, Oleg; Carr, Philip; Johnson, Chris; Atrey, Milind

    2005-05-01

    High field NMR spectrometers have been an essential tool for biomolecular scientists for many years. They have been instrumental in the pursuit of understanding of the structure, function and dynamics of proteins and other biological molecules. In addition, NMR is increasingly used for small molecule applications such as metabonomics, providing capabilities that aid drug discovery, as well as general organic and inorganic chemistry [M. Pellecchia et al., Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 1, 211 (2002)]. However, access to these systems is restricted due to the requirement to periodically refill them with liquid cryogens. This is both logistically demanding and expensive. A new system combining NMR spectrometry and Pulse Tube Refrigeration (PTR) has been developed and successfully tested. This approach eliminates the dependence on liquid cryogens, reduces spectrometer downtime, and also significantly reduces the size of the system. In the near future this new type of analytical tool may become ubiquitous in biomedical and chemical laboratories.

  18. Metabonomics Research Progress on Liver Diseases.

    PubMed

    Yu, Mengqian; Zhu, Ying; Cong, Qingwei; Wu, Chunyan

    2017-01-01

    Metabolomics as the new omics technique develops after genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics and has rapid development at present. Liver diseases are worldwide public health problems. In China, chronic hepatitis B and its secondary diseases are the common liver diseases. They can be diagnosed by the combination of history, virology, liver function, and medical imaging. However, some patients seldom have relevant physical examination, so the diagnosis may be delayed. Many other liver diseases, such as drug-induced liver injury (DILI), alcoholic liver disease (ALD) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and autoimmune liver diseases, still do not have definite diagnostic markers; the diagnosis consists of history, medical imaging, and the relevant score. As a result, the clinical work becomes very complex. So it has broad prospects to explore the specific and sensitive biomarkers of liver diseases with metabolomics. In this paper, there are several summaries which are related to the current research progress and application of metabolomics on biomarkers of liver diseases.

  19. ECR-MAPK regulation in liver early development.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Xiu-Ju; Zhuo, Hexian

    2014-01-01

    Early growth is connected to a key link between embryonic development and aging. In this paper, liver gene expression profiles were assayed at postnatal day 22 and week 16 of age. Meanwhile another independent animal experiment and cell culture were carried out for validation. Significance analysis of microarrays, qPCR verification, drug induction/inhibition assays, and metabonomics indicated that alpha-2u globulin (extracellular region)-socs2 (-SH2-containing signals/receptor tyrosine kinases)-ppp2r2a/pik3c3 (MAPK signaling)-hsd3b5/cav2 (metabolism/organization) plays a vital role in early development. Taken together, early development of male rats is ECR and MAPK-mediated coordination of cancer-like growth and negative regulations. Our data represent the first comprehensive description of early individual development, which could be a valuable basis for understanding the functioning of the gene interaction network of infant development.

  20. Metabonomics reveals metabolite changes in biliary atresia infants.

    PubMed

    Zhou, Kejun; Xie, Guoxiang; Wang, Jun; Zhao, Aihua; Liu, Jiajian; Su, Mingming; Ni, Yan; Zhou, Ying; Pan, Weihua; Che, Yanran; Zhang, Ting; Xiao, Yongtao; Wang, Yang; Wen, Jie; Jia, Wei; Cai, Wei

    2015-06-05

    Biliary atresia (BA) is a rare neonatal cholestatic disorder caused by obstruction of extra- and intra-hepatic bile ducts. If untreated, progressive liver cirrhosis will lead to death within 2 years. Early diagnosis and operation improve the outcome significantly. Infants with neonatal hepatitis syndrome (NHS) present similar symptoms, confounding the early diagnosis of BA. The lack of noninvasive diagnostic methods to differentiate BA from NHS greatly delays the surgery of BA infants, thus deteriorating the outcome. Here we performed a metabolomics study in plasma of BA, NHS, and healthy infants using gas chromatography-time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Scores plots of orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis clearly separated BA from NHS and healthy infants. Eighteen metabolites were found to be differentially expressed between BA and NHS, among which seven (l-glutamic acid, l-ornithine, l-isoleucine, l-lysine, l-valine, l-tryptophan, and l-serine) were amino acids. The altered amino acids were quantitatively verified using ultraperformance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Ingenuity pathway analysis revealed the network of "Cellular Function and Maintenance, Hepatic System Development and Function, Neurological Disease" was altered most significantly. This study suggests that plasma metabolic profiling has great potential in differentiating BA from NHS, and amino acid metabolism is significantly different between the two diseases.

  1. Genome-wide association study identifies loci influencing concentrations of liver enzymes in plasma

    PubMed Central

    Chambers, John C; Zhang, Weihua; Sehmi, Joban; Li, Xinzhong; Wass, Mark N; Van der Harst, Pim; Holm, Hilma; Sanna, Serena; Kavousi, Maryam; Baumeister, Sebastian E; Coin, Lachlan J; Deng, Guohong; Gieger, Christian; Heard-Costa, Nancy L; Hottenga, Jouke-Jan; Kühnel, Brigitte; Kumar, Vinod; Lagou, Vasiliki; Liang, Liming; Luan, Jian’an; Vidal, Pedro Marques; Leach, Irene Mateo; O’Reilly, Paul F; Peden, John F; Rahmioglu, Nilufer; Soininen, Pasi; Speliotes, Elizabeth K; Yuan, Xin; Thorleifsson, Gudmar; Alizadeh, Behrooz Z; Atwood, Larry D; Borecki, Ingrid B; Brown, Morris J; Charoen, Pimphen; Cucca, Francesco; Das, Debashish; de Geus, Eco J C; Dixon, Anna L; Döring, Angela; Ehret, Georg; Eyjolfsson, Gudmundur I; Farrall, Martin; Forouhi, Nita G; Friedrich, Nele; Goessling, Wolfram; Gudbjartsson, Daniel F; Harris, Tamara B; Hartikainen, Anna-Liisa; Heath, Simon; Hirschfield, Gideon M; Hofman, Albert; Homuth, Georg; Hyppönen, Elina; Janssen, Harry L A; Johnson, Toby; Kangas, Antti J; Kema, Ido P; Kühn, Jens P; Lai, Sandra; Lathrop, Mark; Lerch, Markus M; Li, Yun; Liang, T Jake; Lin, Jing-Ping; Loos, Ruth J F; Martin, Nicholas G; Moffatt, Miriam F; Montgomery, Grant W; Munroe, Patricia B; Musunuru, Kiran; Nakamura, Yusuke; O’Donnell, Christopher J; Olafsson, Isleifur; Penninx, Brenda W; Pouta, Anneli; Prins, Bram P; Prokopenko, Inga; Puls, Ralf; Ruokonen, Aimo; Savolainen, Markku J; Schlessinger, David; Schouten, Jeoffrey N L; Seedorf, Udo; Sen-Chowdhry, Srijita; Siminovitch, Katherine A; Smit, Johannes H; Spector, Timothy D; Tan, Wenting; Teslovich, Tanya M; Tukiainen, Taru; Uitterlinden, Andre G; Van der Klauw, Melanie M; Vasan, Ramachandran S; Wallace, Chris; Wallaschofski, Henri; Wichmann, H-Erich; Willemsen, Gonneke; Würtz, Peter; Xu, Chun; Yerges-Armstrong, Laura M; Abecasis, Goncalo R; Ahmadi, Kourosh R; Boomsma, Dorret I; Caulfield, Mark; Cookson, William O; van Duijn, Cornelia M; Froguel, Philippe; Matsuda, Koichi; McCarthy, Mark I; Meisinger, Christa; Mooser, Vincent; Pietiläinen, Kirsi H; Schumann, Gunter; Snieder, Harold; Sternberg, Michael J E; Stolk, Ronald P; Thomas, Howard C; Thorsteinsdottir, Unnur; Uda, Manuela; Waeber, Gérard; Wareham, Nicholas J; Waterworth, Dawn M; Watkins, Hugh; Whitfield, John B; Witteman, Jacqueline C M; Wolffenbuttel, Bruce H R; Fox, Caroline S; Ala-Korpela, Mika; Stefansson, Kari; Vollenweider, Peter; Völzke, Henry; Schadt, Eric E; Scott, James; Järvelin, Marjo-Riitta; Elliott, Paul; Kooner, Jaspal S

    2012-01-01

    Concentrations of liver enzymes in plasma are widely used as indicators of liver disease. We carried out a genome-wide association study in 61,089 individuals, identifying 42 loci associated with concentrations of liver enzymes in plasma, of which 32 are new associations (P = 10−8 to P = 10−190). We used functional genomic approaches including metabonomic profiling and gene expression analyses to identify probable candidate genes at these regions. We identified 69 candidate genes, including genes involved in biliary transport (ATP8B1 and ABCB11), glucose, carbohydrate and lipid metabolism (FADS1, FADS2, GCKR, JMJD1C, HNF1A, MLXIPL, PNPLA3, PPP1R3B, SLC2A2 and TRIB1), glycoprotein biosynthesis and cell surface glycobiology (ABO, ASGR1, FUT2, GPLD1 and ST3GAL4), inflammation and immunity (CD276, CDH6, GCKR, HNF1A, HPR, ITGA1, RORA and STAT4) and glutathione metabolism (GSTT1, GSTT2 and GGT), as well as several genes of uncertain or unknown function (including ABHD12, EFHD1, EFNA1, EPHA2, MICAL3 and ZNF827). Our results provide new insight into genetic mechanisms and pathways influencing markers of liver function. PMID:22001757

  2. Genome-wide association study identifies loci influencing concentrations of liver enzymes in plasma.

    PubMed

    Chambers, John C; Zhang, Weihua; Sehmi, Joban; Li, Xinzhong; Wass, Mark N; Van der Harst, Pim; Holm, Hilma; Sanna, Serena; Kavousi, Maryam; Baumeister, Sebastian E; Coin, Lachlan J; Deng, Guohong; Gieger, Christian; Heard-Costa, Nancy L; Hottenga, Jouke-Jan; Kühnel, Brigitte; Kumar, Vinod; Lagou, Vasiliki; Liang, Liming; Luan, Jian'an; Vidal, Pedro Marques; Mateo Leach, Irene; O'Reilly, Paul F; Peden, John F; Rahmioglu, Nilufer; Soininen, Pasi; Speliotes, Elizabeth K; Yuan, Xin; Thorleifsson, Gudmar; Alizadeh, Behrooz Z; Atwood, Larry D; Borecki, Ingrid B; Brown, Morris J; Charoen, Pimphen; Cucca, Francesco; Das, Debashish; de Geus, Eco J C; Dixon, Anna L; Döring, Angela; Ehret, Georg; Eyjolfsson, Gudmundur I; Farrall, Martin; Forouhi, Nita G; Friedrich, Nele; Goessling, Wolfram; Gudbjartsson, Daniel F; Harris, Tamara B; Hartikainen, Anna-Liisa; Heath, Simon; Hirschfield, Gideon M; Hofman, Albert; Homuth, Georg; Hyppönen, Elina; Janssen, Harry L A; Johnson, Toby; Kangas, Antti J; Kema, Ido P; Kühn, Jens P; Lai, Sandra; Lathrop, Mark; Lerch, Markus M; Li, Yun; Liang, T Jake; Lin, Jing-Ping; Loos, Ruth J F; Martin, Nicholas G; Moffatt, Miriam F; Montgomery, Grant W; Munroe, Patricia B; Musunuru, Kiran; Nakamura, Yusuke; O'Donnell, Christopher J; Olafsson, Isleifur; Penninx, Brenda W; Pouta, Anneli; Prins, Bram P; Prokopenko, Inga; Puls, Ralf; Ruokonen, Aimo; Savolainen, Markku J; Schlessinger, David; Schouten, Jeoffrey N L; Seedorf, Udo; Sen-Chowdhry, Srijita; Siminovitch, Katherine A; Smit, Johannes H; Spector, Timothy D; Tan, Wenting; Teslovich, Tanya M; Tukiainen, Taru; Uitterlinden, Andre G; Van der Klauw, Melanie M; Vasan, Ramachandran S; Wallace, Chris; Wallaschofski, Henri; Wichmann, H-Erich; Willemsen, Gonneke; Würtz, Peter; Xu, Chun; Yerges-Armstrong, Laura M; Abecasis, Goncalo R; Ahmadi, Kourosh R; Boomsma, Dorret I; Caulfield, Mark; Cookson, William O; van Duijn, Cornelia M; Froguel, Philippe; Matsuda, Koichi; McCarthy, Mark I; Meisinger, Christa; Mooser, Vincent; Pietiläinen, Kirsi H; Schumann, Gunter; Snieder, Harold; Sternberg, Michael J E; Stolk, Ronald P; Thomas, Howard C; Thorsteinsdottir, Unnur; Uda, Manuela; Waeber, Gérard; Wareham, Nicholas J; Waterworth, Dawn M; Watkins, Hugh; Whitfield, John B; Witteman, Jacqueline C M; Wolffenbuttel, Bruce H R; Fox, Caroline S; Ala-Korpela, Mika; Stefansson, Kari; Vollenweider, Peter; Völzke, Henry; Schadt, Eric E; Scott, James; Järvelin, Marjo-Riitta; Elliott, Paul; Kooner, Jaspal S

    2011-10-16

    Concentrations of liver enzymes in plasma are widely used as indicators of liver disease. We carried out a genome-wide association study in 61,089 individuals, identifying 42 loci associated with concentrations of liver enzymes in plasma, of which 32 are new associations (P = 10(-8) to P = 10(-190)). We used functional genomic approaches including metabonomic profiling and gene expression analyses to identify probable candidate genes at these regions. We identified 69 candidate genes, including genes involved in biliary transport (ATP8B1 and ABCB11), glucose, carbohydrate and lipid metabolism (FADS1, FADS2, GCKR, JMJD1C, HNF1A, MLXIPL, PNPLA3, PPP1R3B, SLC2A2 and TRIB1), glycoprotein biosynthesis and cell surface glycobiology (ABO, ASGR1, FUT2, GPLD1 and ST3GAL4), inflammation and immunity (CD276, CDH6, GCKR, HNF1A, HPR, ITGA1, RORA and STAT4) and glutathione metabolism (GSTT1, GSTT2 and GGT), as well as several genes of uncertain or unknown function (including ABHD12, EFHD1, EFNA1, EPHA2, MICAL3 and ZNF827). Our results provide new insight into genetic mechanisms and pathways influencing markers of liver function.

  3. Maternal Weaning Modulates Emotional Behavior and Regulates the Gut-Brain Axis

    PubMed Central

    Farshim, Pamela; Walton, Gemma; Chakrabarti, Bhismadev; Givens, Ian; Saddy, Doug; Kitchen, Ian; R. Swann, Jonathan; Bailey, Alexis

    2016-01-01

    Evidence shows that nutritional and environmental stress stimuli during postnatal period influence brain development and interactions between gut and brain. In this study we show that in rats, prevention of weaning from maternal milk results in depressive-like behavior, which is accompanied by changes in the gut bacteria and host metabolism. Depressive-like behavior was studied using the forced-swim test on postnatal day (PND) 25 in rats either weaned on PND 21, or left with their mother until PND 25 (non-weaned). Non-weaned rats showed an increased immobility time consistent with a depressive phenotype. Fluorescence in situ hybridization showed non-weaned rats to harbor significantly lowered Clostridium histolyticum bacterial groups but exhibit marked stress-induced increases. Metabonomic analysis of urine from these animals revealed significant differences in the metabolic profiles, with biochemical phenotypes indicative of depression in the non-weaned animals. In addition, non-weaned rats showed resistance to stress-induced modulation of oxytocin receptors in amygdala nuclei, which is indicative of passive stress-coping mechanism. We conclude that delaying weaning results in alterations to the gut microbiota and global metabolic profiles which may contribute to a depressive phenotype and raise the issue that mood disorders at early developmental ages may reflect interplay between mammalian host and resident bacteria. PMID:26903212

  4. Serum Metabonomics of Articular Cartilage Destruction Induced by T-2 Toxin in Wistar Rats.

    PubMed

    Zhu, Lei; Zhao, Zhi Jun; Ren, Xiao Bin; Li, Qiang; Ding, Hua; Sun, Zhou; Kao, Qing Jun; Wang, Li Hua

    2018-01-01

    The molecular pathogenesis of T-2 toxin-induced cartilage destruction has not been fully unraveled yet. The aim of this study was to detect changes in serum metabolites in a rat anomaly model with articular cartilage destruction. Thirty healthy male Wistar rats were fed a diet containing T-2 toxin (300 ng/kg chow) for 3 months. Histopathological changes in femorotibial cartilage were characterized in terms of chondrocyte degeneration/necrosis and superficial cartilage defect, and the endogenous metabolite profile of serum was determined by UPLC/Q-TOF MS. Treated rats showed extensive areas of chondrocyte necrosis and superficial cartilage defect in the articular cartilage. In addition, 8 metabolites were found to change significantly in these rats compared to the control group, including lysoPE (18:0/0:0), lysoPC(14:0), lysoPC[18:4 (6Z,9Z,12Z,15Z)], lysoPC[(16:1(9Z)], lysoPC(16:0), L-valine, hippuric acid, and asparaginyl-glycine. These 8 metabolites associated with cartilage injury are mainly involved in phospholipid and amino acid metabolic pathways. Copyright © 2018 The Editorial Board of Biomedical and Environmental Sciences. Published by China CDC. All rights reserved.

  5. Metabolic profiling study on potential toxicity and immunotoxicity-biomarker discovery in rats treated with cyclophosphamide using HPLC-ESI-IT-TOF-MS.

    PubMed

    Li, Jing; Lin, Wensi; Lin, Weiwei; Xu, Peng; Zhang, Jianmei; Yang, Haisong; Ling, Xiaomei

    2015-05-01

    Despite the recent advances in understanding toxicity mechanism of cyclophosphamide (CTX), the development of biomarkers is still essential. CTX-induced immunotoxicity in rats by a metabonomics approach was investigated using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-IT-TOF-MS). The rats were orally administered CTX (30 mg/kg/day) for five consecutive days, and on the fifth day samples of urine, thymus and spleen were collected and analyzed. A significant difference in metabolic profiling was observed between the CTX-treated group and the control group by partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), which indicated that metabolic disturbances of immunotoxicity in CTX-treated rats had occurred. One potential biomarker in spleen, three in urine and three in thymus were identified. It is suggested that the CTX-toxicity mechanism may involve the modulation of tryptophan metabolism, phospholipid metabolism and energy metabolism. This research can help to elucidate the CTX-influenced pathways at a low dose and can further help to indicate the patients' pathological status at earlier stages of toxicological progression after drug administration. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  6. Metabonomic Profiling of TASTPM Transgenic Alzheimer's Disease Mouse Model

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hu, Zeping; Browne, Edward R.; Liu, Tao

    2012-12-07

    Identification of molecular mechanisms underlying early stage Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is important for the development of new therapies against and diagnosis of AD. In this study, non-targeted metabotyping of TASTPM transgenic AD mice was performed. The metabolic profiles of both brain and plasma of TASTPM mice were characterized using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and compared to those of wild type C57BL/6J mice. TASTPM mice were metabolically distinct compared to wild type mice (Q28 Y = 0.587 and 0.766 for PLS-DA models derived from brain and plasma, respectively). A number of metabolites were found to be perturbed in TASTPM mice in bothmore » brain (D11 fructose, L-valine, L-serine, L-threonine, zymosterol) and plasma (D-glucose, D12 galactose, linoleic acid, arachidonic acid, palmitic acid and D-gluconic acid). In addition, enzyme immunoassay confirmed that selected endogenous steroids were significantly perturbed in brain (androstenedione and 17-OH-progesterone) and plasma (cortisol and testosterone) of TASTPM mice. Ingenuity pathway analysis revealed that perturbations related to amino acid metabolism (brain), steroid biosynthesis (brain), linoleic acid metabolism (plasma) and energy metabolism (plasma) accounted for the differentiation of TASTPM and wild-type« less

  7. A mitochondria-dependent pathway mediates the apoptosis of GSE-induced yeast.

    PubMed

    Cao, Sishuo; Xu, Wentao; Zhang, Nan; Wang, Yan; Luo, YunBo; He, Xiaoyun; Huang, Kunlun

    2012-01-01

    Grapefruit seed extract (GSE), which has powerful anti-fungal activity, can induce apoptosis in S. cerevisiae. The yeast cells underwent apoptosis as determined by testing for apoptotic markers of DNA cleavage and typical chromatin condensation by Terminal Deoxynucleotidyl Transferase-mediated dUTP Nick End Labeling (TUNEL) and 4,6'-diaminidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining and electron microscopy. The changes of ΔΨmt (mitochondrial transmembrane potential) and ROS (reactive oxygen species) indicated that the mitochondria took part in the apoptotic process. Changes in this process detected by metabonomics and proteomics revealed that the yeast cells tenaciously resisted adversity. Proteins related to redox, cellular structure, membrane, energy and DNA repair were significantly increased. In this study, the relative changes in the levels of proteins and metabolites showed the tenacious resistance of yeast cells. However, GSE induced apoptosis in the yeast cells by destruction of the mitochondrial 60 S ribosomal protein, L14-A, and prevented the conversion of pantothenic acid to coenzyme A (CoA). The relationship between the proteins and metabolites was analyzed by orthogonal projections to latent structures (OPLS). We found that the changes of the metabolites and the protein changes had relevant consistency.

  8. A Mitochondria-Dependent Pathway Mediates the Apoptosis of GSE-Induced Yeast

    PubMed Central

    Cao, Sishuo; Xu, Wentao; Zhang, Nan; Wang, Yan; Luo, YunBo; He, Xiaoyun; Huang, Kunlun

    2012-01-01

    Grapefruit seed extract (GSE), which has powerful anti-fungal activity, can induce apoptosis in S. cerevisiae. The yeast cells underwent apoptosis as determined by testing for apoptotic markers of DNA cleavage and typical chromatin condensation by Terminal Deoxynucleotidyl Transferase–mediated dUTP Nick End Labeling (TUNEL) and 4,6′-diaminidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining and electron microscopy. The changes of ΔΨmt (mitochondrial transmembrane potential) and ROS (reactive oxygen species) indicated that the mitochondria took part in the apoptotic process. Changes in this process detected by metabonomics and proteomics revealed that the yeast cells tenaciously resisted adversity. Proteins related to redox, cellular structure, membrane, energy and DNA repair were significantly increased. In this study, the relative changes in the levels of proteins and metabolites showed the tenacious resistance of yeast cells. However, GSE induced apoptosis in the yeast cells by destruction of the mitochondrial 60 S ribosomal protein, L14-A, and prevented the conversion of pantothenic acid to coenzyme A (CoA). The relationship between the proteins and metabolites was analyzed by orthogonal projections to latent structures (OPLS). We found that the changes of the metabolites and the protein changes had relevant consistency. PMID:22403727

  9. NMR-based metabonomic analysis of normal rat urine and faeces in response to (±)-venlafaxine treatment.

    PubMed

    Serrano-Contreras, José I; García-Pérez, Isabel; Meléndez-Camargo, María E; Zepeda-Vallejo, Luis G

    2016-05-10

    (±)-Venlafaxine, a bicyclic antidepressant of the serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) class, is prescribed for the treatment of depression and anxiety disorders. As is the case with other antidepressants, its precise mechanisms of action are still unknown. Pharmacometabonomic approaches allow for the detection of diverse metabolites, unlike classic methods for analysing drug interaction based on single metabolites and linear pathways. This provides a global view of the state of homeostasis during treatment and an insight into the mechanisms of action of a drug. Accordingly, the final outcome of treatment is characterised by the network of reactome pathways derived from the on-target and off-target effects of the drug. Regarding antidepressants, the drug network may be located in the gut-microbiome-brain-liver-kidney-immune-cardiovascular system axis (GMBLKICA), implying that neurotransmitters participate as signalling molecules in bidirectional communication. If their bioavailability is increased, this communication and the state of homeostasis may be disrupted. With a pharmacometabonomic approach using NMR in combination with different chemometric methods, a determination was made of subtle changes in the metabolic profile (metabotype) of urine and faeces in normal Wistar rats following a single administration of pharmacological doses of (±)-venlafaxine hydrochloride. Based on the drug-response metabotypes observed, (±)-venlafaxine had effects on gut microbial co-metabolites and osmolytes. Hence, it can be hypothesized that bidirectional communication in the multiorgan axis was perturbed by this drug, and very likely by its active metabolite, (±)-desvenlafaxine. This disrupted signalling could be related not only to therapeutic and adverse effects, but also to the lag period in treatment response. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Evaluations of the trans-sulfuration pathway in multiple liver toxicity studies

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Schnackenberg, Laura K.; Chen Minjun; Sun, Jinchun

    2009-02-15

    Drug-induced liver injury has been associated with the generation of reactive metabolites, which are primarily detoxified via glutathione conjugation. In this study, it was hypothesized that molecules involved in the synthesis of glutathione would be diminished to replenish the glutathione depleted through conjugation reactions. Since S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe) is the primary source of the sulfur atom in glutathione, UPLC/MS and NMR were used to evaluate metabolites involved with the transulfuration pathway in urine samples collected during studies of eight liver toxic compounds in Sprague-Dawley rats. Urinary levels of creatine were increased on day 1 or day 2 in 8 high dosemore » liver toxicity studies. Taurine concentration in urine was increased in only 3 of 8 liver toxicity studies while SAMe was found to be reduced in 4 of 5 liver toxicity studies. To further validate the results from the metabonomic studies, microarray data from rat liver samples following treatment with acetaminophen was obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Some genes involved in the trans-sulfuration pathway, including guanidinoacetate N-methyltransferase, glycine N-methyltransferase, betaine-homocysteine methyltransferase and cysteine dioxygenase were found to be significantly decreased while methionine adenosyl transferase II, alpha increased at 24 h post-dosing, which is consistent with the SAMe and creatine findings. The metabolic and transcriptomic results show that the trans-sulfuration pathway from SAMe to glutathione was disturbed due to the administration of heptatotoxicants.« less

  11. Nuclear magnetic resonance technology in acupoint catgut embedding therapy for the treatment of menopausal panic disorder: its applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Gui-zhen; Zhang, Sha-sha; Xu, Yun-xiang; Wang, Xiao-yun

    2011-11-01

    Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) is a diagnostic method which is non-invasive and non-ionizing irradiative to the human body. It not only suits structural, but also functional imaging. The NMR technique develops rapidly in its application in life science, which has become the hotspot in recent years. Menopausal panic disorder (MPD) is a typical psychosomatic disease during climacteric period, which may affect physical and mental health. Looking for a convenient, effective, and safe method, which is free of toxic-side effects to control the disease, is a modern medical issue. Based on reviewing the etiology and pathogenesis of MPD according to dual traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and western medicine, further analyzed the advantages and principles for selecting acupoint prescription by tonifying kidney and benefiting marrow therapy for acupoint catgut-embedding to this disease. The application of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (NMRS) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) technologies in mechanism research on acupoint catgut embedding for the treatment of MPD was discussed. It's pointed out that this intervention method is safe and effective to treat MPD. Breakthrough will be achieved from the research of the selection of acupoint prescription and therapeutic mechanism of acupoint catgut embedding for the treatment of menopausal panic disorder by utilizing the Functional Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and Metabonomics technologies.

  12. Multiple univariate data analysis reveals the inulin effects on the high-fat-diet induced metabolic alterations in rat myocardium and testicles in the preobesity state.

    PubMed

    Duan, Yixuan; An, Yanpeng; Li, Ning; Liu, Bifeng; Wang, Yulan; Tang, Huiru

    2013-07-05

    Obesity is a worldwide epidemic and a well-known risk factor for many diseases affecting billions of people's health and well-being. However, little information is available for metabolic changes associated with the effects of obesity development and interventions on cardiovascular and reproduction systems. Here, we systematically analyzed the effects of high-fat diet (HFD) and inulin intake on the metabolite compositions of myocardium and testicle using NMR spectroscopy. We developed a useful high-throughput method based on multiple univariate data analysis (MUDA) to visualize and efficiently extract information on metabolites significantly affected by an intervention. We found that HFD caused widespread metabolic changes in both rat myocardium and testicles involving fatty acid β-oxidation together with the metabolisms of choline, amino acids, purines and pyrimidines even before HFD caused significant body-weight increases. Inulin intake ameliorated some of the HFD-induced metabolic changes in both myocardium (3-HB, lactate and guanosine) and testicle tissues (3-HB, inosine and betaine). A remarkable elevation of scyllo-inositol was also observable with inulin intake in both tissues. These findings offered essential information for the inulin effects on the HFD-induced metabolic changes and demonstrated this MUDA method as a powerful alternative to traditionally used multivariate data analysis for metabonomics.

  13. Nuclear magnetic resonance technology in acupoint catgut embedding therapy for the treatment of menopausal panic disorder: its applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Gui-zhen; Zhang, Sha-sha; Xu, Yun-xiang; Wang, Xiao-yun

    2012-03-01

    Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) is a diagnostic method which is non-invasive and non-ionizing irradiative to the human body. It not only suits structural, but also functional imaging. The NMR technique develops rapidly in its application in life science, which has become the hotspot in recent years. Menopausal panic disorder (MPD) is a typical psychosomatic disease during climacteric period, which may affect physical and mental health. Looking for a convenient, effective, and safe method, which is free of toxic-side effects to control the disease, is a modern medical issue. Based on reviewing the etiology and pathogenesis of MPD according to dual traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and western medicine, further analyzed the advantages and principles for selecting acupoint prescription by tonifying kidney and benefiting marrow therapy for acupoint catgut-embedding to this disease. The application of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (NMRS) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) technologies in mechanism research on acupoint catgut embedding for the treatment of MPD was discussed. It's pointed out that this intervention method is safe and effective to treat MPD. Breakthrough will be achieved from the research of the selection of acupoint prescription and therapeutic mechanism of acupoint catgut embedding for the treatment of menopausal panic disorder by utilizing the Functional Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and Metabonomics technologies.

  14. A proposed metabolic strategy for monitoring disease progression in Alzheimer's disease.

    PubMed

    Greenberg, Nicola; Grassano, Antonio; Thambisetty, Madhav; Lovestone, Simon; Legido-Quigley, Cristina

    2009-04-01

    A specific, sensitive and essentially non-invasive assay to diagnose and monitor Alzheimer's disease (AD) would be valuable to both clinicians and medical researchers. The aim of this study was to perform a metabonomic statistical analysis on plasma fingerprints. Objectives were to investigate novel biomarkers indicative of AD, to consider the role of bile acids as AD biomarkers and to consider whether mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a separate disease from AD. Samples were analysed by ultraperformance liquid chromatography-MS and resulting data sets were interpreted using soft-independent modelling of class analogy statistical analysis methods. PCA models did not show any grouping of subjects by disease state. Partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DS) models yielded class separation for AD. However, as with earlier studies, model validation revealed a predictive power of Q(2)<0.5 and indicating their unsuitability for predicting disease state. Three bile acids were extracted from the data and quantified, up-regulation was observed for MCI and AD patients. PLS-DA did not support MCI being considered as a separate disease from AD with MCI patient metabolic profiles being significantly closer to AD patients than controls. This study suggested that further investigation into the lipid fraction of the metabolome may yield useful biomarkers for AD and metabolomic profiles could be used to predict disease state in a clinical setting.

  15. Relationship between salivary/pancreatic amylase and body mass index: a systems biology approach.

    PubMed

    Bonnefond, Amélie; Yengo, Loïc; Dechaume, Aurélie; Canouil, Mickaël; Castelain, Maxime; Roger, Estelle; Allegaert, Frédéric; Caiazzo, Robert; Raverdy, Violeta; Pigeyre, Marie; Arredouani, Abdelilah; Borys, Jean-Michel; Lévy-Marchal, Claire; Weill, Jacques; Roussel, Ronan; Balkau, Beverley; Marre, Michel; Pattou, François; Brousseau, Thierry; Froguel, Philippe

    2017-02-23

    Salivary (AMY1) and pancreatic (AMY2) amylases hydrolyze starch. Copy number of AMY1A (encoding AMY1) was reported to be higher in populations with a high-starch diet and reduced in obese people. These results based on quantitative PCR have been challenged recently. We aimed to re-assess the relationship between amylase and adiposity using a systems biology approach. We assessed the association between plasma enzymatic activity of AMY1 or AMY2, and several metabolic traits in almost 4000 French individuals from D.E.S.I.R. longitudinal study. The effect of the number of copies of AMY1A (encoding AMY1) or AMY2A (encoding AMY2) measured through droplet digital PCR was then analyzed on the same parameters in the same study. A Mendelian randomization analysis was also performed. We subsequently assessed the association between AMY1A copy number and obesity risk in two case-control studies (5000 samples in total). Finally, we assessed the association between body mass index (BMI)-related plasma metabolites and AMY1 or AMY2 activity. We evidenced strong associations between AMY1 or AMY2 activity and lower BMI. However, we found a modest contribution of AMY1A copy number to lower BMI. Mendelian randomization identified a causal negative effect of BMI on AMY1 and AMY2 activities. Yet, we also found a significant negative contribution of AMY1 activity at baseline to the change in BMI during the 9-year follow-up, and a significant contribution of AMY1A copy number to lower obesity risk in children, suggesting a bidirectional relationship between AMY1 activity and adiposity. Metabonomics identified a BMI-independent association between AMY1 activity and lactate, a product of complex carbohydrate fermentation. These findings provide new insights into the involvement of amylase in adiposity and starch metabolism.

  16. Bidirectional communication between the Aryl hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR) and the microbiome tunes host metabolism

    PubMed Central

    Korecka, Agata; Dona, Anthony; Lahiri, Shawon; Tett, Adrian James; Al-Asmakh, Maha; Braniste, Viorica; D’Arienzo, Rossana; Abbaspour, Afrouz; Reichardt, Nicole; Fujii-Kuriyama, Yoshiaki; Rafter, Joseph; Narbad, Arjan; Holmes, Elaine; Nicholson, Jeremy; Arulampalam, Velmurugesan; Pettersson, Sven

    2016-01-01

    The ligand-induced transcription factor, aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is known for its capacity to tune adaptive immunity and xenobiotic metabolism—biological properties subject to regulation by the indigenous microbiome. The objective of this study was to probe the postulated microbiome-AhR crosstalk and whether such an axis could influence metabolic homeostasis of the host. Utilising a systems-biology approach combining in-depth 1H-NMR-based metabonomics (plasma, liver and skeletal muscle) with microbiome profiling (small intestine, colon and faeces) of AhR knockout (AhR−/−) and wild-type (AhR+/+) mice, we assessed AhR function in host metabolism. Microbiome metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids were found to regulate AhR and its target genes in liver and intestine. The AhR signalling pathway, in turn, was able to influence microbiome composition in the small intestine as evident from microbiota profiling of the AhR+/+ and AhR−/− mice fed with diet enriched with a specific AhR ligand or diet depleted of any known AhR ligands. The AhR−/− mice also displayed increased levels of corticosterol and alanine in serum. In addition, activation of gluconeogenic genes in the AhR−/− mice was indicative of on-going metabolic stress. Reduced levels of ketone bodies and reduced expression of genes involved in fatty acid metabolism in the liver further underscored this observation. Interestingly, exposing AhR−/− mice to a high-fat diet showed resilience to glucose intolerance. Our data suggest the existence of a bidirectional AhR-microbiome axis, which influences host metabolic pathways. PMID:28721249

  17. Metabolic differentiation and classification of abnormal Savda Munziq's pharmacodynamic role on rat models with different diseases by nuclear magnetic resonance-based metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Mamtimin, Batur; Xia, Guo; Mijit, Mahmut; Hizbulla, Mawlanjan; Kurbantay, Nazuk; You, Li; Upur, Halmurat

    2015-01-01

    Abnormal Savda Munziq (ASMq) is a traditional Uyghur herbal preparation used as a therapy for abnormal Savda-related diseases. In this study, we investigate ASMq's dynamic effects on abnormal Savda rat models under different disease conditions. Abnormal Savda rat models with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and asthma dosed of ASMq. Serum samples of each animal tested by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and analyzed by orthogonal projection to latent structure with discriminant analysis. Compared with healthy controls, HCC rats had higher concentrations of amino acids, fat-related metabolites, lactate, myoinositol, and citrate, but lower concentrations of α-glucose, β-glucose, and glutamine. Following ASMq treatment, the serum acetone very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), LDL, unsaturated lipids, acetylcysteine, and pyruvate concentration decreased, but α-glucose, β-glucose, and glutamine concentration increased (P < 0.05). T2DM rats had higher concentrations of α- and β-glucose, but lower concentrations of isoleucine, leucine, valine, glutamine, glycoprotein, lactate, tyrosine, creatine, alanine, carnitine, and phenylalanine. After ASMq treated T2DM groups showed reduced α- and β-glucose and increased creatine levels (P < 0.05). Asthma rats had higher acetate, carnitine, formate, and phenylalanine levels, but lower concentrations of glutamine, glycoprotein, lactate, VLDL, LDL, and unsaturated lipids. ASMq treatment showed increased glutamine and reduced carnitine, glycoprotein, formate, and phenylalanine levels (P < 0.05). Low immune function, decreased oxidative defense, liver function abnormalities, amino acid deficiencies, and energy metabolism disorders are common characteristics of abnormal Savda-related diseases. ASMq may improve the abnormal metabolism and immune function of rat models with different diseases combined abnormal Savda.

  18. Chinese patent medicine Xin-Ke-Shu inhibits Ca2+ overload and dysfunction of fatty acid β-oxidation in rats with myocardial infarction induced by LAD ligation.

    PubMed

    Yang, Yong; Jia, Hongmei; Yu, Meng; Zhou, Chao; Sun, Lili; Zhao, Yang; Zhang, Hongwu; Zou, Zhongmei

    2018-03-15

    Myocardial infarction (MI) occurs during a sustained insufficient blood supply to the heart, eventually leading to myocardial necrosis. Xin-Ke-Shu tablet (XKS) is a prescription herbal compound and a patented medicine extensively used in the clinical treatment of coronary heart disease (CHD). To understand the molecular mechanism of the XKS action against MI in detail, it is necessary to investigate the altered metabolome and related pathways coincident with clinical features. In this study, tissue-targeted metabonomics based on ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS) were developed to explore the metabolic changes associated with XKS treatment in the heart tissue of rats with MI induced by a left anterior descending coronary artery ligation (LAD). The metabolic disorder induced by LAD was alleviated after low-dose XKS (LD) and intermediate-dose XKS (MD) treatment. XKS modulated six perturbed metabolic pathways. Among them, inhibition of Ca 2+ overload and dysfunction of fatty acid β-oxidation-related metabolic pathways likely underlie the therapeutic effects of XKS against MI. In agreement with its observed effect on metabolite perturbation, XKS reversed the over-expression of the four key proteins, long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase 1 (ACSL1), carnitine palmitoyl transferase-1 (CPT1B), calcium/calmodulin-dependent kinase II (CaMKII), and phospholipase A2IIA (PLA2IIA). Both metabolite and protein changes suggested that XKS exerts its therapeutic effect on metabolic perturbations in LAD-induced MI mainly by inhibiting the Ca 2+ overload and fatty acid β-oxidation dysfunction. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. High resolution 1H NMR-based metabonomic study of the auditory cortex analogue of developing chick (Gallus gallus domesticus) following prenatal chronic loud music and noise exposure.

    PubMed

    Kumar, Vivek; Nag, Tapas Chandra; Sharma, Uma; Mewar, Sujeet; Jagannathan, Naranamangalam R; Wadhwa, Shashi

    2014-10-01

    Proper functional development of the auditory cortex (ACx) critically depends on early relevant sensory experiences. Exposure to high intensity noise (industrial/traffic) and music, a current public health concern, may disrupt the proper development of the ACx and associated behavior. The biochemical mechanisms associated with such activity dependent changes during development are poorly understood. Here we report the effects of prenatal chronic (last 10 days of incubation), 110dB sound pressure level (SPL) music and noise exposure on metabolic profile of the auditory cortex analogue/field L (AuL) in domestic chicks. Perchloric acid extracts of AuL of post hatch day 1 chicks from control, music and noise groups were subjected to high resolution (700MHz) (1)H NMR spectroscopy. Multivariate regression analysis of the concentration data of 18 metabolites revealed a significant class separation between control and loud sound exposed groups, indicating a metabolic perturbation. Comparison of absolute concentration of metabolites showed that overstimulation with loud sound, independent of spectral characteristics (music or noise) led to extensive usage of major energy metabolites, e.g., glucose, β-hydroxybutyrate and ATP. On the other hand, high glutamine levels and sustained levels of neuromodulators and alternate energy sources, e.g., creatine, ascorbate and lactate indicated a systems restorative measure in a condition of neuronal hyperactivity. At the same time, decreased aspartate and taurine levels in the noise group suggested a differential impact of prenatal chronic loud noise over music exposure. Thus prenatal exposure to loud sound especially noise alters the metabolic activity in the AuL which in turn can affect the functional development and later auditory associated behaviour. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. 1H-NMR based metabonomic profiling of human esophageal cancer tissue

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background The biomarker identification of human esophageal cancer is critical for its early diagnosis and therapeutic approaches that will significantly improve patient survival. Specially, those that involves in progression of disease would be helpful to mechanism research. Methods In the present study, we investigated the distinguishing metabolites in human esophageal cancer tissues (n = 89) and normal esophageal mucosae (n = 26) using a 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR) based assay, which is a highly sensitive and non-destructive method for biomarker identification in biological systems. Principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and orthogonal partial least-squares-discriminant anlaysis (OPLS-DA) were applied to analyse 1H-NMR profiling data to identify potential biomarkers. Results The constructed OPLS-DA model achieved an excellent separation of the esophageal cancer tissues and normal mucosae. Excellent separation was obtained between the different stages of esophageal cancer tissues (stage II = 28; stage III = 45 and stage IV = 16) and normal mucosae. A total of 45 metabolites were identified, and 12 of them were closely correlated with the stage of esophageal cancer. The downregulation of glucose, AMP and NAD, upregulation of formate indicated the large energy requirement due to accelerated cell proliferation in esophageal cancer. The increases in acetate, short-chain fatty acid and GABA in esophageal cancer tissue revealed the activation of fatty acids metabolism, which could satisfy the need for cellular membrane formation. Other modified metabolites were involved in choline metabolic pathway, including creatinine, creatine, DMG, DMA and TMA. These 12 metabolites, which are involved in energy, fatty acids and choline metabolism, may be associated with the progression of human esophageal cancer. Conclusion Our findings firstly identify the distinguishing metabolites in different stages of esophageal cancer tissues, indicating the attribution of metabolites disturbance to the progression of esophageal cancer. The potential biomarkers provide a promising molecular diagnostic approach for clinical diagnosis of human esophageal cancer and a new direction for the mechanism study. PMID:23556477

  1. Effect of high pressure treatment on metabolite profile of marinated meat in soy sauce.

    PubMed

    Yang, Yang; Ye, Yangfang; Wang, Ying; Sun, Yangying; Pan, Daodong; Cao, Jinxuan

    2018-02-01

    Marinated meat in soy sauce was produced using hind leg by washing, rubbing salt, marinating with soy sauce and spices, and air dry-ripening for 15d. The effect of high pressure (HP) (150 and 300MPa for 15min) on the metabolite profiles of products was characterized using 1 H NMR and multivariate data analysis. The results showed that the metabonome was dominated by 26 metabolites, including amino acids, sugars, organic acids, nucleic aides and their derivatives. PC1 and PC2 explained a total of 75.4 and 11.9% of variables, respectively. HP treatments increased most of the metabolites, especially PC1, glutamate, sugars, nucleotides, anserine, lactate and creatine compared to the control. The increase of metabolites under HP was not dependent on pressure level except for alanine, lactate, acetate, formate, fumarate, glucose and 5'-IMP. These findings demonstrated that HP treatment at 150MPa was economical to improve the taste of marinated meat in soy sauce. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Urine Metabonomics Reveals Early Biomarkers in Diabetic Cognitive Dysfunction.

    PubMed

    Song, Lili; Zhuang, Pengwei; Lin, Mengya; Kang, Mingqin; Liu, Hongyue; Zhang, Yuping; Yang, Zhen; Chen, Yunlong; Zhang, Yanjun

    2017-09-01

    Recently, increasing attention has been paid to diabetic encephalopathy, which is a frequent diabetic complication and affects nearly 30% of diabetics. Because cognitive dysfunction from diabetic encephalopathy might develop into irreversible dementia, early diagnosis and detection of this disease is of great significance for its prevention and treatment. This study is to investigate the early specific metabolites biomarkers in urine prior to the onset of diabetic cognitive dysfunction (DCD) by using metabolomics technology. An ultra-high performance liquid-chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q/TOF-MS) platform was used to analyze the urine samples from diabetic mice that were associated with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and nonassociated with MCI in the stage of diabetes (prior to the onset of DCD). We then screened and validated the early biomarkers using OPLS-DA model and support vector machine (SVM) method. Following multivariate statistical and integration analysis, we found that seven metabolites could be accepted as early biomarkers of DCD, and the SVM results showed that the prediction accuracy is as high as 91.66%. The identities of four biomarkers were determined by mass spectrometry. The identified biomarkers were largely involved in nicotinate and nicotinamide metabolism, glutathione metabolism, tryptophan metabolism, and sphingolipid metabolism. The present study first revealed reliable biomarkers for early diagnosis of DCD. It provides new insight and strategy for the early diagnosis and treatment of DCD.

  3. Bacterial adaptation to the gut environment favors successful colonization: microbial and metabonomic characterization of a simplified microbiota mouse model.

    PubMed

    Rezzonico, Enea; Mestdagh, Renaud; Delley, Michèle; Combremont, Séverine; Dumas, Marc-Emmanuel; Holmes, Elaine; Nicholson, Jeremy; Bibiloni, Rodrigo

    2011-01-01

    Rodent models harboring a simple yet functional human intestinal microbiota provide a valuable tool to study the relationships between mammals and their bacterial inhabitants. In this study, we aimed to develop a simplified gnotobiotic mouse model containing 10 easy-to-grow bacteria, readily available from culture repositories, and of known genome sequence, that overall reflect the dominant commensal bacterial makeup found in adult human feces. We observed that merely inoculating a mix of fresh bacterial cultures into ex-germ free mice did not guarantee a successful intestinal colonization of the entire bacterial set, as mice inoculated simultaneously with all strains only harbored 3 after 21 d. Therefore, several inoculation procedures were tested and levels of individual strains were quantified using molecular tools. Best results were obtained by inoculating single bacterial strains into individual animals followed by an interval of two weeks before allowing the animals to socialize to exchange their commensal microbes. Through this procedure, animals were colonized with almost the complete bacterial set (9/10). Differences in the intestinal composition were also reflected in the urine and plasma metabolic profiles, where changes in lipids, SCFA, and amino acids were observed. We conclude that adaptation of bacterial strains to the host's gut environment (mono-colonization) may predict a successful establishment of a more complex microbiota in rodents.

  4. Metabonomics study on Polygonum multiflorum induced liver toxicity in rats by GC-MS

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Yuan; Wang, Nannan; Zhang, Meiling; Diao, Tingting; Tang, Jingyue; Dai, Mingzhu; Chen, Suhong; Lin, Guanyang

    2015-01-01

    Polygonum multiflorum, a traditional Chinese medicinal herb, is widely used in liver and liver nourishing. Recent years, drug regulatory departments reported that Polygonum multiflorum caused serious adverse reaction in clinic, especially liver injury. In this study, we detected the changes in rat serum and liver tissue metabolites through gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Mass spectrometry, partial least squares-discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) and other diversified techniques were used to analyze the differences among their metabolites. Compared to the control group, the serum concentrations of L-threonine and serine in water extraction groups increased. The serum concentrations of 9,12-octadecadienoic acid, hexadecanoic acid, oleic acid, D-glucose and octadecanoic acid in alcohol extraction groups increased, while lactic acid decreased to a great extent. For liver tissue, compared to the control group, the concentrations of myo-inositol, oleic acid and cholesterol in water extraction groups increased, while those of hexadecanoic acid, octadecanoic acid, ribitol and butanedioic acid decreased to a great extent. The concentrations of myo-inositol, phosphoric acid, uridine, oleic acid, cholesterol and butanoic acid in alcohol extraction groups increased to a great extent, while those of hexadecanoic acid, octadecanoic acid, ribitol and butanedioic acid decreased. The results indicate that Polygonum multiflorum induces the metabolic disorders of energy metabolism, amino acid and lipid metabolism. What’s more, liver injury of alcohol extraction group was more serious than group of water extraction. PMID:26379894

  5. Simultaneous quantification of cardiovascular disease related metabolic risk factors using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry in human serum.

    PubMed

    Wang, Mo; Yang, Ruiyue; Dong, Jun; Zhang, Tianjiao; Wang, Siming; Zhou, Weiyan; Li, Hongxia; Zhao, Haijian; Zhang, Lijiao; Wang, Shu; Zhang, Chuanbao; Chen, Wenxiang

    2016-01-15

    Recent observations from metabonomic studies have consistently found that branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), aromatic amino acids (AAAs), glutamine (Gln), glutamic acid (Glu), Gln/Glu ratio, carnitine, and several species of acylcarnitines and lysophosphatidylcholines (LPCs) are possible risk factors for metabolic diseases such as diabetes mellitus (DM) and cardiovascular diseases (CVD). We described here a simple and reliable method for simultaneous quantification of these metabolic risk factors by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Serum samples were extracted with isopropanol, and the extracted metabolites were separated by hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) and detected with electrospary ionization (ESI) inpositive ion mode with multiple reaction monitor (MRM) mode. All the metabolites were effectively separated within 5.5min. Analytical recoveries were in the range of 92.8-106.9%, with an average of 100.6%. The intra- run and total imprecisions for the measurement of these metabolites were 1.2-3.8% and 1.5-7.4%, respectively. Serum concentrations of the metabolites were analyzed in 123 apparently healthy volunteers. Significant associations between the metabolites and traditional CVD risk factors were observed. The newly developed LC-MS/MS method was simple, precise, and accurate and can be used as an efficient tool in CVD research and studies. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Gut Microbiome-Induced Shift of Acetate to Butyrate Positively Manages Dysbiosis in High Fat Diet.

    PubMed

    Si, Xu; Shang, Wenting; Zhou, Zhongkai; Strappe, Padraig; Wang, Bing; Bird, Anthony; Blanchard, Chris

    2018-02-01

    A recent study revealed that the accumulation of gut microbiota-produced acetate (GMPA) led to insulin over-secretion and obesity symptom. To further develop this scientific point, the effect of resistant starch (RS) or exogenous acetate carried by RS (RSA) in the gut on metabolic syndrome is investigated using diet-induced obese rats. The metabonomics analysis shows that the gut of rats in the RSA group generate more butyrate in both serum and feces rather than acetate compared to the rats in RS group, indicating the conversion among metabolites, in particular from acetate to butyrate via gut microbiota. Consistently, the gut microbiome uses acetate as a substrate to produce butyrate, such as Coprococcus, Faecalibacterium, Roseburia, and Eubacterium and was highly promoted in RSA group, which further supports the metabolic conversion. This is the first report to reveal the accumulation of gut microbiota-produced butyrate (GMPB) but not GMPA significantly enriched AMPK signaling pathway with reduced expression of lipogenesis-associated genes for suppressing sphingosines and ceramides biosynthesis to trigger insulin sensitivity. Gut microbiome profile and lipogenesis pathway are regulated by GMPB, which substantially influences energy harvesting in the gut from patterns opposed to GMPA. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  7. Foreign compounds and intermediary metabolism: sulfoxidation bridges the divide.

    PubMed

    Mitchell, S C; Steventon, G B

    2009-03-01

    It is widely appreciated that as a xenobiotic travels through an organism and interacts with the biochemical machinery of a living system, it most probably will undergo a number of metabolic alterations usually leading to a cluster of differing chemical species. Indeed, the modern 'metabonomic' approach, where earlier studied drug metabolism profiles have been reassessed, has indicated that there are normally many more previously unrecognised minor metabolites, and when all such biotransformation products are considered, then their total number is legion. It is now being recognised also that the same metabolic alteration of a substrate, especially a xenobiotic substrate, may be catalysed by more than one enzyme and that the previously sacrosanct notion of an enzyme's 'substrate specificity' may well be inverted to read a substrate's 'enzyme preference'. The following brief article attempts to highlight another aspect where our general acceptance of the 'status quo' needs to be reconsidered. The conventionally acknowledged division between the collection of enzymes that undertake intermediary metabolism and the group of enzymes responsible for xenobiotic metabolism may be becoming blurred. It may well be a prudent time to reassess the current dichotomous view. Overcoming inertia, with a realignment of ideas or alteration of perception, may permit new concepts to emerge leading to a more profound understanding and hopefully eventual benefits for mankind.

  8. Metabolomics and proteomics technologies to explore the herbal preparation affecting metabolic disorders using high resolution mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Aihua; Zhou, Xiaohang; Zhao, Hongwei; Zou, Shiyu; Ma, Chung Wah; Liu, Qi; Sun, Hui; Liu, Liang; Wang, Xijun

    2017-01-31

    An integrative metabolomics and proteomics approach can provide novel insights in the understanding of biological systems. We have integrated proteome and metabolome data sets for a holistic view of the molecular mechanisms in disease. Using quantitative iTRAQ-LC-MS/MS proteomics coupled with UPLC-Q-TOF-HDMS based metabolomics, we determined the protein and metabolite expression changes in the kidney-yang deficiency syndrome (KYDS) rat model and further investigated the intervention effects of the Jinkui Shenqi Pill (JSP). The VIP-plot of the orthogonal PLS-DA (OPLS-DA) was used for discovering the potential biomarkers to clarify the therapeutic mechanisms of JSP in treating KYDS. The results showed that JSP can alleviate the kidney impairment induced by KYDS. Sixty potential biomarkers, including 5-l-glutamyl-taurine, phenylacetaldehyde, 4,6-dihydroxyquinoline, and xanthurenic acid etc., were definitely up- or down-regulated. The regulatory effect of JSP on the disturbed metabolic pathways was proved by the established metabonomic method. Using pathway analyses, we identified the disturbed metabolic pathways such as taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, pyrimidine metabolism, tyrosine metabolism, tryptophan metabolism, histidine metabolism, steroid hormone biosynthesis, etc. Furthermore, using iTRAQ-based quantitative proteomics analysis, seventeen differential proteins were identified and significantly altered by the JSP treatment. These proteins appear to be involved in Wnt, chemokine, PPAR, and MAPK signaling pathways, etc. Functional pathway analysis revealed that most of the proteins were found to play a key role in the regulation of metabolism pathways. Bioinformatics analysis with the IPA software found that these differentially-expressed moleculars had a strong correlation with the α-adrenergic signaling, FGF signaling, etc. Our data indicate that high-throughput metabolomics and proteomics can provide an insight on the herbal preparations affecting the metabolic disorders using high resolution mass spectrometry.

  9. NMR-Based Metabonomic Analysis of Physiological Responses to Starvation and Refeeding in the Rat.

    PubMed

    Serrano-Contreras, José I; García-Pérez, Isabel; Meléndez-Camargo, María E; Zepeda, L Gerardo

    2016-09-02

    Starvation is a postabsorptive condition derived from a limitation on food resources by external factors. Energy homeostasis is maintained under this condition by using sources other than glucose via adaptive mechanisms. After refeeding, when food is available, other adaptive processes are linked to energy balance. However, less has been reported about the physiological mechanisms present as a result of these conditions, considering the rat as a supraorganism. Metabolic profiling using (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was used to characterize the physiological metabolic differences in urine specimens collected under starved, refed, and recovered conditions. In addition, because starvation induced lack of faecal production and not all animals produced faeces during refeeding, 24 h pooled faecal water samples were also analyzed. Urinary metabolites upregulated by starvation included 2-butanamidoacetate, 3-hydroxyisovalerate, ketoleucine, methylmalonate, p-cresyl glucuronide, p-cresyl sulfate, phenylacetylglycine, pseudouridine, creatinine, taurine, and N-acetyl glycoprotein, which were related to renal and skeletal muscle function, β-oxidation, turnover of proteins and RNA, and host-microbial interactions. Food-derived metabolites, including gut microbial cometabolites, and tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates were upregulated under refed and recovered conditions, which characterized anabolic urinary metabotypes. The upregulation of creatine and pantothenate indicated an absorptive state after refeeding. Fecal short chain fatty acids, 3-(3-hydroxyphenyl)propionate, lactate, and acetoin provided additional information about the combinatorial metabolism between the host and gut microbiota. This investigation contributes to allow a deeper understanding of physiological responses associated with starvation and refeeding.

  10. Urinary metabolomics analysis identifies key biomarkers of different stages of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

    PubMed Central

    Dong, Shu; Zhan, Zong-Ying; Cao, Hong-Yan; Wu, Chao; Bian, Yan-Qin; Li, Jian-Yuan; Cheng, Gen-Hong; Liu, Ping; Sun, Ming-Yu

    2017-01-01

    AIM To identify a panel of biomarkers that can distinguish between non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and explore molecular mechanism involved in the process of developing NASH from NAFLD. METHODS Biomarkers may differ during stages of NAFLD. Urine and blood were obtained from non-diabetic subjects with NAFLD and steatosis, with normal liver function (n = 33), from patients with NASH, with abnormal liver function (n = 45), and from healthy age and sex-matched controls (n = 30). Samples were subjected to metabolomic analysis to identify potential non-invasive biomarkers. Differences in urinary metabolic profiles were analyzed using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry with principal component analysis and partial least squares-discriminate analysis. RESULTS Compared with NAFLD patients, patients with NASH had abnormal liver function and high serum lipid concentrations. Urinary metabonomics found differences in 31 metabolites between these two groups, including differences in nucleic acids and amino acids. Pathway analysis based on overlapping metabolites showed that pathways of energy and amino acid metabolism, as well as the pentose phosphate pathway, were closely associated with pathological processes in NAFLD and NASH. CONCLUSION These findings suggested that a panel of biomarkers could distinguish between NAFLD and NASH, and could help to determine the molecular mechanism involved in the process of developing NASH from NAFLD. Urinary biomarkers may be diagnostic in these patients and could be used to assess responses to therapeutic interventions. PMID:28487615

  11. Modulation of Metabolism and Switching to Biofilm Prevail over Exopolysaccharide Production in the Response of Rhizobium alamii to Cadmium

    PubMed Central

    Schue, Mathieu; Fekete, Agnes; Ortet, Philippe; Brutesco, Catherine; Heulin, Thierry; Schmitt-Kopplin, Philippe; Achouak, Wafa; Santaella, Catherine

    2011-01-01

    Heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd2+) affect microbial metabolic processes. Consequently, bacteria adapt by adjusting their cellular machinery. We have investigated the dose-dependent growth effects of Cd2+ on Rhizobium alamii, an exopolysaccharide (EPS)-producing bacterium that forms a biofilm on plant roots. Adsorption isotherms show that the EPS of R. alamii binds cadmium in competition with calcium. A metabonomics approach based on ion cyclotron resonance Fourier transform mass spectrometry has showed that cadmium alters mainly the bacterial metabolism in pathways implying sugars, purine, phosphate, calcium signalling and cell respiration. We determined the influence of EPS on the bacterium response to cadmium, using a mutant of R. alamii impaired in EPS production (MSΔGT). Cadmium dose-dependent effects on the bacterial growth were not significantly different between the R. alamii wild type (wt) and MSΔGT strains. Although cadmium did not modify the quantity of EPS isolated from R. alamii, it triggered the formation of biofilm vs planktonic cells, both by R. alamii wt and by MSΔGT. Thus, it appears that cadmium toxicity could be managed by switching to a biofilm way of life, rather than producing EPS. We conclude that modulations of the bacterial metabolism and switching to biofilms prevails in the adaptation of R. alamii to cadmium. These results are original with regard to the conventional role attributed to EPS in a biofilm matrix, and the bacterial response to cadmium. PMID:22096497

  12. [Urine metabonomic study on hypertension patients of ascendant hyperactivity of gan yang syndrome by high performance liquid chromatography coupled with time of flight mass spectrometry].

    PubMed

    Jiang, Hai-Qiang; Li, Yun-Lun; Xie, Jun

    2012-03-01

    To study the changes of urine metabolites in hypertension patients of ascendant hyperactivity of Gan yang syndrome (AHGYS), and to explore its essence in hypertension patients. Ten typical hypertension patients of AHGYS were recruited as the patient group, and the other twelve healthy volunteers were recruited as the normal group. The metabolite profiling in the urine were collected using by high performance liquid chromatography coupled with time of flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-TOFMS). The principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least-square discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were analyzed using SIMCA-P Software. The differential metabolites in the urine were found out and identified. The possible relevant metabolic pathways were explained. The data from the analysis by PCA in the urine samples of the patient group and the normal group showed, two sets of data could be obviously classified in the score plot. Compared with the normal group, significant changes happened to the body metabolism in the patient group. The metabolites relevant to hypertension patients of AHGYS were determined using the PLS-DA. Fifteen compounds of the structure and metabolic pathways had been confirmed through inquiring KEGG Database, mainly including amino acids, free fatty acids, sphingosine, and so on. The hypertension patients of AHGYS were studied using HPLC-TOFMS combined with pattern recognition, thus finding out small molecular metabolic markers from the microscopic field, which was advantageous in probing the biological nature of Chinese medicine syndromes.

  13. 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy-based metabonomic study in patients with cirrhosis and hepatic encephalopathy

    PubMed Central

    Dabos, Konstantinos John; Parkinson, John Andrew; Sadler, Ian Howard; Plevris, John Nicholas; Hayes, Peter Clive

    2015-01-01

    AIM: To identify plasma metabolites used as biomarkers in order to distinguish cirrhotics from controls and encephalopathics. METHODS: A clinical study involving stable cirrhotic patients with and without overt hepatic encephalopathy was designed. A control group of healthy volunteers was used. Plasma from those patients was analysed using 1H - nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. We used the Carr Purcell Meiboom Gill sequence to process the sample spectra at ambient probe temperature. We used a gated secondary irradiation field for water signal suppression. Samples were calibrated and referenced using the sodium trimethyl silyl propionate peak at 0.00 ppm. For each sample 128 transients (FID’s) were acquired into 32 K complex data points over a spectral width of 6 KHz. 30 degree pulses were applied with an acquisition time of 4.0 s in order to achieve better resolution, followed by a recovery delay of 12 s, to allow for complete relaxation and recovery of the magnetisation. A metabolic profile was created for stable cirrhotic patients without signs of overt hepatic encephalopathy and encephalopathic patients as well as healthy controls. Stepwise discriminant analysis was then used and discriminant factors were created to differentiate between the three groups. RESULTS: Eighteen stabled cirrhotic patients, eighteen patients with overt hepatic encephalopathy and seventeen healthy volunteers were recruited. Patients with cirrhosis had significantly impaired ketone body metabolism, urea synthesis and gluconeogenesis. This was demonstrated by higher concentrations of acetoacetate (0.23 ± 0.02 vs 0.05 ± 0.00, P < 0.01), and b-hydroxybutarate (0.58 ± 0.14 vs 0.08 ± 0.00, P < 0.01), lower concentrations of glutamine (0.44 ± 0.08 vs 0.63 ± 0.03, P < 0.05), histidine (0.16 ± 0.01 vs 0.36 ± 0.04, P < 0.01) and arginine (0.08 ± 0.01 vs 0.14 ± 0.02, P < 0.03) and higher concentrations of glutamate (1.36 ± 0.25 vs 0.58 ± 0.04, P < 0.01), lactate (1.53 ± 0.11 vs 0.42 ± 0.05, P < 0.01), pyruvate (0.11 ± 0.02 vs 0.03 ± 0.00, P < 0.01) threonine (0.39 ± 0.02 vs 0.08 ± 0.01, P < 0.01) and aspartate (0.37 ± 0.03 vs 0.03 ± 0.01). A five metabolite signature by stepwise discriminant analysis could separate between controls and cirrhotic patients with an accuracy of 98%. In patients with encephalopathy we observed further derangement of ketone body metabolism, impaired production of glycerol and myoinositol, reversal of Fischer’s ratio and impaired glutamine production as demonstrated by lower b-hydroxybutyrate (0.58 ± 0.14 vs 0.16 ± 0.02, P < 0.0002), higher acetoacetate (0.23 ± 0.02 vs 0.41 ± 0.16, P < 0.05), leucine (0.33 ± 0.02 vs 0.49 ± 0.05, P < 0.005) and isoleucine (0.12 ± 0.02 vs 0.27 ± 0.02, P < 0.0004) and lower glutamine (0.44 ± 0.08 vs 0.36 ± 0.04, P < 0.013), glycerol (0.53 ± 0.03 vs 0.19 ± 0.02, P < 0.000) and myoinositol (0.36 ± 0.04 vs 0.18 ± 0.02, P < 0.010) concentrations. A four metabolite signature by stepwise discriminant analysis could separate between encephalopathic and cirrhotic patients with an accuracy of 87%. CONCLUSION: Patients with cirrhosis and patients with hepatic encephalopathy exhibit distinct metabolic abnormalities and the use of metabonomics can select biomarkers for these diseases. PMID:26140090

  14. Systematic review A systematic review of metabolite profiling in gestational diabetes mellitus

    PubMed Central

    Huynh, Jennifer; Xiong, Grace; Bentley-Lewis, Rhonda

    2014-01-01

    Aims/hypothesis Gestational diabetes mellitus is associated with adverse maternal and fetal outcomes during, as well as subsequent to, pregnancy, including increased risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Because of the importance of early risk stratification in preventing these complications, improved first-trimester biomarker determination for diagnosing gestational diabetes would enhance our ability to optimise both maternal and fetal health. Metabolomic profiling, the systematic study of small molecule products of biochemical pathways, has shown promise in the identification of key metabolites associated with the pathogenesis of several metabolic diseases, including gestational diabetes. This article provides a systematic review of the current state of research on biomarkers and gestational diabetes and discusses the clinical relevance of metabolomics in the prediction, diagnosis and management of gestational diabetes. Methods We conducted a systematic search of MEDLINE (PubMed) up to the end of February 2014 using the key term combinations of ‘metabolomics,’ ‘metabonomics,’ ‘nuclear magnetic spectroscopy,’ ‘mass spectrometry,’ ‘metabolic profiling’ and ‘amino acid profile’ combined (AND) with ‘gestational diabetes’. Additional articles were identified through searching the reference lists from included studies. Quality assessment of included articles was conducted through the use of QUADOMICS. Results This systematic review included 17 articles. The biomarkers most consistently associated with gestational diabetes were asymmetric dimethylarginine and NEFAs. After QUADOMICS analysis, 13 of the 17 included studies were classified as ‘high quality’. Conclusions/interpretation Existing metabolomic studies of gestational diabetes present inconsistent findings regarding metabolite profile characteristics. Further studies are needed in larger, more racially/ethnically diverse populations. PMID:25193282

  15. Acetyl-l-carnitine partially prevents benzene-induced hematotoxicity and oxidative stress in C3H/He mice.

    PubMed

    Sun, Rongli; Zhang, Juan; Wei, Haiyan; Meng, Xing; Ding, Qin; Sun, Fengxia; Cao, Meng; Yin, Lihong; Pu, Yuepu

    2017-04-01

    Benzene is an environmental pollutant and occupational toxicant which induces hematotoxicity. Our previous metabonomics study suggested that acetyl-l-carnitine (ALCAR) decreased in the mouse plasma and bone marrow (BM) cells due to benzene exposure. In the present study, the topic on whether ALCAR influences hematotoxicity caused by benzene exposure was explored. Thirty-two male C3H/He mice were divided into four groups: control group (C: vehicle, oil), benzene group (150mg/kg body weight (b.w.) benzene), benzene+A1 group (150mg/kg b.w. benzene+100mg/kg b.w. ALCAR), and benzene+A2 group (150mg/kg b.w. benzene+200mg/kg b.w. ALCAR). Benzene was injected subcutaneously, and ALCAR was orally administrated via gavage once daily for 4 weeks consecutively. After the experimental period, the blood routine, BM cell number and frequency of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell (HS/PC) were assessed. The mitochondrial membrane potential and ATP level were determined to evaluate the mitochondrial function. Reactive oxygen species (ROS), hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were also examined, and the comet assay was performed to measure oxidative stress. Results showed that ALCAR intervention can partially reduce the benzene-induced damage on BM and HS/PCs and can simultaneously alleviate the DNA damage by reducing benzene-induced H 2 O 2, ROS, and MDA. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. Evaluation of 1H NMR metabolic profiling using biofluid mixture design.

    PubMed

    Athersuch, Toby J; Malik, Shahid; Weljie, Aalim; Newton, Jack; Keun, Hector C

    2013-07-16

    A strategy for evaluating the performance of quantitative spectral analysis tools in conditions that better approximate background variation in a metabonomics experiment is presented. Three different urine samples were mixed in known proportions according to a {3, 3} simplex lattice experimental design and analyzed in triplicate by 1D (1)H NMR spectroscopy. Fifty-four urinary metabolites were subsequently quantified from the sample spectra using two methods common in metabolic profiling studies: (1) targeted spectral fitting and (2) targeted spectral integration. Multivariate analysis using partial least-squares (PLS) regression showed the latent structure of the spectral set recapitulated the experimental mixture design. The goodness-of-prediction statistic (Q(2)) of each metabolite variable in a PLS model was calculated as a metric for the reliability of measurement, across the sample compositional space. Several metabolites were observed to have low Q(2) values, largely as a consequence of their spectral resonances having low s/n or strong overlap with other sample components. This strategy has the potential to allow evaluation of spectral features obtained from metabolic profiling platforms in the context of the compositional background found in real biological sample sets, which may be subject to considerable variation. We suggest that it be incorporated into metabolic profiling studies to improve the estimation of matrix effects that confound accurate metabolite measurement. This novel method provides a rational basis for exploiting information from several samples in an efficient manner and avoids the use of multiple spike-in authentic standards, which may be difficult to obtain.

  17. The Variation of Root Exudates from the Hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii under Cadmium Stress: Metabonomics Analysis

    PubMed Central

    Luo, Qing; Sun, Lina; Hu, Xiaomin; Zhou, Ruiren

    2014-01-01

    Hydroponic experiments were conducted to investigate the variation of root exudates from the hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii under the stress of cadmium (Cd). S. alfredii was cultured for 4 days in the nutrient solution spiked with CdCl2 at concentrations of 0, 5, 10, 40, and 400 µM Cd after the pre-culture. The root exudates were collected and analyzed by GC-MS, and 62 compounds were identified. Of these compounds, the orthogonal partial least-squares discrimination analysis (OPLS-DA) showed that there were a distinct difference among the root exudates with different Cd treatments and 20 compounds resulting in this difference were found out. Changing tendencies in the relative content of these 20 compounds under the different Cd treatments were analyzed. These results indicated that trehalose, erythritol, naphthalene, d-pinitol and n-octacosane might be closely related to the Cd stabilization, phosphoric acid, tetradecanoic acid, oxalic acid, threonic acid and glycine could be attributed to the Cd mobilization, and mannitol, oleic acid, 3-hydroxybutanoic acid, fructose, octacosanol and ribitol could copy well with the Cd stress. PMID:25545686

  18. Metabonomic strategy for the investigation of the mode of action of the phytotoxin (5S,8R,13S,16R)-(-)-pyrenophorol using 1H nuclear magnetic resonance fingerprinting.

    PubMed

    Aliferis, Konstantinos A; Chrysayi-Tokousbalides, Maria

    2006-03-08

    The biochemical mode of action of (5S,8R,13S,16R)-(-)-pyrenophorol isolated from a Drechslera avenae pathotype was investigated by using metabolic fingerprinting. (1)H NMR spectra of crude leaf extracts from untreated Avena sterilis seedlings and A. sterilis seedlings treated with pyrenophorol were compared with those obtained from treatments with the herbicides diuron, glyphosate, mesotrione, norflurazon, oxadiazon, and paraquat. Multivariate analysis was carried out to group treatments according to the mode of action of the phytotoxic substances applied. Analysis results revealed that none of the herbicide treatments fitted the pyrenophorol model and indicate that the effect of the phytotoxin on A. sterilis differs than those caused by glyphosate, mesotrione, norflurazon, oxadiazon, paraquat, and diuron, which inhibit 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase, 4-hydroxyphenyl-pyruvate-dioxygenase, phytoene desaturase, protoporphyrinogen oxidase, photosystem I, and photosystem II, respectively. The method applied, combined with appropriate data preprocessing and analysis, was found to be rapid for the screening of phytotoxic substances for metabolic effects.

  19. Urinary Bisphenol A Concentration and Angiography-Defined Coronary Artery Stenosis

    PubMed Central

    Melzer, David; Gates, Phil; Osborn, Nicholas J.; Henley, William E.; Cipelli, Ricardo; Young, Anita; Money, Cathryn; McCormack, Paul; Schofield, Peter; Mosedale, David; Grainger, David; Galloway, Tamara S.

    2012-01-01

    Background Bisphenol A is widely used in food and drinks packaging. There is evidence of associations between raised urinary bisphenol A (uBPA) and increased incidence of reported cardiovascular diagnoses. Methodology/Principal Findings To estimate associations between BPA exposure and angiographically graded coronary atherosclerosis. 591 patients participating in The Metabonomics and Genomics in Coronary Artery Disease (MaGiCAD) study in Cambridgeshire UK, comparing urinary BPA (uBPA) with grades of severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) on angiography. Linear models were adjusted for BMI, occupational social class and diabetes status. Severe (one to three vessel) CAD was present in 385 patients, 86 had intermediate disease (n = 86) and 120 had normal coronary arteries. The (unadjusted) median uBPA concentration was 1.28 ng/mL with normal coronary arteries, and 1.53 ng/mL with severe CAD. Compared to those with normal coronary arteries, uBPA concentration was significantly higher in those with severe CAD (OR per uBPA SD = 5.96 ng/ml OR = 1.43, CI 1.03 to 1.98, p = 0.033), and near significant for intermediate disease (OR = 1.69, CI 0.98 to 2.94, p = 0.061). There was no significant uBPA difference between patients with severe CAD (needing surgery) and the remaining groups combined. Conclusions/Significance BPA exposure was higher in those with severe coronary artery stenoses compared to those with no vessel disease. Larger studies are needed to estimate true dose response relationships. The mechanisms underlying the association remain to be established. PMID:22916252

  20. Kidney tissue targeted metabolic profiling of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis and the proposed therapeutic effects of Rhizoma Drynariae studied using UHPLC/MS/MS.

    PubMed

    Huang, Yue; Liu, Xinyu; Zhao, Longshan; Li, Famei; Xiong, Zhili

    2014-06-01

    Traditional Chinese medicine and modern science have indicated that there is a close relationship between bone and kidney. In light of this, this project was designed to study the metabolic profiling by UHPLC/MS/MS of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis in kidney tissue and the possible therapeutic effects of Rhizoma Drynariae (RD), a classic traditional Chinese medicine, in improving the kidney function and strengthening bone. Twenty-one Wistar rats were divided into three groups: control group (rats before prednisolone inducing), a model group (prednisolone-induced group) and a treatment group (prednisolone-induced rats that were then administered RD ethanol extracts). By using pattern recognition analysis, a significant change in the metabolic profile of kidney tissue samples was observed in the model group and restoration of the profile was observed after the administration of RD ethanol extracts. Some significantly changed biomarkers related to osteoporosis such as sphingolipids (C16 dihydrosphingosine, C18 dihydrosphingosine, C18 phytosphingosine, C20 phytosphingosine), lysophosphatidycholines (C16:0 LPC, C18:0 LPC) and phenylalanine were identified. As a complement to the metabolic profiling of RD in plasma, these biomarkers suggest that kidney damage, cell cytotoxicity and apoptosis exist in osteoporosis rats, which is helpful in further understanding the underlying process of glucocorticoid-induced osetoporosis and the suggested therapeutic effects of RD. The method shows that tissue target metabonomics might provide a powerful tool to further understand the process of disease and the mechanism of therapeutic effect of Chinese medicines. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  1. Decreased glutathione biosynthesis contributes to EGFR T790M-driven erlotinib resistance in non-small cell lung cancer.

    PubMed

    Li, Hongde; Stokes, William; Chater, Emily; Roy, Rajat; de Bruin, Elza; Hu, Yili; Liu, Zhigang; Smit, Egbert F; Heynen, Guus Jje; Downward, Julian; Seckl, Michael J; Wang, Yulan; Tang, Huiru; Pardo, Olivier E

    2016-01-01

    Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors such as erlotinib are novel effective agents in the treatment of EGFR-driven lung cancer, but their clinical impact is often impaired by acquired drug resistance through the secondary T790M EGFR mutation. To overcome this problem, we analysed the metabonomic differences between two independent pairs of erlotinib-sensitive/resistant cells and discovered that glutathione (GSH) levels were significantly reduced in T790M EGFR cells. We also found that increasing GSH levels in erlotinib-resistant cells re-sensitised them, whereas reducing GSH levels in erlotinib-sensitive cells made them resistant. Decreased transcription of the GSH-synthesising enzymes (GCLC and GSS) due to the inhibition of NRF2 was responsible for low GSH levels in resistant cells that was directly linked to the T790M mutation. T790M EGFR clinical samples also showed decreased expression of these key enzymes; increasing intra-tumoural GSH levels with a small-molecule GST inhibitor re-sensitised resistant tumours to erlotinib in mice. Thus, we identified a new resistance pathway controlled by EGFR T790M and a therapeutic strategy to tackle this problem in the clinic.

  2. α-Farnesene and ocimene induce metabolite changes by volatile signaling in neighboring tea (Camellia sinensis) plants.

    PubMed

    Zeng, Lanting; Liao, Yinyin; Li, Jianlong; Zhou, Ying; Tang, Jinchi; Dong, Fang; Yang, Ziyin

    2017-11-01

    Herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) act as direct defenses against herbivores and as indirect defenses by attracting herbivore enemies. However, the involvement of HIPVs in within-plant or plant-to-plant signaling is not fully clarified. Furthermore, in contrast to model plants, HIPV signaling roles in crops have hardly been reported. Here, we investigated HIPVs emitted from tea (Camellia sinensis) plants, an important crop used for beverages, and their involvement in tea plant-to-plant signaling. To ensure uniform and sufficient exposure to HIPVs, jasmonic acid combined with mechanical damage (JAMD) was used to simulate herbivore attacks. Metabonomics techniques based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry were employed to determine metabolite changes in undamaged tea plants exposed to JAMD-stimulated volatiles. JAMD-stimulated volatiles mainly enhanced the amounts of 1-O-galloyl-6-O-luteoyl-α-d-glucose, assamicain C, 2,3,4,5-tetrahydroxy-6-oxohexyl gallate, quercetagitrin, 2-(2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-5,7-dihydroxy-4-oxo-4H-chromen-8-yl)-4,5-dihydroxy-6-(hydroxymethyl)-tetrahydro-2H-pyran-3-yl, 3,4-dimethoxybenzoate, 1,3,4,5,6,7-hexahydroxyheptan-2-one, and methyl gallate in neighboring undamaged tea leaves. Furthermore, α-farnesene and β-ocimene, which were produced after JAMD treatments, were identified as two main JAMD-stimulated volatiles altering metabolite profiles of the neighboring undamaged tea leaves. This research advances our understanding of the ecological functions of HIPVs and can be used to develop crop biological control agents against pest insects in the future. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Recent (2000-2015) developments in the analysis of minor unknown natural products based on characteristic fragment information using LC-MS.

    PubMed

    Cai, Tian; Guo, Ze-Qin; Xu, Xiao-Ying; Wu, Zhi-Jun

    2018-03-01

    Liquid chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS) has been widely used in natural product analysis. Global detection and identification of nontargeted components are desirable in natural product research, for example, in quality control of Chinese herbal medicine. Nontargeted components analysis continues to expand to exciting life science application domains such as metabonomics. With this background, the present review summarizes recent developments in the analysis of minor unknown natural products using LC-MS and mainly focuses on the determination of the molecular formulae, selection of precursor ions, and characteristic fragmentation patterns of the known compounds. This review consists of three parts. Firstly, the methods used to determine unique molecular formula of unknown compounds such as accurate mass measurements, MS n spectra, or relative isotopic abundance information, are introduced. Secondly, the methods improving signal-to-noise ratio of MS/MS spectra by manual-MS/MS or workflow targeting-only signals were elucidated; pure precursor ions can be selected by changing the precursor ion isolated window. Lastly, characteristic fragmentation patterns such as Retro-Diels-Alder (RDA), McLafferty rearrangements, "internal residue loss," and so on, occurring in the molecular ions of natural products are summarized. Classical application of characteristic fragmentation patterns in identifying unknown compounds in extracts and relevant fragmentation mechanisms are presented (RDA reactions occurring readily in the molecular ions of flavanones or isoflavanones, McLafferty-type fragmentation reactions of some natural products such as epipolythiodioxopiperazines; fragmentation by "internal residue loss" possibly involving ion-neutral complex intermediates). © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Mass Spec Rev 37:202-216, 2018. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  4. A family based tailored counselling to increase non-exercise physical activity in adults with a sedentary job and physical activity in their young children: design and methods of a year-long randomized controlled trial

    PubMed Central

    2011-01-01

    Background Epidemiological evidence suggests that decrease in sedentary behaviour is beneficial for health. This family based randomized controlled trial examines whether face-to-face delivered counselling is effective in reducing sedentary time and improving health in adults and increasing moderate-to-vigorous activities in children. Methods The families are randomized after balancing socioeconomic and environmental factors in the Jyväskylä region, Finland. Inclusion criteria are: healthy men and women with children 3-8 years old, and having an occupation where they self-reportedly sit more than 50% of their work time and children in all-day day-care in kindergarten or in the first grade in primary school. Exclusion criteria are: body mass index > 35 kg/m2, self-reported chronic, long-term diseases, families with pregnant mother at baseline and children with disorders delaying motor development. From both adults and children accelerometer data is collected five times a year in one week periods. In addition, fasting blood samples for whole blood count and serum metabonomics, and diurnal heart rate variability for 3 days are assessed at baseline, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months follow-up from adults. Quadriceps and hamstring muscle activities providing detailed information on muscle inactivity will be used to realize the maximum potential effect of the intervention. Fundamental motor skills from children and body composition from adults will be measured at baseline, and at 6 and 12 months follow-up. Questionnaires of family-influence-model, health and physical activity, and dietary records are assessed. After the baseline measurements the intervention group will receive tailored counselling targeted to decrease sitting time by focusing on commute and work time. The counselling regarding leisure time is especially targeted to encourage toward family physical activities such as visiting playgrounds and non-built environments, where children can get diversified stimulation for play and practice fundamental of motor skills. The counselling will be reinforced during the first 6 months followed by a 6-month maintenance period. Discussion If shown to be effective, this unique family based intervention to improve lifestyle behaviours in both adults and children can provide translational model for community use. This study can also provide knowledge whether the lifestyle changes are transformed into relevant biomarkers and self-reported health. Trial registration number ISRCTN: ISRCTN28668090 PMID:22185647

  5. The UK Biobank sample handling and storage validation studies.

    PubMed

    Peakman, Tim C; Elliott, Paul

    2008-04-01

    and aims UK Biobank is a large prospective study in the United Kingdom to investigate the role of genetic factors, environmental exposures and lifestyle in the causes of major diseases of late and middle age. It involves the collection of blood and urine from 500 000 individuals aged between 40 and 69 years. How the samples are collected, processed and stored will have a major impact on the future scientific usefulness of the UK Biobank resource. A series of validation studies was recommended to test the robustness of the draft sample handling and storage protocol. Samples of blood and urine were collected from 40 healthy volunteers and either processed immediately according to the protocol or maintained at specified temperatures (4 degrees C for all tubes with the exception of vacutainers containing acid citrate dextrose that were maintained at 18 degrees C) for 12, 24 or 36 h prior to processing. A further sample was maintained for 24 h at 4 degrees C, processed and the aliquots frozen at -80 degrees C for 20 days and then thawed under controlled conditions. The stability of the samples was compared for the different times in a wide variety of assays. The samples maintained at 4 degrees C were stable for at least 24 h after collection for a wide range of assays. Small but significant changes were observed in metabonomic studies in samples maintained at 4 degrees C for 36 h. There was no degradation of the samples for a range of biochemical assays after short-term freezing and thawing under controlled conditions. Whole blood maintained at 18 degrees C for 24 h in vacutainers containing acid citrate dextrose is suitable for viral immortalization techniques. The validation studies reported in this supplement provide justification for the sample handling and storage procedures adopted in the UK Biobank project.

  6. Natural Medicines Used in the Traditional Tibetan Medical System for the Treatment of Liver Diseases

    PubMed Central

    Li, Qi; Li, Hai-Jiao; Xu, Tong; Du, Huan; Huan Gang, Chen-Lei; Fan, Gang; Zhang, Yi

    2018-01-01

    Liver disease is one of the most risk factors threatening human health. It is of great significance to find drugs that can treat liver diseases, especially for acute and chronic hepatitis, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and liver cancer. The search for drugs with good efficacy from traditional natural medicines has attracted more and more attention. Tibetan medicine, one of the China's traditional medical systems, has been widely used by the Tibetan people for the prevention and treatment of liver diseases for hundreds of years. The present paper summarized the natural Tibetan medicines that have been used in Tibetan traditional system of medicine to treat liver diseases by bibliographic investigation of 22 Tibetan medicine monographs and drug standards. One hundred and ninety three species including 181 plants, 7 animals, and 5 minerals were found to treat liver diseases in traditional Tibetan medicine system. The most frequently used species are Carthamus tinctorius, Brag-zhun, Swertia chirayita, Swertia mussotii, Halenia elliptica, Herpetospermum pedunculosum, and Phyllanthus emblica. Their names, families, medicinal parts, traditional uses, phytochemicals information, and pharmacological activities were described in detail. These natural medicines might be a valuable gift from the old Tibetan medicine to the world, and would be potential drug candidates for the treatment of liver diseases. Further studies are needed to prove their medicinal values in liver diseases treatment, identify bioactive compounds, elucidate the underlying mechanism of action, and clarify their side effects or toxicity with the help of modern phytochemical, pharmacological, metabonomics, and/or clinical trial methods. PMID:29441019

  7. Reprogramming of Seed Metabolism Facilitates Pre-harvest Sprouting Resistance of Wheat.

    PubMed

    Liu, Caixiang; Ding, Feng; Hao, Fuhua; Yu, Men; Lei, Hehua; Wu, Xiangyu; Zhao, Zhengxi; Guo, Hongxiang; Yin, Jun; Wang, Yulan; Tang, Huiru

    2016-02-10

    Pre-harvest sprouting (PHS) is a worldwide problem for wheat production and transgene antisense-thioredoxin-s (anti-trx-s) facilitates outstanding resistance. To understand the molecular details of PHS resistance, we analyzed the metabonomes of the transgenic and wild-type (control) wheat seeds at various stages using NMR and GC-FID/MS. 60 metabolites were dominant in these seeds including sugars, organic acids, amino acids, choline metabolites and fatty acids. At day-20 post-anthesis, only malate level in transgenic wheat differed significantly from that in controls whereas at day-30 post-anthesis, levels of amino acids and sucrose were significantly different between these two groups. For mature seeds, most metabolites in glycolysis, TCA cycle, choline metabolism, biosynthesis of proteins, nucleotides and fatty acids had significantly lower levels in transgenic seeds than in controls. After 30-days post-harvest ripening, most metabolites in transgenic seeds had higher levels than in controls including amino acids, sugars, organic acids, fatty acids, choline metabolites and NAD(+). These indicated that anti-trx-s lowered overall metabolic activities of mature seeds eliminating pre-harvest sprouting potential. Post-harvest ripening reactivated the metabolic activities of transgenic seeds to restore their germination vigor. These findings provided essential molecular phenomic information for PHS resistance of anti-trx-s and a credible strategy for future developing PHS resistant crops.

  8. Reprogramming of Seed Metabolism Facilitates Pre-harvest Sprouting Resistance of Wheat

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Caixiang; Ding, Feng; Hao, Fuhua; Yu, Men; Lei, Hehua; Wu, Xiangyu; Zhao, Zhengxi; Guo, Hongxiang; Yin, Jun; Wang, Yulan; Tang, Huiru

    2016-02-01

    Pre-harvest sprouting (PHS) is a worldwide problem for wheat production and transgene antisense-thioredoxin-s (anti-trx-s) facilitates outstanding resistance. To understand the molecular details of PHS resistance, we analyzed the metabonomes of the transgenic and wild-type (control) wheat seeds at various stages using NMR and GC-FID/MS. 60 metabolites were dominant in these seeds including sugars, organic acids, amino acids, choline metabolites and fatty acids. At day-20 post-anthesis, only malate level in transgenic wheat differed significantly from that in controls whereas at day-30 post-anthesis, levels of amino acids and sucrose were significantly different between these two groups. For mature seeds, most metabolites in glycolysis, TCA cycle, choline metabolism, biosynthesis of proteins, nucleotides and fatty acids had significantly lower levels in transgenic seeds than in controls. After 30-days post-harvest ripening, most metabolites in transgenic seeds had higher levels than in controls including amino acids, sugars, organic acids, fatty acids, choline metabolites and NAD+. These indicated that anti-trx-s lowered overall metabolic activities of mature seeds eliminating pre-harvest sprouting potential. Post-harvest ripening reactivated the metabolic activities of transgenic seeds to restore their germination vigor. These findings provided essential molecular phenomic information for PHS resistance of anti-trx-s and a credible strategy for future developing PHS resistant crops.

  9. Haemolymph from Mytilus galloprovincialis: Response to copper and temperature challenges studied by (1)H-NMR metabonomics.

    PubMed

    Digilio, Giuseppe; Sforzini, Susanna; Cassino, Claudio; Robotti, Elisa; Oliveri, Caterina; Marengo, Emilio; Musso, Davide; Osella, Domenico; Viarengo, Aldo

    2016-01-01

    Numerous studies on molluscs have been carried out to clarify the physiological roles of haemolymph serum proteins and haemocytes. However, little is known about the presence and functional role of the serum metabolites. In this study, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) was used to assess whether changes of the metabolic profile of Mytilus galloprovincialis haemolymph may reflect alterations of the physiological status of the organisms due to environmental stressors, namely copper and temperature. Mussel haemolymph was taken from the posterior adductor muscle after a 4-day exposure to ambient (16 °C) or high temperature (24 °C) and in the absence or presence (5 μg/L, 20 μg/L, or 40 μg/L) of sublethal copper (Cu(2+)). The total glutathione (GSH) concentration in the haemolymph of both control and treated mussels was minimal, indicating the absence of significant contaminations by muscle intracellular metabolites due to the sampling procedure. In the (1)H-NMR spectrum of haemolymph, 27 metabolites were identified unambiguously. The separate and combined effects of exposure to copper and temperature on the haemolymph metabolic profile were assessed by Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Ranking-PCA multivariate analysis. Changes of the metabolomic profile due to copper exposure at 16 °C became detectable at a dose of 20 μg/L copper. Alanine, lysine, serine, glutamine, glycogen, glucose and protein aliphatics played a major role in the classification of the metabolic changes according to the level of copper exposition. High temperature (24 °C) and high copper levels caused a coherent increase of a common set of metabolites (mostly glucose, serine, and lysine), indicating that the metabolic impairment due to high temperature is enforced by the presence of copper. Overall, the results demonstrate that, as for human blood plasma, the analysis of haemolymph metabolites represents a promising tool for the diagnosis of pollutant-induced stress syndrome in marine mussels. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. [Plasma metabonomics study of ischemic cerebral apoplexy rats treated with Tongsaimai pellets].

    PubMed

    Tu, Jiayu; A, Jiye; Wang, Guangji; Wen, Hongmei; Wang, Aiyun; Di, Liuqing; Cao, Bei; Liu, Linsheng

    2012-04-01

    To observe abnormal metabolic changes caused by ischemic cerebral apoplexy and the regulating action of Tongsaimai pellets on abnormal metabolism by analyzing the change of small molecules in plasma of ischemic cerebral apoplexy rat. To find the potential biomarkers, and to explore metabolic mechanisms of Tongsaimai pellets. Rat models of middle cerebral artery occlusion was established with electric coagulation, and rats were divided into 4 groups, model group, sham-operation group, Tongsaimai pellets group and positive control group. Tongsaimai pellets and positive control group were orally administrated by 13.2 g x kg(-1) x d(-1) of crude drugs and 32 mg x kg(-1) x d(-1) of Nimodipine respectively, m odel and sham-operation group by equal volume of distilled water for a week. Plasma of model and sham-operation group were collected, and plasma of Tongsaimai pellets and positive control group were collected on the 1st, 3rd , 7th day after administration. Endogenous metabolites of four groups were determined with GC-MS. Partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) was applied to analyze multivariate data and set up model, and T-test was used in significant statistical analysis. Compared with sham-operation group rats, pyruvic acid, taurine and hydroxyproline obviously increased in model group rats, while lactic acid, glyceric acid, aminomalonic acid, fructose, tryptophan and leucine significantly decreased, so these metabolites were potential metabolic biomarkers. These endogenous metabolites except taurine got restoration in Tongsaimai group rats. Abnormal metabolite level in plasma can be certainly recovered by Tongsaimai pellets, and the treatment of Tongsaimai pellets can be connected with the regulation of related metabolic pathways.

  11. Association of fatty acids and lipids metabolism in placenta with early spontaneous pregnancy loss in Chinese women.

    PubMed

    Li, Kelei; Zhang, Xiaotian; Chen, Gong; Pei, Lijun; Xiao, Hailong; Jiang, Jiajing; Li, Jiaomei; Zheng, Xiaoying; Li, Duo

    2018-02-21

    The aim of the present study was to evaluate the association of fatty acids and lipids metabolism in placenta with early spontaneous pregnancy loss (ESPL) in Chinese women. Seventy women with ESPL and 29 healthy pregnant women who asked for legal induced abortion were included in the case and control groups, respectively. The gestational age of the subject foetuses in both the case and control groups ranged from 4 to 10 weeks. The total fatty acids composition in the decidual and villous tissues was detected by gas-liquid chromatography using a standard method. Metabonomics analysis of the decidual and villous tissues was conducted by ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOFMS). The total C18:3n-3 in the decidual and villous tissues, total n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 PUFA) in the decidual tissue, and total C18:2n-6 in the villous tissue were all significantly lower in the case group than in the control group. The ratio of C20:4n-6/C20:5n-3 in villous tissue was significantly higher, but prostaglandin I 2 as well as hydroxyeicosapentaenoic acid, leukotriene B 5 and thromboxane B 3 in the villous tissue were significantly lower in the case group than in the control group. In addition, the low content of lysophosphatide in the decidual and villous tissues and the low content of diacylglycerol in the villous tissue were also associated with the occurance of ESPL. In conclusion, the lack of essential fatty acids, high ratio of C20:4n-6/C20:5n-3, abnormal eicosanoids metabolism and low content of lysophosphatide and diacylglycerol in the placenta were all potential risk factors for ESPL in Chinese.

  12. Cannabinoid receptor antagonist-induced striated muscle toxicity and ethylmalonic-adipic aciduria in beagle dogs.

    PubMed

    Tomlinson, Lindsay; Tirmenstein, Mark A; Janovitz, Evan B; Aranibar, Nelly; Ott, Karl-Heinz; Kozlosky, John C; Patrone, Laura M; Achanzar, William E; Augustine, Karen A; Brannen, Kimberly C; Carlson, Kenneth E; Charlap, Jeffrey H; Dubrow, Katherine M; Kang, Liya; Rosini, Laura T; Panzica-Kelly, Julieta M; Flint, Oliver P; Moulin, Frederic J; Megill, John R; Zhang, Haiying; Bennett, Michael J; Horvath, Joseph J

    2012-10-01

    Ibipinabant (IBI), a potent cannabinoid-1 receptor (CB1R) antagonist, previously in development for the treatment of obesity, causes skeletal and cardiac myopathy in beagle dogs. This toxicity was characterized by increases in muscle-derived enzyme activity in serum and microscopic striated muscle degeneration and accumulation of lipid droplets in myofibers. Additional changes in serum chemistry included decreases in glucose and increases in non-esterified fatty acids and cholesterol, and metabolic acidosis, consistent with disturbances in lipid and carbohydrate metabolism. No evidence of CB1R expression was detected in dog striated muscle as assessed by polymerase chain reaction, immunohistochemistry, Western blot analysis, and competitive radioligand binding. Investigative studies utilized metabonomic technology and demonstrated changes in several intermediates and metabolites of fatty acid metabolism including plasma acylcarnitines and urinary ethylmalonate, methylsuccinate, adipate, suberate, hexanoylglycine, sarcosine, dimethylglycine, isovalerylglycine, and 2-hydroxyglutarate. These results indicated that the toxic effect of IBI on striated muscle in beagle dogs is consistent with an inhibition of the mitochondrial flavin-containing enzymes including dimethyl glycine, sarcosine, isovaleryl-CoA, 2-hydroxyglutarate, and multiple acyl-CoA (short, medium, long, and very long chain) dehydrogenases. All of these enzymes converge at the level of electron transfer flavoprotein (ETF) and ETF oxidoreductase. Urinary ethylmalonate was shown to be a biomarker of IBI-induced striated muscle toxicity in dogs and could provide the ability to monitor potential IBI-induced toxic myopathy in humans. We propose that IBI-induced toxic myopathy in beagle dogs is not caused by direct antagonism of CB1R and could represent a model of ethylmalonic-adipic aciduria in humans.

  13. Metabolic Surgery Profoundly Influences Gut Microbial-Host Metabolic Crosstalk

    PubMed Central

    Li, Jia V.; Ashrafian, Hutan; Bueter, Marco; Kinross, James; Sands, Caroline; le Roux, Carel W; Bloom, Stephen R.; Darzi, Ara; Athanasiou, Thanos; Marchesi, Julian R.; Nicholson, Jeremy K.; Holmes, Elaine

    2013-01-01

    Background and Aims Bariatric surgery is increasingly performed worldwide to treat morbid obesity and is also known as metabolic surgery to reflect its beneficial metabolic effects especially with respect to improvement in type 2 diabetes. Understanding surgical weight loss mechanisms and metabolic modulation is required to enhance patient benefits and operative outcomes. Methods We apply a parallel and statistically integrated metagenomic and metabonomic approach to characterize Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) effects in a rat model. Results We show substantial shifts of the main gut phyla towards higher levels of Proteobacteria (52-fold) specifically Enterobacter hormaechei. We also find low levels of Firmicutes (4.5-fold) and Bacteroidetes (2-fold) in comparison to sham-operated rats. Faecal extraction studies reveal a decrease in faecal bile acids and a shift from protein degradation to putrefaction through decreased faecal tyrosine with concomitant increases in faecal putrescine and diamnoethane. We find decreased urinary amines and cresols and demonstrate indices of modulated energy metabolism post-RYGB including decreased urinary succinate, 2-oxoglutarate, citrate and fumarate. These changes could also indicate renal tubular acidosis, which associates with increased flux of mitochondrial tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates. A surgically-induced effect on the gut-brain-liver metabolic axis is inferred by increased neurotropic compounds; faecal γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate. Conclusion This profound co-dependence of mammalian and microbial metabolism, which is systematically altered following RYGB surgery, suggests that RYGB exerts local and global metabolic activities. The effect of RYGB surgery on the host metabolic-microbial crosstalk augments our understanding of the metabolic phenotype of bariatric procedures and can facilitate enhanced treatments for obesity-related diseases. PMID:21572120

  14. Identification of potential mechanisms of toxicity after di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate (DEHP) adult exposure in the liver using a systems biology approach

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Eveillard, Alexandre; Lasserre, Frederic; Tayrac, Marie de

    2009-05-01

    Phthalates are industrial additives widely used as plasticizers. In addition to deleterious effects on male genital development, population studies have documented correlations between phthalates exposure and impacts on reproductive tract development and on the metabolic syndrome in male adults. In this work we investigated potential mechanisms underlying the impact of DEHP on adult mouse liver in vivo. A parallel analysis of hepatic transcript and metabolic profiles from adult mice exposed to varying DEHP doses was performed. Hepatic genes modulated by DEHP are predominantly PPAR{alpha} targets. However, the induction of prototypic cytochrome P450 genes strongly supports the activation of additional NRmore » pathways, including Constitutive Androstane Receptor (CAR). Integration of transcriptomic and metabonomic profiles revealed a correlation between the impacts of DEHP on genes and metabolites related to heme synthesis and to the Rev-erb{alpha} pathway that senses endogenous heme level. We further confirmed the combined impact of DEHP on the hepatic expression of Alas1, a critical enzyme in heme synthesis and on the expression of Rev-erb{alpha} target genes involved in the cellular clock and in energy metabolism. This work shows that DEHP interferes with hepatic CAR and Rev-erb{alpha} pathways which are both involved in the control of metabolism. The identification of these new hepatic pathways targeted by DEHP could contribute to metabolic and endocrine disruption associated with phthalate exposure. Gene expression profiles performed on microdissected testis territories displayed a differential responsiveness to DEHP. Altogether, this suggests that impacts of DEHP on adult organs, including testis, could be documented and deserve further investigations.« less

  15. Metabolomics and Its Application to Acute Lung Diseases

    PubMed Central

    Stringer, Kathleen A.; McKay, Ryan T.; Karnovsky, Alla; Quémerais, Bernadette; Lacy, Paige

    2016-01-01

    Metabolomics is a rapidly expanding field of systems biology that is gaining significant attention in many areas of biomedical research. Also known as metabonomics, it comprises the analysis of all small molecules or metabolites that are present within an organism or a specific compartment of the body. Metabolite detection and quantification provide a valuable addition to genomics and proteomics and give unique insights into metabolic changes that occur in tangent to alterations in gene and protein activity that are associated with disease. As a novel approach to understanding disease, metabolomics provides a “snapshot” in time of all metabolites present in a biological sample such as whole blood, plasma, serum, urine, and many other specimens that may be obtained from either patients or experimental models. In this article, we review the burgeoning field of metabolomics in its application to acute lung diseases, specifically pneumonia and acute respiratory disease syndrome (ARDS). We also discuss the potential applications of metabolomics for monitoring exposure to aerosolized environmental toxins. Recent reports have suggested that metabolomics analysis using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry (MS) approaches may provide clinicians with the opportunity to identify new biomarkers that may predict progression to more severe disease, such as sepsis, which kills many patients each year. In addition, metabolomics may provide more detailed phenotyping of patient heterogeneity, which is needed to achieve the goal of precision medicine. However, although several experimental and clinical metabolomics studies have been conducted assessing the application of the science to acute lung diseases, only incremental progress has been made. Specifically, little is known about the metabolic phenotypes of these illnesses. These data are needed to substantiate metabolomics biomarker credentials so that clinicians can employ them for clinical decision-making and investigators can use them to design clinical trials. PMID:26973643

  16. High salt diet induces metabolic alterations in multiple biological processes of Dahl salt-sensitive rats.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yanjun; Liu, Xiangyang; Zhang, Chen; Wang, Zhengjun

    2018-06-01

    High salt induced renal disease is a condition resulting from the interactions of genetic and dietary factors causing multiple complications. To understand the metabolic alterations associated with renal disease, we comprehensively analyzed the metabonomic changes induced by high salt intake in Dahl salt-sensitive (SS) rats using GC-MS technology and biochemical analyses. Physiological features, serum chemistry, and histopathological data were obtained as complementary information. Our results showed that high salt (HS) intake for 16 weeks caused significant metabolic alterations in both the renal medulla and cortex involving a variety pathways involved in the metabolism of organic acids, amino acids, fatty acids, and purines. In addition, HS enhanced glycolysis (hexokinase, phosphofructokinase and pyruvate kinase) and amino acid metabolism and suppressed the TCA (citrate synthase and aconitase) cycle. Finally, HS intake caused up-regulation of the pentose phosphate pathway (glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase and 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase), the ratio of NADPH/NADP + , NADPH oxidase activity and ROS production, suggesting that increased oxidative stress was associated with an altered PPP pathway. The metabolic pathways identified may serve as potential targets for the treatment of renal damage. Our findings provide comprehensive biochemical details about the metabolic responses to a high salt diet, which may contribute to the understanding of renal disease and salt-induced hypertension in SS rats. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  17. An exploratory NMR nutri-metabonomic investigation reveals dimethyl sulfone as a dietary biomarker for onion intake.

    PubMed

    Winning, Hanne; Roldán-Marín, Eduvigis; Dragsted, Lars O; Viereck, Nanna; Poulsen, Morten; Sánchez-Moreno, Concepción; Cano, M Pilar; Engelsen, Søren B

    2009-11-01

    The metabolome following intake of onion by-products is evaluated. Thirty-two rats were fed a diet containing an onion by-product or one of the two derived onion by-product fractions: an ethanol extract and the residue. A 24 hour urine sample was analyzed using (1)H NMR spectroscopy in order to investigate the effects of onion intake on the rat metabolism. Application of interval extended canonical variates analysis (ECVA) proved to be able to distinguish between the metabolomic profiles from rats consuming normal feed and rats fed with an onion diet. Two dietary biomarkers for onion intake were identified as dimethyl sulfone and 3-hydroxyphenylacetic acid. The same two dietary biomarkers were subsequently revealed by interval partial least squares regression (PLS) to be perfect quantitative markers for onion intake. The best PLS calibration model yielded a root mean square error of cross-validation (RMSECV) of 0.97% (w/w) with only 1 latent variable and a squared correlation coefficient of 0.94. This indicates that urine from rats on the by-product diet, the extract diet, and the residue diet all contain the same dietary biomarkers and it is concluded that dimethyl sulfone and 3-hydroxyphenylacetic acid are dietary biomarkers for onion intake. Being able to detect specific dietary biomarkers is highly beneficial in the control of nutritionally enhanced functional foods.

  18. A 48-Hour Vegan Diet Challenge in Healthy Women and Men Induces a BRANCH-Chain Amino Acid Related, Health Associated, Metabolic Signature.

    PubMed

    Draper, Colleen Fogarty; Vassallo, Irene; Di Cara, Alessandro; Milone, Cristiana; Comminetti, Ornella; Monnard, Irina; Godin, Jean-Philippe; Scherer, Max; Su, MingMing; Jia, Wei; Guiraud, Seu-Ping; Praplan, Fabienne; Guignard, Laurence; Ammon Zufferey, Corinne; Shevlyakova, Maya; Emami, Nashmil; Moco, Sofia; Beaumont, Maurice; Kaput, Jim; Martin, Francois-Pierre

    2018-02-01

    Research is limited on diet challenges to improve health. A short-term, vegan protein diet regimen nutritionally balanced in macronutrient composition compared to an omnivorous diet is hypothesized to improve metabolic measurements of blood sugar regulation, blood lipids, and amino acid metabolism. This randomized, cross-over, controlled vegan versus animal diet challenge is conducted on 21 (11 female,10 male) healthy participants. Fasting plasma is measured during a 3 d diet intervention for clinical biochemistry and metabonomics. Intervention diet plans meet individual caloric needs. Meals are provided and supervised. Diet compliance is monitored. The vegan diet lowers triglycerides, insulin and homeostatic model assessment (HOMA-IR), bile acids, elevated magnesium levels, and changed branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) metabolism (p < 0.05), potentiating insulin and blood sugar control after 48 h. Cholesterol control improves significantly in the vegan versus omnivorous diets. Plasma amino acid and magnesium concentrations positively correlate with dietary amino acids. Polyunsaturated fatty acids and dietary fiber inversely correlate with insulin, HOMA-IR, and triglycerides. Nutritional biochemistries, BCAAs, insulin, and HOMA-IR are impacted by sexual dimorphism. A health-promoting, BCAA-associated metabolic signature is produced from a short-term, healthy, controlled, vegan diet challenge when compared with a healthy, controlled, omnivorous diet. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  19. Systems responses of rats to mequindox revealed by metabolic and transcriptomic profiling.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Xiu-Ju; Hao, Fuhua; Huang, Chongyang; Rantalainen, Mattias; Lei, Hehua; Tang, Huiru; Wang, Yulan

    2012-09-07

    Mequindox is used as an antibiotic drug in livestock; however, its toxicity remains largely unclear. Previously, we investigated metabolic responses of mice to mequindox exposure. In order to evaluate dependences of animal species in response to mequindox insult, we present the metabolic consequences of mequindox exposure in a rat model, by employing the combination of metabonomics and transcriptomics. Metabolic profiling of urine revealed that metabolic recovery is achieved for rats exposed to a low or moderate dose of mequindox, whereas high levels of mequindox exposure trigger liver dysfunction, causing no such recovery. We found that mequindox exposure causes suppression of the tricarboxylic acid cycle and stimulation of glycolysis, which is in contrast to a mouse model previously investigated. In addition, mequindox dosage induces promotion of β-oxidation of fatty acids, which was confirmed by elevated expressions of acox1, hsd17b2, and cpt1a in liver. Furthermore, altered levels of N-methylnicotinate, 1-methylnicotinamide, and glutathione disulfide highlighted the promotion of vitamin B3 antioxidative cycle in rats exposed to mequindox. Moreover, mequindox exposure altered levels of gut microbiotal related co-metabolites, suggesting a perturbation of the gut microflora of the host. Our work provides a comprehensive view of the toxicological effects of mequindox, which is important in the usage of mequindox in animal and human food safety.

  20. Chronic bile duct hyperplasia is a chronic graft dysfunction following liver transplantation.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Jian-Wen; Ren, Zhi-Gang; Cui, Guang-Ying; Zhang, Zhao; Xie, Hai-Yang; Zhou, Lin

    2012-03-14

    To investigate pathological types and influential factors of chronic graft dysfunction (CGD) following liver transplantation (LT) in rats. The whole experiment was divided into three groups: (1) normal group (n = 12): normal BN rats without any drug or operation; (2) syngeneic transplant group (SGT of BN-BN, n = 12): both donors and recipients were BN rats; and (3) allogeneic transplant group (AGT of LEW-BN, n = 12): Donors were Lewis and recipients were BN rats. In the AGT group, all recipients were subcutaneously injected by Cyclosporin A after LT. Survival time was observed for 1 year. All the dying rats were sampled, biliary tract tissues were performed bacterial culture and liver tissues for histological study. Twenty-one day after LT, 8 rats were selected randomly in each group for sampling. Blood samples from caudal veins were collected for measurements of plasma endotoxin, cytokines and metabonomic analysis, and faeces were analyzed for intestinal microflora. During the surgery of LT, no complications of blood vessels or bile duct happened, and all rats in each group were still alive in the next 2 wk. The long term observation revealed that a total of 8 rats in the SGT and AGT groups died of hepatic graft diseases, 5 rats in which died of chronic bile duct hyperplasia. Compared to the SGT and normal groups, survival ratio of rats significantly decreased in the AGT group (P < 0.01). Moreover, liver necrosis, liver infection, and severe chronic bile duct hyperplasia were observed in the AGT group by H and E stain. On 21 d after LT, compared with the normal group (25.38 ± 7.09 ng/L) and SGT group (33.12 ± 10.26 ng/L), plasma endotoxin in the AGT group was remarkably increased (142.86 ± 30.85 ng/L) (both P < 0.01). Plasma tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-6 were also significantly elevated in the AGT group (593.6 ± 171.67 pg/mL, 323.8 ± 68.30 pg/mL) vs the normal (225.5 ± 72.07 pg/mL, 114.6 ± 36.67 pg/mL) and SGT groups (321.3 ± 88.47 pg/mL, 205.2 ± 53.06 pg/mL) (P < 0.01). Furthermore, Bacterial cultures of bile duct tissues revealed that the rats close to death from the SGT and AGT groups were strongly positive, while those from the normal group were negative. The analysis of intestinal microflora was performed. Compared to the normal group (7.98 ± 0.92, 8.90 ± 1.44) and SGT group (8.51 ± 0.46, 9.43 ± 0.69), the numbers of Enterococcus and Enterobacteria in the AGT group (8.76 ± 1.93, 10.18 ± 1.64) were significantly increased (both P < 0.01). Meanwhile, compared to the normal group (9.62 ± 1.60, 9.93 ± 1.10) and SGT group (8.95 ± 0.04, 9.02 ± 1.14), the numbers of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus in the AGT group (7.83 ± 0.72, 8.87 ± 0.13) were remarkably reduced (both P < 0.01). In addition, metabonomics analysis showed that metabolic profiles of plasma in rats in the AGT group were severe deviated from the normal and SGT groups. Chronic bile duct hyperplasia is a pathological type of CGD following LT in rats. The mechanism of this kind of CGD is associated with the alterations of inflammation, intestinal barrier function and microflora as well as plasma metabolic profiles.

  1. Hepatotoxic constituents and toxicological mechanism of Xanthium strumarium L. fruits.

    PubMed

    Xue, Li-Ming; Zhang, Qiao-Yan; Han, Ping; Jiang, Yi-Ping; Yan, Rong-Di; Wang, Yang; Rahman, Khalid; Jia, Min; Han, Ting; Qin, Lu-Ping

    2014-03-14

    In the recent years, the international community has attached increasing importance to possible toxicity associated with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). And hepatotoxicity is one of the major concerns, a fundamental pathological process induced by toxicant. This paper is in an attempt to identify the hepatotoxic components in Xanthium strumarium L. fruits (XSF) and interpret the toxicological mechanism induced by XSF. XSF extract was prepared and seven characteristic components were isolated and identified in XSF water extracts. We evaluated their hepatotoxicity effect on cell proliferation and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity in L-02 and BRL liver cell line. An integrated metabonomics study using high-resolution (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance ((1)H NMR) spectroscopy combined with multivariate statistical analysis was undertake to elucidate the hepatotoxicity mechanism induced in rats by XSF. The urine and serum metabolites were measured after treatment of rats with XSF (7.5, 15.0 and 30.0 g/kg/day) for 5 days. The results showed that atractyloside, carboxyatractyloside, 4'-desulphate-atractyloside and XSF induced significant cytotoxic effects in both L-02 and BRL liver cell lines, indicating that atractyloside, carboxyatractyloside, and 4'-desulphate-atractyloside were the toxic components of XSF. When rats were treated with XSF at 30.0 g/kg the hepatotoxicity was reflected in the changes observed in serum biochemical profiles and by the histopathological examination of the liver. The levels of VLDL/LDL, 3-HB, lactate, acetate, acetone and glutamate in serum were increased in this group, while d-glucose, choline and valine were decreased. The elevation in the levels of succinate, citrate, 2-oxo-glutamate, glycine, 3-HB, acetate, lactate, hippurate, dimethylglycine, methylamine, dimethylamine, phenylalanine and tryptophan was observed in urine, in contrast a reduction in the intensities of taurine, d-glucose, N-acetyl-glucoprotein and trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) was observed. The results demonstrate that the major hepatotoxicity constituents are atractyloside, carboxyatractyloside and 4'-desulphate-atractyloside, and the hepatotoxicity of XSF involves mitochondrial inability, fatty acid metabolism, and some amino acids metabolism. This integrated (1)H NMR -based metabolic profiling approach has been able to capture and probe the metabolic alterations associated with the onset and progression of hepatotoxicity induced by XSF, and permits a comprehensive understanding of systemic toxicity for phytochemicals and other types of xenobiotic agents. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Metabolic phenotyping of an adoptive transfer mouse model of experimental colitis and impact of dietary fish oil intake.

    PubMed

    Martin, Francois-Pierre J; Lichti, Pia; Bosco, Nabil; Brahmbhatt, Viral; Oliveira, Manuel; Haller, Dirk; Benyacoub, Jalil

    2015-04-03

    Inflammatory bowel diseases are acute and chronic disabling inflammatory disorders with multiple complex etiologies that are not well-defined. Chronic intestinal inflammation has been linked to an energy-deficient state of gut epithelium with alterations in oxidative metabolism. Plasma-, urine-, stool-, and liver-specific metabonomic analyses are reported in a naïve T cell adoptive transfer (AT) experimental model of colitis, which evaluated the impact of long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-enriched diet. Metabolic profiles of AT animals and their controls under chow diet or fish oil supplementation were compared to describe the (i) consequences of inflammatory processes and (ii) the differential impact of n-3 fatty acids. Inflammation was associated with higher glycoprotein levels (related to acute-phase response) and remodeling of PUFAs. Low triglyceride levels and enhanced PUFA levels in the liver suggest activation of lipolytic pathways that could lead to the observed increase of phospholipids in the liver (including plasmalogens and sphingomyelins). In parallel, the increase in stool excretion of most amino acids may indicate a protein-losing enteropathy. Fecal content of glutamine was lower in AT mice, a feature exacerbated under fish oil intervention that may reflect a functional relationship between intestinal inflammatory status and glutamine metabolism. The decrease in Krebs cycle intermediates in urine (succinate, α-ketoglutarate) also suggests a reduction in the glutaminolytic pathway at a systemic level. Our data indicate that inflammatory status is related to this overall loss of energy homeostasis.

  3. Variation of metabolic profiles in developing maize kernels up- and down-regulated for the hda101 gene

    PubMed Central

    Castro, Cecilia; Motto, Mario; Rossi, Vincenzo; Manetti, Cesare

    2008-01-01

    To shed light on the specific contribution of HDA101 in modulating metabolic pathways in the maize seed, changes in the metabolic profiles of kernels obtained from hda101 mutant plants have been investigated by a metabonomic approach. Dynamic properties of chromatin folding can be mediated by enzymes that modify DNA and histones. The enzymes responsible for the steady-state of histone acetylation are histone acetyltransferase and histone deacetylase (HDA). Therefore, it is interesting to evaluate the effects of up- and down-regulation of a Rpd-3 type HDA on the development of maize seeds in terms of metabolic changes. This has been reached by analysing nuclear magnetic resonance spectra by different chemometrician approaches, such as Orthogonal Projection to Latent Structure-Discriminant Analysis, Parallel Factors Analysis, and Multi-way Partial Least Squares-Discriminant Analysis (N-PLS-DA). In particular, the latter approaches were chosen because they explicitly take time into account, organizing data into a set of slices that refer to different steps of the developing process. The results show the good discriminating capabilities of the N-PLS-DA approach, even if the number of samples ought be increased to obtain better predictive capabilities. However, using this approach, it was possible to show differences in the accumulation of metabolites during development and to highlight the changes occuring in the modified seeds. In particular, the results confirm the role of this gene in cell cycle control. PMID:18836140

  4. Application of in vitro neurotoxicity testing for regulatory purposes: Symposium III summary and research needs.

    PubMed

    Bal-Price, Anna K; Suñol, Cristina; Weiss, Dieter G; van Vliet, Erwin; Westerink, Remco H S; Costa, Lucio G

    2008-05-01

    Prediction of neurotoxic effects is a key feature in the toxicological profile of many compounds and therefore is required by regulatory testing schemes. Nowadays neurotoxicity assessment required by the OECD and EC test guidelines is based solely on in vivo testing, evaluating mainly effects on neurobehavior and neuropathology, which is expensive, time consuming and unsuitable for screening large number of chemicals. Additionally, such in vivo tests are not always sensitive enough to predict human neurotoxicity and often do not provide information that facilitates regulatory decision-making processes. Incorporation of alternative tests (in vitro testing, computational modelling, QSARs, grouping, read-across, etc.) in screening strategies would speed up the rate at which compound knowledge and mechanistic data are available and the information obtained could be used in the refinement of future in vivo studies to facilitate predictions of neurotoxicity. On 1st June 2007, the European Commission legislation concerning registration, evaluation and authorisation of chemicals (REACH) has entered into force. REACH addresses one of the key issues for chemicals in Europe, the lack of publicly available safety data sheets. It outlines a plan to test approximately 30,000 existing substances. These chemicals are currently produced in volumes greater than 1ton/year and the essential data on the human health and ecotoxicological effects are lacking. It is estimated that approximately 3.9 million test animals (including 2.6 million vertebrates) (Hartung T, Bremer S, Casati S, Coecke S, Corvi R, Fortnaer S, et al. ECVAM's response to the changing political environment for alternatives: consequences of the European Union chemicals and cosmetics policies. ATLA 2003;31:473-81) would be necessary to fulfill the requirements of REACH if the development and establishment of alternative methods is not accepted by regulatory authorities. In an effort to reduce animal use and testing costs within this tonnage band, the European Commission has advocated the use of alternative approaches. Neurotoxicity testing is not directly addressed within REACH, however when alerts are observed based on organ specific toxicity studies then neurotoxicity assessment has to be performed. This session at the 11th International Neurotoxicology Association Meeting provided a forum to openly discuss and debate the potential of in vitro testing strategies that could be relevant for neurotoxicity evaluation in the context of regulatory requirements. The EU FP6 project A-Cute-Tox was presented as an example of a possible in vitro testing strategy for prediction of human acute systemic toxicity. Other presentations focused on the characterization of the available in vitro models (cell lines and primary culture) and neuronal specific endpoints, with a special emphasis on electrical activity, metabonomics and modulation of vesicular neurotransmitter release as possible neuronal endpoints relevant for in vitro neurotoxicity testing. Finally, it was underlined that in vitro systems (strategies) that have the potential to be applied for neurotoxicity assessment have to be formally validated under standardised conditions that have been recognised by national and international validation bodies.

  5. Dietary and urinary metabonomic factors possibly accounting for higher blood pressure of black compared with white Americans: results of International Collaborative Study on macro-/micronutrients and blood pressure.

    PubMed

    Stamler, Jeremiah; Brown, Ian J; Yap, Ivan K S; Chan, Queenie; Wijeyesekera, Anisha; Garcia-Perez, Isabel; Chadeau-Hyam, Marc; Ebbels, Timothy M D; De Iorio, Maria; Posma, Joram; Daviglus, Martha L; Carnethon, Mercedes; Holmes, Elaine; Nicholson, Jeremy K; Elliott, Paul

    2013-12-01

    Black compared with non-Hispanic white Americans have higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure and rates of prehypertension/hypertension. Reasons for these adverse findings remain obscure. Analyses here focused on relations of foods/nutrients/urinary metabolites and higher black blood pressure for 369 black compared with 1190 non-Hispanic white Americans aged 40 to 59 years from 8 population samples. Multiple linear regression, standardized data from four 24-hour dietary recalls per person, two 24-hour urine collections, and 8 blood pressure measurements were used to quantitate the role of foods, nutrients, and metabolites in higher black blood pressure. Compared with non-Hispanic white Americans, blacks' average systolic/diastolic pressure was higher by 4.7/3.4 mm Hg (men) and 9.0/4.8 mm Hg (women). Control for higher body mass index of black women reduced excess black systolic/diastolic pressure to 6.8/3.8 mm Hg. Lesser intake of vegetables, fruits, grains, vegetable protein, glutamic acid, starch, fiber, minerals, and potassium, and higher intake of processed meats, pork, eggs, and sugar-sweetened beverages, along with higher cholesterol and higher Na/K ratio, related to in higher black blood pressure. Control for 11 nutrient and 10 non-nutrient correlates reduced higher black systolic/diastolic pressure to 2.3/2.3 mm Hg (52% and 33% reduction in men) and to 5.3/2.8 mm Hg (21% and 27% reduction in women). Control for foods/urinary metabolites had little further influence on higher black blood pressure. Less favorable multiple nutrient intake by blacks than non-Hispanic white Americans accounted, at least in part, for higher black blood pressure. Improved dietary patterns can contribute to prevention/control of more adverse black blood pressure levels.

  6. In Vitro Modeling of Bile Acid Processing by the Human Fecal Microbiota.

    PubMed

    Martin, Glynn; Kolida, Sofia; Marchesi, Julian R; Want, Elizabeth; Sidaway, James E; Swann, Jonathan R

    2018-01-01

    Bile acids, the products of concerted host and gut bacterial metabolism, have important signaling functions within the mammalian metabolic system and a key role in digestion. Given the complexity of the mega-variate bacterial community residing in the gastrointestinal tract, studying associations between individual bacterial genera and bile acid processing remains a challenge. Here, we present a novel in vitro approach to determine the bacterial genera associated with the metabolism of different primary bile acids and their potential to contribute to inter-individual variation in this processing. Anaerobic, pH-controlled batch cultures were inoculated with human fecal microbiota and treated with individual conjugated primary bile acids (500 μg/ml) to serve as the sole substrate for 24 h. Samples were collected throughout the experiment (0, 5, 10, and 24 h) and the bacterial composition was determined by 16S rRNA gene sequencing and the bile acid signatures were characterized using a targeted ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) approach. Data fusion techniques were used to identify statistical bacterial-metabolic linkages. An increase in gut bacteria associated bile acids was observed over 24 h with variation in the rate of bile acid metabolism across the volunteers ( n = 7). Correlation analysis identified a significant association between the Gemmiger genus and the deconjugation of glycine conjugated bile acids while the deconjugation of taurocholic acid was associated with bacteria from the Eubacterium and Ruminococcus genera. A positive correlation between Dorea and deoxycholic acid production suggest a potential role for this genus in cholic acid dehydroxylation. A slower deconjugation of taurocholic acid was observed in individuals with a greater abundance of Parasutterella and Akkermansia . This work demonstrates the utility of integrating compositional (metataxonomics) and functional (metabonomics) systems biology approaches, coupled to in vitro model systems, to study the biochemical capabilities of bacteria within complex ecosystems. Characterizing the dynamic interactions between the gut microbiota and the bile acid pool enables a greater understanding of how variation in the gut microbiota influences host bile acid signatures, their associated functions and their implications for health.

  7. Mini review on photosensitization by plants in grazing herbivores.

    PubMed

    Hussain, Syeda M; Herling, Valdo Rodrigues; Rodrigues, Paulo Henrique Mazza; Naz, Ishrat; Khan, Hamayun; Khan, Muhammad Tahir

    2018-06-01

    Photosensitization is severe dermatitis or oxidative/chemical changes in the epidermal tissues activated by the light-induced excitation of molecules within the tissue. It is a series of reactions mediated through light receptors and is more common when the plant-produced metabolites are heterocyclic/polyphenols in nature. The areas affected are exposed body parts and mostly non-pigmented areas with least ultraviolet protection. Similarly, cellular alteration also occurs in the affected animal's dermal tissues and body parts and grazing animals by the accumulation and activation of photodynamic molecules. Photo-oxidation can also occur within the plant due to the generation of reactive oxygen species causing damage and degradation in the form of free radicals and DNA. During the last few decades, many new tropical grass species have been introduced in the grazing lands which are genetically modified, and the animals grazing on them are facing various forms of toxicity including photosensitization. The plant's secondary metabolites/drugs may cause toxicity when bacteria, viral agents, fungi (Pithomyces chartarum), or neoplasia injures the liver and prevents the phylloerythrin excretion. All these may disturb the liver enzymes and blood profile causing a decrease in weight and production (wool and milk etc.) with severe dermal, digestive, and nervous problems. Recent advancements in OMICS (cellomics, ethomics, metabolomics, metabonomics, and glycomics) have enabled us to detect and identify the plants' secondary metabolites and changes in the animal's physiology and histopathology as a causative of photosensitivity. The review focuses on types of photosensitization, reasons, secondary metabolic compounds, chemistry, and environmental effect on plants.

  8. Taurine protects methamphetamine-induced developmental angiogenesis defect through antioxidant mechanism

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Shao, Xue; Hu, Zhengtao; Hu, Chunyan

    Investigations have characterized addictive drug-induced developmental cardiovascular malformation in human, non-human primate and rodent. However, the underlying mechanism of malformation caused by drugs during pregnancy is still largely unknown, and preventive and therapeutic measures have been lacking. Using {sup 1}H NMR spectroscopy, we profiled the metabolites from human embryo endothelial cells exposed to methamphetamine (METH) and quantified a total of 226 peaks. We identified 11 metabolites modified robustly and found that taurine markedly increased. We then validated the hypothesis that this dramatic increase in taurine could attribute to its effect in inhibiting METH-induced developmental angiogenesis defect. Taurine supplement showed amore » more significant potential than other metabolites in protecting against METH-induced injury in endothelial cells. Taurine strongly attenuated METH-induced inhibition of proliferation and migration in endothelial cells. Furthermore, death rate and vessel abnormality of zebrafish embryos treated with METH were greatly reversed by taurine. In addition, taurine supplement caused a rapid decrease in reactive oxygen species generation and strongly attenuated the excitable arise of antioxidase activities in the beginning of METH exposure prophase. Dysregulations of NF-κB, p-ERK as well as Bax, which reflect apoptosis, cell cycle arrest and oxidative stress in vascular endothelium, were blocked by taurine. Our results provide the first evidence that taurine prevents METH-caused developmental angiogenesis defect through antioxidant mechanism. Taurine could serve as a potential therapeutic or preventive intervention of developmental vascular malformation for the pregnant women with drug use. Highlights: ► Metabonomics findings. ► Abnormal development. ► Dysregulations of key proteins.« less

  9. A prenatal interruption of DISC1 function in the brain exhibits a lasting impact on adult behaviors, brain metabolism, and interneuron development.

    PubMed

    Deng, Dazhi; Jian, Chongdong; Lei, Ling; Zhou, Yijing; McSweeney, Colleen; Dong, Fengping; Shen, Yilun; Zou, Donghua; Wang, Yonggang; Wu, Yuan; Zhang, Limin; Mao, Yingwei

    2017-10-17

    Mental illnesses like schizophrenia (SCZ) and major depression disorder (MDD) are devastating brain disorders. The SCZ risk gene, disrupted in schizophrenia 1 ( DISC1 ), has been associated with neuropsychiatric conditions. However, little is known regarding the long-lasting impacts on brain metabolism and behavioral outcomes from genetic insults on fetal NPCs during early life. We have established a new mouse model that specifically interrupts DISC1 functions in NPCs in vivo by a dominant-negative DISC1 (DN-DISC1) with a precise temporal and spatial regulation. Interestingly, prenatal interruption of mouse Disc1 function in NPCs leads to abnormal depression-like deficit in adult mice. Here we took a novel unbiased metabonomics approach to identify brain-specific metabolites that are significantly changed in DN-DISC1 mice. Surprisingly, the inhibitory neurotransmitter, GABA, is augmented. Consistently, parvalbumin (PV) interneurons are increased in the cingulate cortex, retrosplenial granular cortex, and motor cortex. Interestingly, somatostatin (SST) positive and neuropeptide Y (NPY) interneurons are decreased in some brain regions, suggesting that DN-DISC1 expression affects the localization of interneuron subtypes. To further explore the cellular mechanisms that cause this change, DN-DISC1 suppresses proliferation and promotes the cell cycle exit of progenitors in the medial ganglionic eminence (MGE), whereas it stimulates ectopic proliferation of neighboring cells through cell non-autonomous effect. Mechanistically, it modulates GSK3 activity and interrupts Dlx2 activity in the Wnt activation. In sum, our results provide evidence that specific genetic insults on NSCs at a short period of time could lead to prolonged changes of brain metabolism and development, eventually behavioral defects.

  10. New technologies - new insights into the pathogenesis of hepatic encephalopathy.

    PubMed

    Baker, Luisa; Lanz, Bernard; Andreola, Fausto; Ampuero, Javier; Wijeyesekera, Anisha; Holmes, Elaine; Deutz, Nicolaas

    2016-12-01

    Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a neuropsychiatric syndrome which frequently accompanies acute or chronic liver disease. It is characterized by a variety of symptoms of different severity such as cognitive deficits and impaired motor functions. Currently, HE is seen as a consequence of a low grade cerebral oedema associated with the formation of cerebral oxidative stress and deranged cerebral oscillatory networks. However, the pathogenesis of HE is still incompletely understood as liver dysfunction triggers exceptionally complex metabolic derangements in the body which need to be investigated by appropriate technologies. This review summarizes technological approaches presented at the ISHEN conference 2014 in London which may help to gain new insights into the pathogenesis of HE. Dynamic in vivo 13 C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was performed to analyse effects of chronic liver failure in rats on brain energy metabolism. By using a genomics approach, microRNA expression changes were identified in plasma of animals with acute liver failure which may be involved in interorgan interactions and which may serve as organ-specific biomarkers for tissue damage during acute liver failure. Genomics were also applied to analyse glutaminase gene polymorphisms in patients with liver cirrhosis indicating that haplotype-dependent glutaminase activity is an important pathogenic factor in HE. Metabonomics represents a promising approach to better understand HE, by capturing the systems level metabolic changes associated with disease in individuals, and enabling monitoring of metabolic phenotypes in real time, over a time course and in response to treatment, to better inform clinical decision making. Targeted fluxomics allow the determination of metabolic reaction rates thereby discriminating metabolite level changes in HE in terms of production, consumption and clearance.

  11. NMR-based metabonomics for understanding the influence of dormant female genital tuberculosis on metabolism of the human endometrium.

    PubMed

    Subramani, E; Jothiramajayam, M; Dutta, M; Chakravorty, D; Joshi, M; Srivastava, S; Mukherjee, A; Datta Ray, C; Chakravarty, B N; Chaudhury, K

    2016-04-01

    Does investigation of metabolic perturbations in endometrial tissue of women with dormant genital tuberculosis (GTB) during the window of implantation (WOI) assist in improving the understanding of endometrial receptivity? In dormant GTB cases significant alterations in endometrial tissue metabolites occur, largely related to energy metabolism and amino acid biosynthesis in dormant GTB cases. As an intracellular pathogen, Mycobacterium tuberculosis strongly influences the metabolism of host cells causing metabolic dysregulation. It is also accepted that dormant GTB impairs the receptive status of the endometrium. Global metabolic profiling is useful for an understanding of disease progression and distinguishing between diseased and non-diseased groups. Endometrial tissue samples were collected from patients reporting at the tertiary infertility care center during the period September 2011-March 2013. Women having tested positive for GTB were considered as the study group (n = 24). Normal healthy women undergoing sterilization (n = 26) and unexplained infertile women with repeated IVF failure (n = 21) volunteered to participate as controls. Endometrial tissue samples were collected 6-10 days after confirmation of ovulation. PCR and BACTEC-460 culture were used for diagnosing GTB. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) spectra of tissue were recorded using a 700 MHz Bruker Avance AV III spectrometer. Following phase and baseline correction of all NMR spectra by Bruker Topspin 2.1 software, spectral peak alignment of the data was performed. Multivariate analysis was applied to all spectra and individual metabolites identified and multiple correlation analysis was performed. Leucine, isoleucine, acetate, lactate, glutamate, glutamine, methionine, lysine, creatine, glycogen, glycine, proline and choline were found to be significantly increased (P < 0.05) in endometrial tissue of women with dormant GTB compared with unexplained infertile women with repeated implantation failure. Valine, citrate, succinate and aspartate were also observed to be significantly up-regulated (P < 0.01). Furthermore, a significant decrease in glucose (P < 0.05), threonine (P < 0.05), tyrosine (P < 0.01) and phenylalanine (P < 0.0001) was observed in women with dormant GTB. Pearson's correlation analysis between the expression of various endometrial receptivity markers and metabolites showed a significant negative correlation (-0.236 to -0.545, P < 0.05). Also, the metabolites were positively correlated with endometrial receptivity markers (0.207 to 0.618, P < 0.05). It is often difficult to diagnose dormant GTB because it tends to exist without any clinical signs or symptoms. In addition, the diagnosis of GTB by culture remains a challenge due to low detection rates and its paucibacillary nature. Testing for prostate-specific antigen or the Y chromosome in order to account for the possible influences of recent exposure to semen on endometrial metabolism would be important. The metabolic changes associated with the dormant tubercle infection are of potential relevance to clinicians for the treatment of dormant GTB-related infertility. Government of India, Indian Council of Medical Research. There are no conflicts of interest. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  12. In vitro developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) testing: relevant models and endpoints.

    PubMed

    Bal-Price, Anna K; Hogberg, Helena T; Buzanska, Leonora; Lenas, Petros; van Vliet, Erwin; Hartung, Thomas

    2010-09-01

    Environmental chemicals have a potential impact on children's health as the developing brain is much more vulnerable to injury caused by different classes of chemicals than the adult brain. This vulnerability is partly due to the fact that very complex processes of cell development and maturation take place within a tightly controlled time frame. So different stages of brain development are susceptible to toxic effects at different time points. Additionally the adult brain is well protected against chemicals by the blood brain barrier (BBB) whereas the placenta only partially protects against harmful chemical exposure. Many metals easily cross the placenta and BBB barrier since even after the birth BBB is not entirely differentiated (until about 6 months after birth). Additionally, the susceptibility of infants and children is due to increased exposure, augmented absorption rates, and less efficient ability of defense mechanism in comparison to adults. The In Vitro Session during the 12th International Neurotoxicology Association meeting (Jerusalem, June, 2009) provided the opportunity to discuss the new challenges that have to be faced to create new type of safety assessments for regulatory requirements. The integration of various tests into testing strategies as well as combination of information-rich approaches with bioinformatics was discussed. Furthermore relevant models and endpoints for developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) evaluation using in vitro approach were presented. The primary neuronal cultures of cerebellar granule cells (CGCs) as well as 3D aggregate model and the possible application of human embryonic and adult stem cells was discussed pointing out the potential of these models to be used for DNT testing. The presented systems are relevant for DNT evaluation as the key processes of brain development such cell proliferation, migration and neuronal/glial differentiation are present. Furthermore, emerging technologies such as gene expression, electrical activity measurements and metabonomics have been identified as promising tools. In a combination with other assays the in vitro approach could be included into a DNT intelligent testing strategy to speed up the process of DNT evaluation mainly by initial prioritization of chemicals with DNT potential for further testing. Copyright © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. A Thematic Review of Studies into the Effectiveness of Context-Based Chemistry Curricula

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ultay, Neslihan; Calik, Muammer

    2012-01-01

    Context-based chemistry education aims at making connections between real life and the scientific content of chemistry courses. The purpose of this study was to evaluate context-based chemistry studies. In looking for the context-based chemistry studies, the authors entered the keywords "context-based", "contextual learning" and "chemistry…

  14. Sensor Technology Baseline Study for Enabling Condition Based Maintenance Plus in Army Ground Vehicles

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2012-03-01

    for enabling condition based maintenance plus in Army ground vehicles. The sensor study was driven from Failure Mode Effects Analysis ( FMEA ...of Tables Table 1. Sensor technology baseline study based on engine FMEA report. ...................................5 Table 2. Sensor technology...baseline study based on transmission FMEA report. .........................8 Table 3. Sensor technology baseline study based on alternator FMEA report

  15. A narrative review of undergraduate peer-based healthcare ethics teaching.

    PubMed

    Hindmarch, Thomas; Allikmets, Silvia; Knights, Felicity

    2015-12-12

    This study explores the literature in establishing the value of undergraduate peer-based healthcare ethics teaching as an educational methodology. A narrative review of the literature concerning peer-based ethics teaching was conducted. MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, SCOPUS databases, and the Cochrane Library, were systematically searched for studies of peer-based ethics or professionalism teaching. Selected studies related peer-based teaching to ethics education outcomes. Ten publications were identified. Selected studies were varied in their chosen intervention methodology and analysis. Collectively, the identified studies suggest peer-based ethics education is an effective and valued educational methodology in training healthcare professionals. One paper suggests peer-based ethics teaching has advantages over traditional didactic methods. Peer-based ethics teaching also receives positive feedback from student participants. However, the limited literature base demonstrates a clear need for more evaluation of this pedagogy. The current literature base suggests that undergraduate peer based healthcare ethics teaching is valuable in terms of efficacy and student satisfaction. We conclude that the medical community should invest in further study in order to capitalise upon the potential of peer-based ethics teaching in undergraduate healthcare education.

  16. Does the use of efficacy or effectiveness evidence in cost-effectiveness analysis matter?

    PubMed

    Dilokthornsakul, Piyameth; Chaiyakunapruk, Nathorn; Campbell, Jonathan D

    2017-01-02

    To test the association of clinical evidence type, efficacy-based or effectiveness-based ("E"), versus whether or not asthma interventions' cost-effectiveness findings are favorable. We conducted a systematic review of PubMed, EMBASE, Tufts CEA registry, Cochrane CENTRAL, and the UK National Health Services Economic Evaluation Database from 2009 to 2014. All cost-effectiveness studies evaluating asthma medication(s) were included. Clinical evidence type, "E," was classified as efficacy-based if the evidence was from an explanatory randomized controlled trial(s) or meta-analysis, while evidence from pragmatic trial(s) or observational study(s) was classified as effectiveness-based. We defined three times the World Health Organization cost-effectiveness willingness-to-pay (WTP) threshold or less as a favorable cost-effectiveness finding. Logistic regression tested the likelihood of favorable versus unfavorable cost-effectiveness findings against the type of "E." 25 cost-effectiveness studies were included. Ten (40.0%) studies were effectiveness-based, yet 15 (60.0%) studies were efficacy-based. Of 17 studies using endpoints that could be compared to WTP threshold, 7 out of 8 (87.5%) effectiveness-based studies yielded favorable cost-effectiveness results, whereas 4 out of 9 (44.4%) efficacy-based studies yielded favorable cost-effectiveness results. The adjusted odds ratio was 15.12 (95% confidence interval; 0.59 to 388.75) for effectiveness-based versus efficacy-based achieving favorable cost-effectiveness findings. More asthma cost-effectiveness studies used efficacy-based evidence. Studies using effectiveness-based evidence trended toward being more likely to disseminate favorable cost-effective findings than those using efficacy. Health policy decision makers should pay attention to the type of clinical evidence used in cost-effectiveness studies for accurate interpretation and application.

  17. Systematic review of skills transfer after surgical simulation-based training.

    PubMed

    Dawe, S R; Pena, G N; Windsor, J A; Broeders, J A J L; Cregan, P C; Hewett, P J; Maddern, G J

    2014-08-01

    Simulation-based training assumes that skills are directly transferable to the patient-based setting, but few studies have correlated simulated performance with surgical performance. A systematic search strategy was undertaken to find studies published since the last systematic review, published in 2007. Inclusion of articles was determined using a predetermined protocol, independent assessment by two reviewers and a final consensus decision. Studies that reported on the use of surgical simulation-based training and assessed the transferability of the acquired skills to a patient-based setting were included. Twenty-seven randomized clinical trials and seven non-randomized comparative studies were included. Fourteen studies investigated laparoscopic procedures, 13 endoscopic procedures and seven other procedures. These studies provided strong evidence that participants who reached proficiency in simulation-based training performed better in the patient-based setting than their counterparts who did not have simulation-based training. Simulation-based training was equally as effective as patient-based training for colonoscopy, laparoscopic camera navigation and endoscopic sinus surgery in the patient-based setting. These studies strengthen the evidence that simulation-based training, as part of a structured programme and incorporating predetermined proficiency levels, results in skills transfer to the operative setting. © 2014 BJS Society Ltd. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  18. The state of readiness for evidence-based practice among nurses: An integrative review.

    PubMed

    Saunders, Hannele; Vehviläinen-Julkunen, Katri

    2016-04-01

    To review factors related to nurses' individual readiness for evidence-based practice and to determine the current state of nurses' evidence-based practice competencies. An integrative review study. Thirty-seven (37) primary research studies on nurses' readiness for evidence-based practice, of which 30 were descriptive cross-sectional surveys, 5 were pretest-posttest studies, and one study each was an experimental pilot study and a descriptive qualitative study. Included studies were published from the beginning of 2004 through end of January 2015. The integrative review study used thematic synthesis, in which the quantitative studies were analyzed deductively and the qualitative studies inductively. Outcomes related to nurses' readiness for evidence-based practice were grouped according to the four main themes that emerged from the thematic synthesis: (1) nurses' familiarity with evidence-based practice (EBP); (2) nurses' attitudes toward and beliefs about evidence-based practice; (3) nurses' evidence-based practice knowledge and skills; and (4) nurses' use of research in practice. Methodological quality of the included studies was evaluated with Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tools. Although nurses were familiar with, had positive attitudes toward, and believed in the value of EBP in improving care quality and patient outcomes, they perceived their own evidence-based practice knowledge and skills insufficient for employing evidence-based practice, and did not use best evidence in practice. The vast majority (81%) of included studies were descriptive cross-sectional surveys, 84% used a non-probability sampling method, sample sizes were small, and response rates low. Most included studies were of modest quality. More robust, theoretically-based and psychometrically sound nursing research studies are needed to test and evaluate the effectiveness of interventions designed to advance nurses' evidence-based practice competencies, especially teaching them how to integrate evidence-based practice into clinical decision-making. All efforts should be focused on systematically using knowledge transformation strategies shown to be effective in rigorous studies, to translate best evidence into practice-friendly, readily usable forms that are easily accessible to nurses to integrate into their clinical practice. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. A narrative review of undergraduate peer-based healthcare ethics teaching

    PubMed Central

    Allikmets, Silvia; Knights, Felicity

    2015-01-01

    Objectives This study explores the literature in establishing the value of undergraduate peer-based healthcare ethics teaching as an educational methodology. Methods A narrative review of the literature concerning peer-based ethics teaching was conducted. MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, SCOPUS databases, and the Cochrane Library, were systematically searched for studies of peer-based ethics or professionalism teaching. Selected studies related peer-based teaching to ethics education outcomes. Results Ten publications were identified. Selected studies were varied in their chosen intervention methodology and analysis. Collectively, the identified studies suggest peer-based ethics education is an effective and valued educational methodology in training healthcare professionals. One paper suggests peer-based ethics teaching has advantages over traditional didactic methods. Peer-based ethics teaching also receives positive feedback from student participants. However, the limited literature base demonstrates a clear need for more evaluation of this pedagogy. Conclusions The current literature base suggests that undergraduate peer based healthcare ethics teaching is valuable in terms of efficacy and student satisfaction. We conclude that the medical community should invest in further study in order to capitalise upon the potential of peer-based ethics teaching in undergraduate healthcare education. PMID:26668050

  20. A Thematic Review of Studies into the Effectiveness of Context-Based Chemistry Curricula

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ültay, Neslihan; Çalık, Muammer

    2012-12-01

    Context-based chemistry education aims at making connections between real life and the scientific content of chemistry courses. The purpose of this study was to evaluate context-based chemistry studies. In looking for the context-based chemistry studies, the authors entered the keywords `context-based', `contextual learning' and `chemistry education' in well-known databases (i.e. Academic Search Complete, Education Research Complete, ERIC, Springer LINK Contemporary). Further, in case the computer search by key words may have missed a rather substantial part of the important literature in the area, the authors also conducted a hand search of the related journals. To present a detailed thematic review of context-based chemistry studies, a matrix was used to summarize the findings by focusing on insights derived from the related studies. The matrix incorporates the following themes: needs, aims, methodologies, general knowledge claims, and implications for teaching and learning, implications for curriculum development and suggestions for future research. The general knowledge claims investigated in this paper were: (a) positive effects of the context-based chemistry studies; (b) caveats, both are examined in terms of students' attitudes and students' understanding/cognition. Implications were investigated for practice in context- based chemistry studies, for future research in context- based chemistry studies, and for curriculum developers in context- based chemistry studies. Teachers of context-based courses claimed that the application of the context-based learning approach in chemistry education improved students' motivation and interest in the subject. This seems to have generated an increase in the number of the students who wish to continue chemistry education at higher levels. However, despite the fact that the majority of the studies have reported advantages of context-based chemistry studies, some of them have also referred to pitfalls, i.e. dominant structure of out-of-school learning, tough nature of some chemistry topics, and teacher anxiety of lower-ability students.

  1. Effect of Web-Based Versus Paper-Based Questionnaires and Follow-Up Strategies on Participation Rates of Dutch Childhood Cancer Survivors: A Randomized Controlled Trial

    PubMed Central

    van Dulmen-den Broeder, Eline; van der Pal, Helena J; Hollema, Nynke; Kremer, Leontien C; van den Heuvel-Eibrink, Marry M; van Leeuwen, Flora E

    2015-01-01

    Background Questionnaires are widely used in survey research, especially in cohort studies. However, participation in questionnaire studies has been declining over the past decades. Because high participation rates are needed to limit the risk of selection bias and produce valid results, it is important to investigate invitation strategies which may improve participation. Objectives The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of Web-based versus paper-based questionnaires on participation rates in a questionnaire survey on late effects among childhood cancer survivors (CCSs). Methods A total of 750 CCSs were randomized across 3 study arms. The initial invitation in study arms 1 and 2 consisted of a Web-based questionnaire only, whereas in study arm 3 this invitation was complemented with a paper-based version of the questionnaire. The first postal reminder, sent to the nonresponding CCSs in all 3 study arms, consisted of either a reminder letter only (study arms 1 and 3) or a reminder letter complemented with a paper-based questionnaire (study arm 2). The second postal reminder was restricted to CCSs in study arms 1 and 2, with only those in study arm 1 also receiving a paper-based questionnaire. CCSs in study arm 3 received a second reminder by telephone instead of by mail. In contrast to CCSs in study arm 3, CCSs in study arms 1 and 2 received a third reminder, this time by telephone. Results: Overall, 58.1% (436/750) of the CCSs participated in the survey. Participation rates were equal in all 3 study arms with 57.4% (143/249) in arm 1, 60.6% (152/251) in arm 2, and 56.4% (141/250) in arm 3 (P=.09). Participation rates of CCSs who received an initial invitation for the Web-based questionnaire only and CCSs who received an invitation to complete either a paper-based or Web-based questionnaire did not differ (P=.55). After the first postal reminder, participation rates of CCSs invited for the Web-based questionnaire only also did not differ compared with CCSs invited for both the Web-based and paper-based questionnaires (P=.48). In general, CCSs preferred the paper-based over the Web-based questionnaire, and those completing the paper-based questionnaire were more often unemployed (P=.004) and lower educated (P<.001). Conclusion Invitation strategies offering a Web-based questionnaire without a paper-based alternative at first invitation can be used without compromising participation rates of CCS. Offering the choice between paper- and Web-based questionnaires seems to result in the highest accrual participation rate. Future research should look into the quality of the data delivered by both questionnaires filled in by respondents themselves. Trial Registration International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN): 84711754; http://www.controlled-trials.com/ISRCTN84711754 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6c9ZB8paX) PMID:28410161

  2. A systematic review of surgical skills transfer after simulation-based training: laparoscopic cholecystectomy and endoscopy.

    PubMed

    Dawe, Susan R; Windsor, John A; Broeders, Joris A J L; Cregan, Patrick C; Hewett, Peter J; Maddern, Guy J

    2014-02-01

    A systematic review to determine whether skills acquired through simulation-based training transfer to the operating room for the procedures of laparoscopic cholecystectomy and endoscopy. Simulation-based training assumes that skills are directly transferable to the operation room, but only a few studies have investigated the effect of simulation-based training on surgical performance. A systematic search strategy that was used in 2006 was updated to retrieve relevant studies. Inclusion of articles was determined using a predetermined protocol, independent assessment by 2 reviewers, and a final consensus decision. Seventeen randomized controlled trials and 3 nonrandomized comparative studies were included in this review. In most cases, simulation-based training was in addition to patient-based training programs. Only 2 studies directly compared simulation-based training in isolation with patient-based training. For laparoscopic cholecystectomy (n = 10 studies) and endoscopy (n = 10 studies), participants who reached simulation-based skills proficiency before undergoing patient-based assessment performed with higher global assessment scores and fewer errors in the operating room than their counterparts who did not receive simulation training. Not all parameters measured were improved. Two of the endoscopic studies compared simulation-based training in isolation with patient-based training with different results: for sigmoidoscopy, patient-based training was more effective, whereas for colonoscopy, simulation-based training was equally effective. Skills acquired by simulation-based training seem to be transferable to the operative setting for laparoscopic cholecystectomy and endoscopy. Future research will strengthen these conclusions by evaluating predetermined competency levels on the same simulators and using objective validated global rating scales to measure operative performance.

  3. Making a Case for a Blended Approach: The Need for The Design-Based Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Deaton, Cynthia C. M.; Malloy, Jacquelynn A.

    2017-01-01

    Design-based case studies address research questions that involve instructional innovations within a bounded system. This blend of case study and design-based research provides a systematic approach to examining instructional innovations that are bounded by perspective, context, and time. Design-based case studies provide a framework for engaging…

  4. Teacher Implementation of Reform-Based Mathematics and Implications for Algebra Readiness: A Qualitative Study of 4th Grade Classrooms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sher, Stephen Korb

    2011-01-01

    This study looked at 4th grade classrooms to see "how" teachers implement NCTM standards-based or reform-based mathematics instruction and then analyzed it for the capacity to improve students' "algebra readiness." The qualitative study was based on classroom observations, teacher and administrator interviews, and teacher surveys. The study took…

  5. Report on Pairing-based Cryptography.

    PubMed

    Moody, Dustin; Peralta, Rene; Perlner, Ray; Regenscheid, Andrew; Roginsky, Allen; Chen, Lily

    2015-01-01

    This report summarizes study results on pairing-based cryptography. The main purpose of the study is to form NIST's position on standardizing and recommending pairing-based cryptography schemes currently published in research literature and standardized in other standard bodies. The report reviews the mathematical background of pairings. This includes topics such as pairing-friendly elliptic curves and how to compute various pairings. It includes a brief introduction to existing identity-based encryption (IBE) schemes and other cryptographic schemes using pairing technology. The report provides a complete study of the current status of standard activities on pairing-based cryptographic schemes. It explores different application scenarios for pairing-based cryptography schemes. As an important aspect of adopting pairing-based schemes, the report also considers the challenges inherent in validation testing of cryptographic algorithms and modules. Based on the study, the report suggests an approach for including pairing-based cryptography schemes in the NIST cryptographic toolkit. The report also outlines several questions that will require further study if this approach is followed.

  6. Report on Pairing-based Cryptography

    PubMed Central

    Moody, Dustin; Peralta, Rene; Perlner, Ray; Regenscheid, Andrew; Roginsky, Allen; Chen, Lily

    2015-01-01

    This report summarizes study results on pairing-based cryptography. The main purpose of the study is to form NIST’s position on standardizing and recommending pairing-based cryptography schemes currently published in research literature and standardized in other standard bodies. The report reviews the mathematical background of pairings. This includes topics such as pairing-friendly elliptic curves and how to compute various pairings. It includes a brief introduction to existing identity-based encryption (IBE) schemes and other cryptographic schemes using pairing technology. The report provides a complete study of the current status of standard activities on pairing-based cryptographic schemes. It explores different application scenarios for pairing-based cryptography schemes. As an important aspect of adopting pairing-based schemes, the report also considers the challenges inherent in validation testing of cryptographic algorithms and modules. Based on the study, the report suggests an approach for including pairing-based cryptography schemes in the NIST cryptographic toolkit. The report also outlines several questions that will require further study if this approach is followed. PMID:26958435

  7. Journal Quality in Mathematics Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Williams, Steven R.; Leatham, Keith R.

    2017-01-01

    We present the results of 2 studies, a citation-based study and an opinion-based study, that ranked the relative quality of 20 English-language journals that exclusively or extensively publish mathematics education research. We further disaggregate the opinion-based data to provide insights into variations in judgment of journal quality based on…

  8. A Collective Case Study of Secondary Students' Model-Based Inquiry on Natural Selection through Programming in an Agent-Based Modeling Environment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Xiang, Lin

    2011-01-01

    This is a collective case study seeking to develop detailed descriptions of how programming an agent-based simulation influences a group of 8th grade students' model-based inquiry (MBI) by examining students' agent-based programmable modeling (ABPM) processes and the learning outcomes. The context of the present study was a biology unit on…

  9. Contests versus Norms: Implications of Contest-Based and Norm-Based Intervention Techniques

    PubMed Central

    Bergquist, Magnus; Nilsson, Andreas; Hansla, André

    2017-01-01

    Interventions using either contests or norms can promote environmental behavioral change. Yet research on the implications of contest-based and norm-based interventions is lacking. Based on Goal-framing theory, we suggest that a contest-based intervention frames a gain goal promoting intensive but instrumental behavioral engagement. In contrast, the norm-based intervention was expected to frame a normative goal activating normative obligations for targeted and non-targeted behavior and motivation to engage in pro-environmental behaviors in the future. In two studies participants (n = 347) were randomly assigned to either a contest- or a norm-based intervention technique. Participants in the contest showed more intensive engagement in both studies. Participants in the norm-based intervention tended to report higher intentions for future energy conservation (Study 1) and higher personal norms for non-targeted pro-environmental behaviors (Study 2). These findings suggest that contest-based intervention technique frames a gain goal, while norm-based intervention frames a normative goal. PMID:29218026

  10. Contests versus Norms: Implications of Contest-Based and Norm-Based Intervention Techniques.

    PubMed

    Bergquist, Magnus; Nilsson, Andreas; Hansla, André

    2017-01-01

    Interventions using either contests or norms can promote environmental behavioral change. Yet research on the implications of contest-based and norm-based interventions is lacking. Based on Goal-framing theory, we suggest that a contest-based intervention frames a gain goal promoting intensive but instrumental behavioral engagement. In contrast, the norm-based intervention was expected to frame a normative goal activating normative obligations for targeted and non-targeted behavior and motivation to engage in pro-environmental behaviors in the future. In two studies participants ( n = 347) were randomly assigned to either a contest- or a norm-based intervention technique. Participants in the contest showed more intensive engagement in both studies. Participants in the norm-based intervention tended to report higher intentions for future energy conservation (Study 1) and higher personal norms for non-targeted pro-environmental behaviors (Study 2). These findings suggest that contest-based intervention technique frames a gain goal, while norm-based intervention frames a normative goal.

  11. Adapting practice-based intervention research to electronic environments: opportunities and complexities at two institutions.

    PubMed

    Stille, Christopher J; Lockhart, Steven A; Maertens, Julie A; Madden, Christi A; Darden, Paul M

    2015-01-01

    Primary care practice-based research has become more complex with increased use of electronic health records (EHRs). Little has been reported about changes in study planning and execution that are required as practices change from paper-based to electronic-based environments. We describe the evolution of a pediatric practice-based intervention study as it was adapted for use in the electronic environment, to enable other practice-based researchers to plan efficient, effective studies. We adapted a paper-based pediatric office-level intervention to enhance parent-provider communication about subspecialty referrals for use in two practice-based research networks (PBRNs) with partially and fully electronic environments. We documented the process of adaptation and its effect on study feasibility and efficiency, resource use, and administrative and regulatory complexities, as the study was implemented in the two networks. Considerable time and money was required to adapt the paper-based study to the electronic environment, requiring extra meetings with institutional EHR-, regulatory-, and administrative teams, and increased practice training. Institutional unfamiliarity with using EHRs in practice-based research, and the consequent need to develop new policies, were major contributors to delays. Adapting intervention tools to the EHR and minimizing practice disruptions was challenging, but resulted in several efficiencies as compared with a paper-based project. In particular, recruitment and tracking of subjects and data collection were easier and more efficient. Practice-based intervention research in an electronic environment adds considerable cost and time at the outset of a study, especially for centers unfamiliar with such research. Efficiencies generated have the potential of easing the work of study enrollment, subject tracking, and data collection.

  12. Team-Based Care with Pharmacists to Improve Blood Pressure: a Review of Recent Literature.

    PubMed

    Kennelty, Korey A; Polgreen, Linnea A; Carter, Barry L

    2018-01-18

    We review studies published since 2014 that examined team-based care strategies and involved pharmacists to improve blood pressure (BP). We then discuss opportunities and challenges to sustainment of team-based care models in primary care clinics. Multiple studies presented in this review have demonstrated that team-based care including pharmacists can improve BP management. Studies highlighted the cost-effectiveness of a team-based pharmacy intervention for BP control in primary care clinics. Little information was found on factors influencing sustainability of team-based care interventions to improve BP control. Future work is needed to determine the best populations to target with team-based BP programs and how to implement team-based approaches utilizing pharmacists in diverse clinical settings. Future studies need to not only identify unmet clinical needs but also address reimbursement issues and stakeholder engagement that may impact sustainment of team-based care interventions.

  13. Online Learning: A Comparison of Web-Based and Land-Based Courses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brown, Joy L. M.

    2012-01-01

    Distance learning has become more popular in recent years. Due to concern about the quality of web-based courses, the purpose of this study was to explore the differences in web-based versus land-based courses. In this study, the researcher compares web-based and land-based education courses to explore the strengths and weaknesses of each type of…

  14. Assessment of School-Based Management. [Volume I: Findings and Conclusions.] Studies of Education Reform.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wohlstetter, Priscilla; Mohrman, Susan Albers

    This document presents findings of the Assessment of School-Based Management Study, which identified the conditions in schools that promote high performance through school-based management (SBM). The study's conceptual framework was based on Edward E. Lawler's (1986) model. The high-involvement framework posits that four resources must spread…

  15. Effect of environmental exposure to hydrogen sulfide on central nervous system and respiratory function: a systematic review of human studies

    PubMed Central

    Lim, Eunjung; Mbowe, Omar; Lee, Angela S. W.; Davis, James

    2016-01-01

    Background Assessment of the health effects of low-level exposure to hydrogen sulfide (H2S) on humans through experiments, industrial, and community studies has shown inconsistent results. Objective To critically appraise available studies investigating the effect of H2S on the central nervous system (CNS) and on respiratory function. Methods A search was conducted in 16 databases for articles published between January 1980 and July 2014. Two researchers independently evaluated potentially relevant papers based on a set of inclusion/exclusion criteria. Results Twenty-seven articles met the inclusion criteria: 6 experimental, 12 industry-based studies, and 10 community-based studies (one article included both experimental and industry-based studies). The results of the systematic review varied by study setting and quality. Several community-based studies reported associations between day-to-day variations in H2S levels and health outcomes among patients with chronic respiratory conditions. However, evidence from the largest and better-designed community-based studies did not support that chronic, ambient H2S exposure has health effects on the CNS or respiratory function. Results from industry-based studies varied, reflecting the diversity of settings and the broad range of H2S exposures. Most studies did not have individual measurements of H2S exposure. Discussion The results across studies were inconsistent, justifying the need for further research. PMID:27128692

  16. Effect of environmental exposure to hydrogen sulfide on central nervous system and respiratory function: a systematic review of human studies.

    PubMed

    Lim, Eunjung; Mbowe, Omar; Lee, Angela S W; Davis, James

    2016-01-01

    Assessment of the health effects of low-level exposure to hydrogen sulfide (H2S) on humans through experiments, industrial, and community studies has shown inconsistent results. To critically appraise available studies investigating the effect of H2S on the central nervous system (CNS) and on respiratory function. A search was conducted in 16 databases for articles published between January 1980 and July 2014. Two researchers independently evaluated potentially relevant papers based on a set of inclusion/exclusion criteria. Twenty-seven articles met the inclusion criteria: 6 experimental, 12 industry-based studies, and 10 community-based studies (one article included both experimental and industry-based studies). The results of the systematic review varied by study setting and quality. Several community-based studies reported associations between day-to-day variations in H2S levels and health outcomes among patients with chronic respiratory conditions. However, evidence from the largest and better-designed community-based studies did not support that chronic, ambient H2S exposure has health effects on the CNS or respiratory function. Results from industry-based studies varied, reflecting the diversity of settings and the broad range of H2S exposures. Most studies did not have individual measurements of H2S exposure. The results across studies were inconsistent, justifying the need for further research.

  17. Moral empiricism and the bias for act-based rules.

    PubMed

    Ayars, Alisabeth; Nichols, Shaun

    2017-10-01

    Previous studies on rule learning show a bias in favor of act-based rules, which prohibit intentionally producing an outcome but not merely allowing the outcome. Nichols, Kumar, Lopez, Ayars, and Chan (2016) found that exposure to a single sample violation in which an agent intentionally causes the outcome was sufficient for participants to infer that the rule was act-based. One explanation is that people have an innate bias to think rules are act-based. We suggest an alternative empiricist account: since most rules that people learn are act-based, people form an overhypothesis (Goodman, 1955) that rules are typically act-based. We report three studies that indicate that people can use information about violations to form overhypotheses about rules. In study 1, participants learned either three "consequence-based" rules that prohibited allowing an outcome or three "act-based" rules that prohibiting producing the outcome; in a subsequent learning task, we found that participants who had learned three consequence-based rules were more likely to think that the new rule prohibited allowing an outcome. In study 2, we presented participants with either 1 consequence-based rule or 3 consequence-based rules, and we found that those exposed to 3 such rules were more likely to think that a new rule was also consequence based. Thus, in both studies, it seems that learning 3 consequence-based rules generates an overhypothesis to expect new rules to be consequence-based. In a final study, we used a more subtle manipulation. We exposed participants to examples act-based or accident-based (strict liability) laws and then had them learn a novel rule. We found that participants who were exposed to the accident-based laws were more likely to think a new rule was accident-based. The fact that participants' bias for act-based rules can be shaped by evidence from other rules supports the idea that the bias for act-based rules might be acquired as an overhypothesis from the preponderance of act-based rules. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. Comprehension-Based versus Production-Based Grammar Instruction: A Meta-Analysis of Comparative Studies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shintani, Natsuko; Li, Shaofeng; Ellis, Rod

    2013-01-01

    This article reports a meta-analysis of studies that investigated the relative effectiveness of comprehension-based instruction (CBI) and production-based instruction (PBI). The meta-analysis only included studies that featured a direct comparison of CBI and PBI in order to ensure methodological and statistical robustness. A total of 35 research…

  19. An Electronic Library-Based Learning Environment for Supporting Web-Based Problem-Solving Activities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tsai, Pei-Shan; Hwang, Gwo-Jen; Tsai, Chin-Chung; Hung, Chun-Ming; Huang, Iwen

    2012-01-01

    This study aims to develop an electronic library-based learning environment to support teachers in developing web-based problem-solving activities and analyzing the online problem-solving behaviors of students. Two experiments were performed in this study. In study 1, an experiment on 103 elementary and high school teachers (the learning activity…

  20. Integrating the Problem-Based Learning Approach into a Web-Based English Reading Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lin, Lu-Fang

    2018-01-01

    This study incorporated the problem-based learning (PBL) approach into a web-based English reading course. The purpose of the study was to examine the impact of PBL on the participants' English reading comprehension (RC) and to explore the participants' perceptions of PBL. The present study conducted a comparison of two teaching methods. Two…

  1. An Exploration of Alternative Scoring Methods Using Curriculum-Based Measurement in Early Writing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Allen, Abigail A.; Poch, Apryl L.; Lembke, Erica S.

    2018-01-01

    This manuscript describes two empirical studies of alternative scoring procedures used with curriculum-based measurement in writing (CBM-W). Study 1 explored the technical adequacy of a trait-based rubric in first grade. Study 2 explored the technical adequacy of a trait-based rubric, production-dependent, and production-independent scores in…

  2. Bringing antiretroviral therapy (ART) closer to the end-user through mobile clinics and home-based ART: systematic review shows more evidence on the effectiveness and cost effectiveness is needed.

    PubMed

    Mdege, Noreen Dadirai; Chindove, Stanley

    2014-01-01

    Home-based antiretroviral therapy (ART) and ART through mobile clinics can potentially increase access to ART for large numbers of people, including hard-to-reach populations. We reviewed literature on the effectiveness and cost implications of the home-based ART and mobile clinic ART models. We searched Medline, Embase, PsycInfo, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Web of Knowledge and Current Controlled Trials Register for articles published up to March 2012. We included non-randomised and randomised controlled clinical trials that recruited HIV/AIDS positive adults with or without prior exposure to ART. Six studies were included in the review, with only four effectiveness studies (all evaluating home-based ART and none for mobile clinic ART) and four studies reporting on the cost implications. The evidence suggests home-based ART is as effective as health facility-based ART, including on clinical outcomes, viral load and CD4+ count. However, three of these studies were very small. Studies suggest health facility-based ART is the most cost-effective, followed by mobile-clinic ART, with home-based ART being the least cost-effective. Evidence on the effectiveness and cost implications of mobile clinic and home-based ART is currently limited. Although the few available studies suggest home-based ART can potentially be as effective as health facility-based ART, there is need for more research before robust conclusions can be made. Results from the few available studies also suggest that health facility-based ART is the most cost-effective. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  3. Students' Perceptions of Study Modes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hagel, Pauline; Shaw, Robin N.

    2006-01-01

    This paper reports on a survey of how Australian undergraduate students perceive the benefits of broad study modes: face-to-face classes, web-based study, and print-based study. Two benefit types were identified through factor analysis: engagement and functionality. Respondents rated face-to-face classes highest on engagement and print-based study…

  4. [Validation of a Japanese version of the Experience in Close Relationship- Relationship Structure].

    PubMed

    Komura, Kentaro; Murakami, Tatsuya; Toda, Koji

    2016-08-01

    The purpose of this study was to translate the Experience of Close Relationship-Relationship Structure (ECRRS) and evaluate its validity. In study 1 (N = 982), evidence based internal structure (factor structure, internal consistency, and correlation among sub-scales) and evidence based relations to other variables (depression, reassurance seeking and self-esteem) were confirmed. In study 2 (N = 563), evidence based on internal structure was reconfirmed, and evidence based relations to other variables (IWMS, RQ, and ECR-GO) were confirmed. In study 3 (N = 342), evidence based internal structure (test-retest reliability) was confirmed. Based on these results, we concluded that ECR-RS was valid for measuring adult attachment style.

  5. Quality of reporting web-based and non-web-based survey studies: What authors, reviewers and consumers should consider.

    PubMed

    Turk, Tarek; Elhady, Mohamed Tamer; Rashed, Sherwet; Abdelkhalek, Mariam; Nasef, Somia Ahmed; Khallaf, Ashraf Mohamed; Mohammed, Abdelrahman Tarek; Attia, Andrew Wassef; Adhikari, Purushottam; Amin, Mohamed Alsabbahi; Hirayama, Kenji; Huy, Nguyen Tien

    2018-01-01

    Several influential aspects of survey research have been under-investigated and there is a lack of guidance on reporting survey studies, especially web-based projects. In this review, we aim to investigate the reporting practices and quality of both web- and non-web-based survey studies to enhance the quality of reporting medical evidence that is derived from survey studies and to maximize the efficiency of its consumption. Reporting practices and quality of 100 random web- and 100 random non-web-based articles published from 2004 to 2016 were assessed using the SUrvey Reporting GuidelinE (SURGE). The CHERRIES guideline was also used to assess the reporting quality of Web-based studies. Our results revealed a potential gap in the reporting of many necessary checklist items in both web-based and non-web-based survey studies including development, description and testing of the questionnaire, the advertisement and administration of the questionnaire, sample representativeness and response rates, incentives, informed consent, and methods of statistical analysis. Our findings confirm the presence of major discrepancies in reporting results of survey-based studies. This can be attributed to the lack of availability of updated universal checklists for quality of reporting standards. We have summarized our findings in a table that may serve as a roadmap for future guidelines and checklists, which will hopefully include all types and all aspects of survey research.

  6. The Effects of School-Based Condom Availability Programs (CAPs) on Condom Acquisition, Use and Sexual Behavior: A Systematic Review.

    PubMed

    Wang, Timothy; Lurie, Mark; Govindasamy, Darshini; Mathews, Catherine

    2018-01-01

    We conducted a systematic review to assess the impact of school-based condom availability programs (CAPs) on condom acquisition, use and sexual behavior. We searched PubMed to identify English-language studies evaluating school-based CAPs that reported process (i.e. number of condoms distributed or used) and sexual behavior measures. We identified nine studies that met our inclusion criteria, with the majority conducted in the United States of America. We judged most studies to have medium risk of bias. Most studies showed that school-based CAPs increased the odds of students obtaining condoms (odds ratios (ORs) for individual studies ranged between 1.81 and 20.28), and reporting condom use (OR 1.36-3.2). Three studies showed that school-based CAPs positively influenced sexual behavior, while no studies reported increase in sexual activity. Findings suggest that school-based CAPs may be an effective strategy for improving condom coverage and promoting positive sexual behaviors.

  7. Consent Procedures and Participation Rates in School-Based Intervention and Prevention Research: Using a Multi-Component, Partnership-Based Approach to Recruit Participants

    PubMed Central

    Leff, Stephen S.; Franko, Debra L.; Weinstein, Elana; Beakley, Kelly; Power, Thomas J.

    2009-01-01

    Evaluations of school-based interventions and prevention programs typically require parental consent for students to participate. In school-based efforts, program evaluators may have limited access to parents and considerable effort is required to obtain signed consent. This issue is particularly salient when conducting research in under-resourced, urban schools, where parent involvement in the school setting may be somewhat limited. The aims of this article were to (a) examine the published school-based prevention and intervention literature to assess the state of the field in terms of consent procedures and participation rates; and (b) describe two examples of health promotion studies that used multi-component, partnership-based strategies in urban schools to encourage communication among children, their parents, and researchers. The purpose of the case studies was to generate hypotheses to advance the science related to school-based participant recruitment for research studies. Of nearly 500 studies reviewed, only 11.5% reported both consent procedures and participation rates. Studies using active consent procedures had a mean participation rate of 65.5% (range: 11–100%). This article highlights the need for researchers to report consent procedures and participation rates and describes partnership-based strategies used to enroll students into two urban, school-based health promotion studies. PMID:19834586

  8. Time and learning efficiency in Internet-based learning: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

    PubMed

    Cook, David A; Levinson, Anthony J; Garside, Sarah

    2010-12-01

    Authors have claimed that Internet-based instruction promotes greater learning efficiency than non-computer methods. determine, through a systematic synthesis of evidence in health professions education, how Internet-based instruction compares with non-computer instruction in time spent learning, and what features of Internet-based instruction are associated with improved learning efficiency. we searched databases including MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, and ERIC from 1990 through November 2008. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA ABSTRACTION we included all studies quantifying learning time for Internet-based instruction for health professionals, compared with other instruction. Reviewers worked independently, in duplicate, to abstract information on interventions, outcomes, and study design. we identified 20 eligible studies. Random effects meta-analysis of 8 studies comparing Internet-based with non-Internet instruction (positive numbers indicating Internet longer) revealed pooled effect size (ES) for time -0.10 (p = 0.63). Among comparisons of two Internet-based interventions, providing feedback adds time (ES 0.67, p =0.003, two studies), and greater interactivity generally takes longer (ES 0.25, p = 0.089, five studies). One study demonstrated that adapting to learner prior knowledge saves time without significantly affecting knowledge scores. Other studies revealed that audio narration, video clips, interactive models, and animations increase learning time but also facilitate higher knowledge and/or satisfaction. Across all studies, time correlated positively with knowledge outcomes (r = 0.53, p = 0.021). on average, Internet-based instruction and non-computer instruction require similar time. Instructional strategies to enhance feedback and interactivity typically prolong learning time, but in many cases also enhance learning outcomes. Isolated examples suggest potential for improving efficiency in Internet-based instruction.

  9. The role of feedback in improving the effectiveness of workplace based assessments: a systematic review.

    PubMed

    Saedon, Habiba; Salleh, Shizalia; Balakrishnan, Arun; Imray, Christopher H E; Saedon, Mahmud

    2012-05-02

    With recent emphasis placed on workplace based assessment (WBA) as a method of formative performance assessment, there is limited evidence in the current literature regarding the role of feedback in improving the effectiveness of WBA. The aim of this systematic review was to elucidate the impact of feedback on the effectiveness of WBA in postgraduate medical training. Searches were conducted using the following bibliographic databases to identify original published studies related to WBA and the role of feedback: Medline (1950-December 2010), Embase (1980-December 2010) and Journals@Ovid (English language only, 1996-December 2010). Studies which attempted to evaluate the role of feedback in WBA involving postgraduate doctors were included. 15 identified studies met the inclusion criteria and minimum quality threshold. They were heterogeneous in methodological design. 7 studies focused on multi source feedback, 3 studies were based on mini-clinical evaluation exercise, 2 looked at procedural based assessment, one study looked at workplace based assessments in general and 2 studies looked at a combination of 3 to 6 workplace based assessments. 7 studies originated from the United Kingdom. Others were from Canada, the United States and New Zealand. Study populations were doctors in various grades of training from a wide range of specialties including general practice, general medicine, general surgery, dermatology, paediatrics and anaesthetics. All studies were prospective in design, and non-comparative descriptive or observational studies using a variety of methods including questionnaires, one to one interviews and focus groups. The evidence base contains few high quality conclusive studies and more studies are required to provide further evidence for the effect of feedback from workplace based assessment on subsequent performance. There is, however, good evidence that if well implemented, feedback from workplace based assessments, particularly multisource feedback, leads to a perceived positive effect on practice.

  10. Knowledge, skills and attitude of evidence-based medicine among obstetrics and gynaecology trainees: a questionnaire survey.

    PubMed

    Jeve, Yadava Bapurao; Doshani, Angi; Singhal, Tanu; Konje, Justin

    2013-12-01

    To determine current evidence-based medicine skills and practice among trainees. Questionnaire study. Electronic survey was sent to all obstetrics and gynaecology trainees in East Midlands South Deanery, and responses collected were anonymous. All obstetrics and gynaecology trainees in East Midland South Deanery. Self-reported attitude, skills and knowledge in various components of evidence-based medicine. 69 trainees were included in the study of which 35 responded. Among all respondents, almost 72% of trainees use non-evidence-based methods to find answers for their clinical questions, whereas only 18% use appropriate evidence-based medicine practice for such queries. Just 35% of trainees have minimum skills of literature searching. Most of the trainees struggle to understand various components of evidence-based medicine. Nearly 80% of trainees do not have formal education or training with regard to evidence-based medicine. This study highlights the inadequacy of evidence-based medicine skills among trainees and urges that evidence-based medicine be incorporated in formal training along with specialty study modules.

  11. The Usability Evaluation of Fakih Method Based on Technology for Students with Hearing Difficulties: The User's Retrospective

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sabdan, Muhammad Sayuti Bin; Alias, Norlidah; Jomhari, Nazean; Jamaludin, Khairul Azhar; DeWitt, Dorothy

    2014-01-01

    The study is aimed at evaluating the FAKIH method based on technology in teaching al-Quran, based on the user's retrospective. The participants of this study were five students selected based on hearing difficulties. The study employed the user evaluation framework. Teacher's journals were used to determine the frequency and percentage of…

  12. A Review of Case-Based Learning Practices in an Online MBA Program: A Program-Level Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Seung-hee; Lee, Jieun; Liu, Xiaojing; Bonk, Curt J.; Magjuka, Richard J.

    2009-01-01

    This study examines how a case-based learning approach was used and facilitated in online business education. Perceptions of students and instructors regarding the practices of case-based learning in online environments are explored in terms of instructional design, facilitation, and technology support. This study finds case-based learning to be a…

  13. How Do Teachers Learn Together? A Study of School-Based Teacher Learning in China from the Perspective of Organisational Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zhang, Xiaolei; Wong, Jocelyn L. N.

    2018-01-01

    Studies of professional development have examined the influence of school-based approaches on in-service teacher learning and change but have seldom investigated teachers' job-embedded learning processes. This paper explores the dynamic processes of teacher learning in school-based settings. A qualitative comparative case study based on the…

  14. Evaluation of Gene-Based Family-Based Methods to Detect Novel Genes Associated With Familial Late Onset Alzheimer Disease

    PubMed Central

    Fernández, Maria V.; Budde, John; Del-Aguila, Jorge L.; Ibañez, Laura; Deming, Yuetiva; Harari, Oscar; Norton, Joanne; Morris, John C.; Goate, Alison M.; Cruchaga, Carlos

    2018-01-01

    Gene-based tests to study the combined effect of rare variants on a particular phenotype have been widely developed for case-control studies, but their evolution and adaptation for family-based studies, especially studies of complex incomplete families, has been slower. In this study, we have performed a practical examination of all the latest gene-based methods available for family-based study designs using both simulated and real datasets. We examined the performance of several collapsing, variance-component, and transmission disequilibrium tests across eight different software packages and 22 models utilizing a cohort of 285 families (N = 1,235) with late-onset Alzheimer disease (LOAD). After a thorough examination of each of these tests, we propose a methodological approach to identify, with high confidence, genes associated with the tested phenotype and we provide recommendations to select the best software and model for family-based gene-based analyses. Additionally, in our dataset, we identified PTK2B, a GWAS candidate gene for sporadic AD, along with six novel genes (CHRD, CLCN2, HDLBP, CPAMD8, NLRP9, and MAS1L) as candidate genes for familial LOAD. PMID:29670507

  15. Evaluation of Gene-Based Family-Based Methods to Detect Novel Genes Associated With Familial Late Onset Alzheimer Disease.

    PubMed

    Fernández, Maria V; Budde, John; Del-Aguila, Jorge L; Ibañez, Laura; Deming, Yuetiva; Harari, Oscar; Norton, Joanne; Morris, John C; Goate, Alison M; Cruchaga, Carlos

    2018-01-01

    Gene-based tests to study the combined effect of rare variants on a particular phenotype have been widely developed for case-control studies, but their evolution and adaptation for family-based studies, especially studies of complex incomplete families, has been slower. In this study, we have performed a practical examination of all the latest gene-based methods available for family-based study designs using both simulated and real datasets. We examined the performance of several collapsing, variance-component, and transmission disequilibrium tests across eight different software packages and 22 models utilizing a cohort of 285 families ( N = 1,235) with late-onset Alzheimer disease (LOAD). After a thorough examination of each of these tests, we propose a methodological approach to identify, with high confidence, genes associated with the tested phenotype and we provide recommendations to select the best software and model for family-based gene-based analyses. Additionally, in our dataset, we identified PTK2B , a GWAS candidate gene for sporadic AD, along with six novel genes ( CHRD, CLCN2, HDLBP, CPAMD8, NLRP9 , and MAS1L ) as candidate genes for familial LOAD.

  16. CIRSS vertical data integration, San Bernardino County study phases 1-A, 1-B

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Christenson, J.; Michel, R. (Principal Investigator)

    1981-01-01

    User needs, data types, data automation, and preliminary applications are described for an effort to assemble a single data base for San Bernardino County from data bases which exist at several administrative levels. Each of the data bases used was registered and converted to a grid-based data file at a resolution of 4 acres and used to create a multivariable data base for the entire study area. To this data base were added classified LANDSAT data from 1976 and 1979. The resulting data base thus integrated in a uniform format all of the separately automated data within the study area. Several possible interactions between existing geocoded data bases and LANDSAT data were tested. The use of LANDSAT to update existing data base is to be tested.

  17. Editorial--Avoiding Unethical Helicobacter pylori Clinical Trials: Susceptibility-Based Studies and Probiotics as Adjuvants.

    PubMed

    Graham, David Y

    2015-10-01

    As a general rule, any clinical study where the result is already known or when the investigator(s) compares an assigned treatment against another assigned treatment known to be ineffective in the study population (e.g., in a population with known clarithromycin resistance) is unethical. As susceptibility-based therapy will always be superior to empiric therapy in any population with a prevalence of antimicrobial resistance >0%, any trial that randomizes susceptibility-based therapy with empiric therapy would be unethical. The journal Helicobacter welcomes susceptibility or culture-guided studies, studies of new therapies, and studies of adjuvants and probiotics. However, the journal will not accept for review any study we judge to be lacking clinical equipoise or which assign subjects to a treatment known to be ineffective, such as a susceptibility-based clinical trial with an empiric therapy comparator. To assist authors, we provide examples and suggestions regarding trial design for comparative studies, for susceptibility-based studies, and for studies testing adjuvants or probiotics. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  18. Epidemiological evidence for a health risk from mobile phone base stations.

    PubMed

    Khurana, Vini G; Hardell, Lennart; Everaert, Joris; Bortkiewicz, Alicja; Carlberg, Michael; Ahonen, Mikko

    2010-01-01

    Human populations are increasingly exposed to microwave/radiofrequency (RF) emissions from wireless communication technology, including mobile phones and their base stations. By searching PubMed, we identified a total of 10 epidemiological studies that assessed for putative health effects of mobile phone base stations. Seven of these studies explored the association between base station proximity and neurobehavioral effects and three investigated cancer. We found that eight of the 10 studies reported increased prevalence of adverse neurobehavioral symptoms or cancer in populations living at distances < 500 meters from base stations. None of the studies reported exposure above accepted international guidelines, suggesting that current guidelines may be inadequate in protecting the health of human populations. We believe that comprehensive epidemiological studies of long-term mobile phone base station exposure are urgently required to more definitively understand its health impact.

  19. Agent-based real-time signal coordination in congested networks.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2014-01-01

    This study is the continuation of a previous NEXTRANS study on agent-based reinforcement : learning methods for signal coordination in congested networks. In the previous study, the : formulation of a real-time agent-based traffic signal control in o...

  20. Evidence-Based Psychosocial Treatments for Child and Adolescent Depression

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    David-Ferdon, Corinne; Kaslow, Nadine J.

    2008-01-01

    The evidence-base of psychosocial treatment outcome studies for depressed youth conducted since 1998 is examined. All studies for depressed children meet Nathan and Gorman's (2002) criteria for Type 2 studies whereas the adolescent protocols meet criteria for both Type 1 and Type 2 studies. Based on the Task Force on the Promotion and…

  1. Analysis of Sleep Parameters in Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea Studied in a Hospital vs. a Hotel-Based Sleep Center

    PubMed Central

    Hutchison, Kimberly N.; Song, Yanna; Wang, Lily; Malow, Beth A.

    2008-01-01

    Background: Polysomnography is associated with changes in sleep architecture called the first-night effect. This effect is believed to result from sleeping in an unusual environment and the technical equipment used to study sleep. Sleep experts hope to decrease this variable by providing a more familiar, comfortable atmosphere for sleep testing through hotel-based sleep centers. In this study, we compared the sleep parameters of patients studied in our hotel-based and hospital-based sleep laboratories. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed polysomnograms completed in our hotel-based and hospital-based sleep laboratories from August 2003 to July 2005. All patients were undergoing evaluation for obstructive sleep apnea. Hospital-based patients were matched for age and apnea-hypopnea index with hotel-based patients. We compared the sleep architecture changes associated with the first-night effect in the two groups. The associated conditions and symptoms listed on the polysomnography referral forms are also compared. Results: No significant differences were detected between the two groups in sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency, REM sleep latency, total amount of slow wave sleep (NREM stages 3 and 4), arousal index, and total stage 1 sleep. Conclusions: This pilot study failed to show a difference in sleep parameters associated with the first-night effect in patients undergoing sleep studies in our hotel and hospital-based sleep laboratories. Future studies need to compare the first-night effect in different sleep disorders, preferably in multi-night recordings. Citation: Hutchison KN; Song Y; Wang L; Malow BA. Analysis of sleep parameters in patients with obstructive sleep apnea studied in a hospital vs. A hotel-based sleep center. J Clin Sleep Med 2008;4(2):119–122. PMID:18468309

  2. A comparison between conventional and LANDSAT based hydrologic modeling: The Four Mile Run case study

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ragan, R. M.; Jackson, T. J.; Fitch, W. N.; Shubinski, R. P.

    1976-01-01

    Models designed to support the hydrologic studies associated with urban water resources planning require input parameters that are defined in terms of land cover. Estimating the land cover is a difficult and expensive task when drainage areas larger than a few sq. km are involved. Conventional and LANDSAT based methods for estimating the land cover based input parameters required by hydrologic planning models were compared in a case study of the 50.5 sq. km (19.5 sq. mi) Four Mile Run Watershed in Virginia. Results of the study indicate that the LANDSAT based approach is highly cost effective for planning model studies. The conventional approach to define inputs was based on 1:3600 aerial photos, required 110 man-days and a total cost of $14,000. The LANDSAT based approach required 6.9 man-days and cost $2,350. The conventional and LANDSAT based models gave similar results relative to discharges and estimated annual damages expected from no flood control, channelization, and detention storage alternatives.

  3. The temporal stability and predictive validity of affect-based and cognition-based intentions.

    PubMed

    Keer, Mario; Conner, Mark; Van den Putte, Bas; Neijens, Peter

    2014-06-01

    Recent research has revealed individual differences in the extent to which people base their intentions on affect and cognition. Two studies are presented that assess whether such differences predict the strength of individuals' intention-behaviour relationships. Participants completed measures of affect, cognition, intention, and behaviour regarding a range of health behaviours. Study 1 (N = 300) found that the strength of the intention-behaviour relationship was significantly related to the extent to which individuals based their intentions on affect, but not to the extent they based them on cognition. Study 2 (N = 387) replicated the findings of the first study. In addition, Study 2 revealed that intention stability mediated the relationship between the degree people based their intentions on affect and the strength of the intention-behaviour relationship. Thus, individuals who base their intentions strongly on affect have more stable intentions, and are therefore more likely to enact them. © 2013 The British Psychological Society.

  4. Interactive Diet and Activity Tracking in AARP (IDATA) Study Data | Division of Cancer Prevention

    Cancer.gov

    The Interactive Diet and Activity Tracking in AARP (IDATA) Study is a methodologic study of device-based, internet-based, and conventional self-report instrum | Device-based and intensive self-report physical activity and diet data with biomarkers

  5. Using Game-Based Cooperative Learning to Improve Learning Motivation: A Study of Online Game Use in an Operating Systems Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jong, Bin-Shyan; Lai, Chien-Hung; Hsia, Yen-Teh; Lin, Tsong-Wuu; Lu, Cheng-Yu

    2013-01-01

    Many researchers have studied the use of game-based learning. Game-based learning takes many forms, including virtual reality, role playing, and performing tasks. For students to learn specific course content, it is important that the selected game be suited to the course. Thus far, no studies have investigated the use of game-based cooperative…

  6. Morphological configuration of the cranial base among children aged 8 to 12 years.

    PubMed

    Cossio, Lina; López, Jorge; Rueda, Zulma Vanessa; Botero-Mariaca, Paola

    2016-06-14

    Cranial base is used as reference structure to determine the skeletal type in cephalometric analysis. The purpose was to assess the cranial base length on lateral cephalic radiographs of children between 8 and 12 and compare these measurements with baseline studies in order to evaluate the relationship between the length and the cranial base angle, articular angle, gonial angle and skeletal type. A Cross-sectional study in 149 children aged 8-12 years, originally from Aburrá Valley, who had lateral cephalic radiographs and consented to participate in this study. The variables studied included: age, sex, sella-nasion, sella-nasion-articular, sella-nasion-basion, articular-gonion-menton, gonion-menton, sella-nasion-point B, sella-nasion-point A y point A-nasion-point B. These variables were digitally measured through i-dixel 2 digital software. One-way ANOVA was used to determine mean values and mean value differences. The values obtained were compared with previous studies. A p value <0.05 was considered significant. Cranial base lengths are smaller in each age and sex group, with differences exceeding 10 mm for measurement, compared both with the study by Riolo (Michigan) and the study carried out in Damasco (Antioquia). No relation was found between the skeletal type and the anterior cranial base length, the sella angle and the cranial base angle. Also, no relation was found between the gonial angle and sella angle or the cranial base angle. The cranial base varies from one population to another. Accordingly, compared to other studies it is shorter for the assessed sample.

  7. Systems engineering studies of lunar base construction

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Morgenthaler, George W.

    1991-01-01

    Many ingenious concepts have been proposed for lunar base construction, but few systematic studies exist which relate time-consistent lunar base construction technologies and the choice of lunar base approach with the long-term SEI objectives - i.e., lunar indigenous base construction and Mars Exploration equipment development. To fill this gap, CSC has taken a two-pronged approach. First, the Center undertook basic geotechnical investigations of lunar soil, fabrication of a scale prototype of a lunar construction crane, a multi-robot construction team laboratory experiment, and a preliminary design of lunar base structures. Second, during Jun. and Jul. 1991 two lunar base construction systems engineering studies were accomplished - a 'near term lunar base' study, and a 'far-term lunar base' study. The goals of these studies were to define the major lunar base construction research problems in consistent technology/construction frameworks, and to define design requirements for construction equipment such as a lunar crane and a regolith mover. The 'near-term lunar base' study examined three different construction concepts for a lunar base comprised of pre-fabricated, pre-tested, Space Station Freedom-type modules, which would be covered with regolith shielding. Concept A used a lunar crane for unloading and transportation; concept B, a winch and cart; and concept C, a walker to move the modules from the landing site to the base site and assemble them. To evaluate the merits of each approach, calculations were made of mass efficiency measure, source mass, reliability, far-term base mass, Mars base mass, and base assembly time. The model thus established was also used to define the requirements for crane speed and regolith mover m(sup 3)/sec rates. A major problem addressed is how to 'mine' the regolith and stack it over the habitats as shielding. To identify when the cost of using indigenous lunar materials to construct the base exceeds the cost of development and delivery of the equipment for processing lunar materials, a study of construction of a candidate sintered regolith 'far term lunar base' was undertaken. A technique was devised for casting slabs of sintered (basaltic) regolith and assembling these into a hemispherical (or geodesic) dome. The major problem occurs with the inner liner. At 14.7 psi and 20 percent oxygen internal atmosphere, the entire structure is in tension, even with the regolith load. Also, another study has indicated that at 14.7 psi major resupply of air will be needed because of leakage, and astronauts may have to engage in extensive pre-breathing and post-breathing for extravehicular activity (EVA) tasks, thus detracting from useful mission work time. An alternative is to operate part of the base at, say, 5 psi and 70 percent oxygen, or to equip the astronauts with hard suits at 8.3 psi or greater. All of these choices directly influence base design and construction techniques.

  8. Virtual reality-based simulators for spine surgery: a systematic review.

    PubMed

    Pfandler, Michael; Lazarovici, Marc; Stefan, Philipp; Wucherer, Patrick; Weigl, Matthias

    2017-09-01

    Virtual reality (VR)-based simulators offer numerous benefits and are very useful in assessing and training surgical skills. Virtual reality-based simulators are standard in some surgical subspecialties, but their actual use in spinal surgery remains unclear. Currently, only technical reviews of VR-based simulators are available for spinal surgery. Thus, we performed a systematic review that examined the existing research on VR-based simulators in spinal procedures. We also assessed the quality of current studies evaluating VR-based training in spinal surgery. Moreover, we wanted to provide a guide for future studies evaluating VR-based simulators in this field. This is a systematic review of the current scientific literature regarding VR-based simulation in spinal surgery. Five data sources were systematically searched to identify relevant peer-reviewed articles regarding virtual, mixed, or augmented reality-based simulators in spinal surgery. A qualitative data synthesis was performed with particular attention to evaluation approaches and outcomes. Additionally, all included studies were appraised for their quality using the Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument (MERSQI) tool. The initial review identified 476 abstracts and 63 full texts were then assessed by two reviewers. Finally, 19 studies that examined simulators for the following procedures were selected: pedicle screw placement, vertebroplasty, posterior cervical laminectomy and foraminotomy, lumbar puncture, facet joint injection, and spinal needle insertion and placement. These studies had a low-to-medium methodological quality with a MERSQI mean score of 11.47 out of 18 (standard deviation=1.81). This review described the current state and applications of VR-based simulator training and assessment approaches in spinal procedures. Limitations, strengths, and future advancements of VR-based simulators for training and assessment in spinal surgery were explored. Higher-quality studies with patient-related outcome measures are needed. To establish further adaptation of VR-based simulators in spinal surgery, future evaluations need to improve the study quality, apply long-term study designs, and examine non-technical skills, as well as multidisciplinary team training. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Evaluation of cardiovascular risk-lowering health benefits accruing from laboratory-based, community-based and exercise-referral exercise programmes.

    PubMed

    Webb, R; Thompson, J E S; Ruffino, J-S; Davies, N A; Watkeys, L; Hooper, S; Jones, P M; Walters, G; Clayton, D; Thomas, A W; Morris, K; Llewellyn, D H; Ward, M; Wyatt-Williams, J; McDonnell, B J

    2016-01-01

    To evaluate the ability of community-based exercise programmes to facilitate public participation in exercise and hence improved cardiovascular health, we assessed the respective impacts of: a continuously monitored exercise programme based within our university (study 1); a Valleys Regional Park-facilitated community-based outdoor exercise programme (study 2); a Wales National Exercise Referral Scheme-delivered exercise-referral programme (study 3). Biomolecular (monocytic PPARγ target gene expression), vascular haemodynamic (central/peripheral blood pressure, arterial stiffness), clinical (insulin sensitivity, blood lipids) and anthropometric (body mass index, waist circumference, heart rate) parameters were investigated using RT-PCR, applanation tonometry, chemical analysis and standard anthropometric techniques. In studies 1-3, 22/28, 32/65 and 11/14 participants adhered to their respective exercise programmes, and underwent significant increases in physical activity levels. Importantly, beneficial effects similar to those seen in our previous studies (eg, modulations in expression of monocytic PPARγ target genes, decreases in blood pressure/arterial stiffness, improvements in blood lipids/insulin sensitivity) were observed (albeit to slightly differing extents) only in participants who adhered to their respective exercise programmes. While study 1 achieved more intense exercise and more pronounced beneficial effects, significant cardiovascular risk-lowering health benefits related to biomolecular markers, blood pressure, arterial stiffness and blood lipids were achieved via community/referral-based delivery modes in studies 2 and 3. Because cardiovascular health benefits were observed in all 3 studies, we conclude that the majority of benefits previously reported in laboratory-based studies can also be achieved in community-based/exercise-referral settings. These findings may be of use in guiding policymakers with regard to introduction and/or continued implementation of community/referral-based exercise programmes.

  10. Editorial - Avoiding unethical Helicobacter pylori clinical trials: Susceptibility-based studies and probiotics as adjuvants

    PubMed Central

    Graham, David Y.

    2016-01-01

    As a general rule, any clinical study where the result is already known or when the investigator(s) compares an assigned treatment against another assigned treatment known to be ineffective in the study population (e.g. in a population with known clarithromycin resistance) is unethical. Since susceptibility-based therapy will always be superior to empiric therapy in any population with a prevalence of antimicrobial resistance greater than 0%, any trial that randomizes susceptibility-based therapy with empiric therapy would be unethical. The journal Helicobacter welcomes susceptibility or culture-guided studies, studies of new therapies and of adjuvants and probiotics. However, the Journal will not accept for review any study we judge to be lacking clinical equipoise or which assign subjects to a treatment known to be ineffective, such as a susceptibility-based clinical trial with an empiric therapy comparator. To assist authors we provide examples and suggestion regarding trial design for comparative studies, for susceptibility-based studies, and for studies testing adjuvants or probiotics. PMID:26123529

  11. Analysis of sleep parameters in patients with obstructive sleep apnea studied in a hospital vs. a hotel-based sleep center.

    PubMed

    Hutchison, Kimberly N; Song, Yanna; Wang, Lily; Malow, Beth A

    2008-04-15

    Polysomnography is associated with changes in sleep architecture called the first-night effect. This effect is believed to result from sleeping in an unusual environment and the technical equipment used to study sleep. Sleep experts hope to decrease this variable by providing a more familiar, comfortable atmosphere for sleep testing through hotel-based sleep centers. In this study, we compared the sleep parameters of patients studied in our hotel-based and hospital-based sleep laboratories. We retrospectively reviewed polysomnograms completed in our hotel-based and hospital-based sleep laboratories from August 2003 to July 2005. All patients were undergoing evaluation for obstructive sleep apnea. Hospital-based patients were matched for age and apnea-hypopnea index with hotel-based patients. We compared the sleep architecture changes associated with the first-night effect in the two groups. The associated conditions and symptoms listed on the polysomnography referral forms are also compared. No significant differences were detected between the two groups in sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency, REM sleep latency, total amount of slow wave sleep (NREM stages 3 and 4), arousal index, and total stage 1 sleep. This pilot study failed to show a difference in sleep parameters associated with the first-night effect in patients undergoing sleep studies in our hotel and hospital-based sleep laboratories. Future studies need to compare the first-night effect in different sleep disorders, preferably in multi-night recordings.

  12. Water-based exercise training for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

    PubMed

    McNamara, Renae J; McKeough, Zoe J; McKenzie, David K; Alison, Jennifer A

    2013-12-18

    Land-based exercise training improves exercise capacity and quality of life in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Water-based exercise training is an alternative mode of physical exercise training that may appeal to the older population attending pulmonary rehabilitation programmes, those who are unable to complete land-based exercise programmes and people with COPD with comorbid physical and medical conditions. To assess the effects of water-based exercise training in people with COPD. A search of the Cochrane Airways Group Specialised Register of trials, which is derived from systematic searches of bibliographic databases, including the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, AMED and PsycINFO, was conducted (from inception to August 2013). Handsearching was done to identify further qualifying studies from reference lists of relevant studies. Review authors included randomised or quasi-randomised controlled trials in which water-based exercise training of at least four weeks' duration was compared with no exercise training or any other form of exercise training in people with COPD. Swimming was excluded. We used standard methodological procedures expected by The Cochrane Collaboration. Five studies were included with a total of 176 participants (71 people participated in water-based exercise training and 54 in land-based exercise training; 51 completed no exercise training). All studies compared supervised water-based exercise training versus land-based exercise training and/or no exercise training in people with COPD (with average forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) %predicted ranging from 39% to 62%). Sample sizes ranged from 11 to 53 participants. The exercise training programmes lasted from four to 12 weeks, and the mean age of participants ranged from 57 to 73 years. A moderate risk of bias was due to lack of reporting of randomisation, allocation and blinding procedures in some studies, as well as small sample sizes.Compared with no exercise, water-based exercise training improved the six-minute walk distance (mean difference (MD) 62 metres; 95% confidence interval (CI) 44 to 80 metres; three studies; 99 participants; moderate quality evidence), the incremental shuttle walk distance (MD 50 metres; 95% CI 20 to 80 metres; one study; 30 participants; high quality evidence) and the endurance shuttle walk distance (MD 371 metres; 95% CI 121 to 621 metres; one study; 30 participants; high quality evidence). Quality of life was also improved after water-based exercise training compared with no exercise (standardised mean difference (SMD) -0.97, 95% CI -0.37 to -1.57; two studies; 49 participants; low quality evidence). Compared with land-based exercise training, water-based exercise training did not significantly change the six-minute walk distance (MD 11 metres; 95% CI -11 to 33 metres; three studies; 62 participants; moderate quality evidence) or the incremental shuttle walk distance (MD 9 metres; 95% CI -15 to 34 metres; two studies; 59 participants; low quality evidence). However, the endurance shuttle walk distance improved following water-based exercise training compared with land-based exercise training (MD 313 metres; 95% CI 232 to 394 metres; two studies; 59 participants; moderate quality evidence). No significant differences were found between water-based exercise training and land-based exercise training for quality of life, as measured by the St George's Respiratory Questionnaire or by three of four domains of the Chronic Respiratory Disease Questionnaire (CRDQ); however, the fatigue domain of the CRDQ showed a statistically significant difference in favour of water-based exercise (MD -3.00; 95% CI -5.26 to -0.74; one study; 30 participants). Only one study reported long-term outcomes after water-based exercise training for quality of life and body composition, and no significant change was observed between baseline results and six-month follow-up results. One minor adverse event was reported for water-based exercise training (based on reporting from two studies; 20 participants). Impact of disease severity could not be examined because data were insufficient. There is limited quality evidence that water-based exercise training is safe and improves exercise capacity and quality of life in people with COPD immediately after training. There is limited quality evidence that water-based exercise training offers advantages over land-based exercise training in improving endurance exercise capacity, but we remain uncertain as to whether it leads to better quality of life. Little evidence exists examining the long-term effect of water-based exercise training.

  13. Systematic Review of Couple-Based HIV Intervention and Prevention Studies: Advantages, Gaps, and Future Directions

    PubMed Central

    El-Bassel, Nabila

    2015-01-01

    We conducted a systematic review of couple-based HIV biobehavioral (skills-building, VCT, and adherence) and biomedical (ART, circumcision) prevention and intervention studies designed to reduce sexual-and drug-risk behaviors and HIV transmission and acquisition. Of the 11,162 papers identified in the search, 93 peer-reviewed papers met the inclusion criteria and yielded a total of 33 studies conducted globally. Biobehavioral couple-based prevention and intervention studies have been efficacious in reducing sexual- and drug-risk behaviors, increasing access to HIV testing and care, and improving adherence. Biomedical couple-based studies were found to reduce HIV incidence among HIV-negative sex partners and viral load among HIV-positive partners. Despite much progress, couple-based HIV prevention and intervention studies remain limited; a number of methodological gaps exist and studies focusing on MSM, people who inject drugs, and sex workers are scarce. PMID:24980246

  14. 75 FR 27112 - Solicitation of Applications and Notice of Funding Availability for the FRA Railroad System...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-05-13

    ... (2) to conduct a Study of the Use of Bio- based Technologies (Lubricants) that can be used in... of the Use of Bio-based Technologies.'' The study will focus on the feasibility of using readily... two grants, ``Locomotive Biofuel Study'' and the ``Study of the Use of Bio-based Technologies...

  15. Does a pre-intervention functional assessment increase intervention effectiveness? A meta-analysis of within-subject interrupted time-series studies.

    PubMed

    Hurl, Kylee; Wightman, Jade; Haynes, Stephen N; Virues-Ortega, Javier

    2016-07-01

    This study examined the relative effectiveness of interventions based on a pre-intervention functional behavioral assessment (FBA), compared to interventions not based on a pre-intervention FBA. We examined 19 studies that included a direct comparison between the effects of FBA- and non-FBA-based interventions with the same participants. A random effects meta-analysis of effect sizes indicated that FBA-based interventions were associated with large reductions in problem behaviors when using non-FBA-based interventions as a reference intervention (Effect size=0.85, 95% CI [0.42, 1.27], p<0.001). In addition, non-FBA based interventions had no effect on problem behavior when compared to no intervention (0.06, 95% CI [-0.21, 0.33], p=0.664). Interestingly, both FBA-based and non-FBA-based interventions had significant effects on appropriate behavior relative to no intervention, albeit the overall effect size was much larger for FBA-based interventions (FBA-based: 1.27, 95% CI [0.89, 1.66], p<0.001 vs. non-FBA-based: 0.35, 95% CI [0.14, 0.56], p=0.001). In spite of the evidence in favor of FBA-based interventions, the limited number of comparative studies with high methodological standards underlines the need for further comparisons of FBA-based versus non-FBA-based interventions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. The internet as psychological laboratory.

    PubMed

    Skitka, Linda J; Sargis, Edward G

    2006-01-01

    This chapter reviews studies published in American Psychological Association (APA) journals from 2003-2004 and additional studies (received in response to listserv requests) that used the Internet to collect data (N=121 total studies). Specific examples of three kinds of Web-based research are reviewed: (a) translational (established methods and research questions are adapted to the Web), (b) phenomenological (behavior on the Web is the focus of study), and (c) novel (methodologically innovations unique to Web-based research). Among other findings, our review indicated that 21% of APA journals published at least one article that reported on Web-based research, most Web-based psychological research uses experimental methods, a surprising number use college student samples, and deception in Web-based research is not uncommon. Strengths and weaknesses of Web-based psychological research in general, and our sample of studies in particular, are reviewed with special attention to possible concerns about sampling and the use of deception.

  17. Community-Based Addiction Treatment Staff Attitudes about the Usefulness of Evidence-Based Addiction Treatment and CBO Organizational Linkages to Research Institutions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lundgren, Lena; Krull, Ivy; Zerden, Lisa de Saxe; McCarty, Dennis

    2011-01-01

    This national study of community-based addiction-treatment organizations' (CBOs) implementation of evidence-based practices explored CBO Program Directors' (n = 296) and clinical staff (n = 518) attitudes about the usefulness of science-based addiction treatment. Through multivariable regression modeling, the study identified that identical…

  18. Inquiry-based instruction in secondary science classrooms: A survey of teacher practice

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gejda, Linda Muggeo

    The purpose of this quantitative investigation was to describe the extent to which secondary science teachers, who were certified through Connecticut's BEST portfolio assessment process between 1997 and 2004 and had taught secondary science during the past academic year, reported practicing the indicators of inquiry-based instruction in the classroom and the factors that they perceived facilitated, obstructed, or informed that practice. Indicators of inquiry-based instruction were derived from the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS) 5E model (Bybee, 1997). The method for data collection was a researcher-developed, self-report, questionnaire entitled "Inquiry-based Instruction in Secondary Science Classrooms: A Survey", which was developed and disseminated using a slightly modified Dillman (2000) approach. Almost all of the study participants reported practicing the 5Es (engage, explore, explain, elaborate, and evaluate) of inquiry-based instruction in their secondary science classrooms. Time, resources, the need to cover material for mandatory assessments, the science topics or concepts being taught, and professional development on inquiry-based instruction were reported to be important considerations in participants' decisions to practice inquiry-based instruction in their science classrooms. A majority of the secondary science teachers participating in this study indicated they had the time, access to resources and the professional development opportunities they needed to practice inquiry-based instruction in their secondary classrooms. Study participants ranked having the time to teach in an inquiry-based fashion and the need to cover material for mandated testing as the biggest obstacles to their practice of inquiry-based instruction in the secondary classroom. Classroom experience and collegial exchange informed the inquiry-based instruction practice of the secondary science teachers who participated in this study. Recommendations for further research, practice, and policy were made based upon the results of this study.

  19. Culture and group-based emotions: could group-based emotions be dialectical?

    PubMed

    Lu, Minjie; Hamamura, Takeshi; Doosje, Bertjan; Suzuki, Satoko; Takemura, Kosuke

    2017-08-01

    Group-based emotions are experienced when individuals are engaged in emotion-provoking events that implicate the in-group. This research examines the complexity of group-based emotions, specifically a concurrence of positive and negative emotions, focusing on the role of dialecticism, or a set of folk beliefs prevalent in Asian cultures that views nature and objects as constantly changing, inherently contradictory, and fundamentally interconnected. Study 1 found that dialecticism is positively associated with the complexity of Chinese participants' group-based emotions after reading a scenario depicting a positive intergroup experience. Study 2 found that Chinese participants experienced more complex group-based emotions compared with Dutch participants in an intergroup situation and that this cultural difference was mediated by dialecticism. Study 3 manipulated dialecticism and confirmed its causal effect on complex group-based emotions. These studies also suggested the role of a balanced appraisal of an intergroup situation as a mediating factor.

  20. The Utility of Curriculum-Based Measurement within a Multitiered Framework: Establishing Cut Scores as Predictors of Student Performance on the Alaska Standards-Based Assessment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Legg, David E.

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between student performance on Reading Curriculum-based Measures (R-CBM) and student performance on the Alaska's standards based assessment (SBA) administered to students in Studied School District (SSD) Grade 3 through Grade 5 students in the Studied School District as required by…

  1. Measuring Listening Comprehension Skills of 5th Grade School Students with the Help of Web Based System

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Acat, M. Bahaddin; Demiral, Hilmi; Kaya, Mehmet Fatih

    2016-01-01

    The main purpose of this study is to measure listening comprehension skills of 5th grade school students with the help of web based system. This study was conducted on 5th grade students studying at the primary schools of Eskisehir. The scale used in the process of the study is "Web Based Listening Scale". In the process of the study,…

  2. Counting-On, Trading and Partitioning: Effects of Training and Prior Knowledge on Performance on Base-10 Tasks

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Saxton, Matthew; Cakir, Kadir

    2006-01-01

    Factors affecting performance on base-10 tasks were investigated in a series of four studies with a total of 453 children aged 5-7 years. Training in counting-on was found to enhance child performance on base-10 tasks (Studies 2, 3, and 4), while prior knowledge of counting-on (Study 1), trading (Studies 1 and 3), and partitioning (Studies 1 and…

  3. A SAS-based solution to evaluate study design efficiency of phase I pediatric oncology trials via discrete event simulation.

    PubMed

    Barrett, Jeffrey S; Jayaraman, Bhuvana; Patel, Dimple; Skolnik, Jeffrey M

    2008-06-01

    Previous exploration of oncology study design efficiency has focused on Markov processes alone (probability-based events) without consideration for time dependencies. Barriers to study completion include time delays associated with patient accrual, inevaluability (IE), time to dose limiting toxicities (DLT) and administrative and review time. Discrete event simulation (DES) can incorporate probability-based assignment of DLT and IE frequency, correlated with cohort in the case of DLT, with time-based events defined by stochastic relationships. A SAS-based solution to examine study efficiency metrics and evaluate design modifications that would improve study efficiency is presented. Virtual patients are simulated with attributes defined from prior distributions of relevant patient characteristics. Study population datasets are read into SAS macros which select patients and enroll them into a study based on the specific design criteria if the study is open to enrollment. Waiting times, arrival times and time to study events are also sampled from prior distributions; post-processing of study simulations is provided within the decision macros and compared across designs in a separate post-processing algorithm. This solution is examined via comparison of the standard 3+3 decision rule relative to the "rolling 6" design, a newly proposed enrollment strategy for the phase I pediatric oncology setting.

  4. [Research-based thinking of nurses at the end of their basic nursing education].

    PubMed

    Säämänen, J

    1993-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to find out the level of research-based thinking that students have internalized during their professional education. The research-based thinking of students has been investigated by analyzing the study reports, they have made at the end of their professional education. "The research-based thinking" is evaluated from the perspective of a research consumer. So, the purpose of this study was not to evaluate the level of studies, but the basis of them. The data consisted of 51 study reports. The data was analyzed by using the content analysis and descriptive statistics. The content analysis was based on the set of general rules for research using deductive methods of approach. The students' problems in research-based thinking fell mainly into the following parts: (1) the students did not use previous studies to build up the frame and the problems of their study, the students used scientific publications limitedly, it seems that the knowledge had the same value to the students regardless of the reference they have taken it from; (2) the students had difficulties in connecting the empirical part of their study with theoretical or conceptual frame. In this study the results indicated, that Finnish nursing students' research-based thinking is not mature in their study-reports at the end of education. It seems important to do further research to be able to analyze the reasons for these findings and how education could be improved in the future.

  5. Getting Personal with Teacher Burnout: A Longitudinal Study on the Development of Burnout Using a Person-Based Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hultell, Daniel; Melin, Bo; Gustavsson, J. Petter

    2013-01-01

    Studies have suggested that teachers' burnout levels are stable over time. This might be because longitudinal studies on burnout have mainly used a variable-based approach. The purpose of this study was to determine if a person-based approach could provide a more multifaceted perspective to the development of teacher burnout. 816 beginning…

  6. Evaluation of the Professional Development Program on Web Based Content Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yurdakul, Bünyamin; Uslu, Öner; Çakar, Esra; Yildiz, Derya G.

    2014-01-01

    The aim of this study is to evaluate the professional development program on web based content development (WBCD) designed by the Ministry of National Education (MoNE). Based on the theoretical CIPP model by Stufflebeam and Guskey's levels of evaluation, the study was carried out as a case study. The study group consisted of the courses that…

  7. A Case Study of Policies and Procedures to Address Cyberbullying at a Technology-Based Middle School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tate, Bettina Polite

    2017-01-01

    This qualitative case study explored the policies and procedures used to effectively address cyberbullying at a technology-based middle school. The purpose of the study was to gain an in-depth understanding of policies and procedures used to address cyberbullying at a technology-based middle school in the southern United States. The study sought…

  8. Effects of Performance-Based Financial Incentives on Work Performance: A Study of Technical-Level Employees in the Private Sector in Sri Lanka

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wickramasinghe, Vathsala; Dabere, Sampath

    2012-01-01

    The objective of the study is to investigate the effect of performance-based financial incentives on work performance. The study hypothesized that the design features of performance-based financial incentive schemes themselves may influence individuals' work performance. For the study, survey methodology was used and 93 technical-level employees…

  9. Health Education and Symptom Flare Management Using a Video-Based m-Health System for Caring Women with IC/BPS.

    PubMed

    Lee, Ming-Huei; Wu, Huei-Ching; Tseng, Chien-Ming; Ko, Tsung-Liang; Weng, Tang-Jun; Chen, Yung-Fu

    2018-06-10

    To assess effectiveness of the video-based m-health system providing videos dictated by physicians for health education and symptom self-management for patients with IC/BPS. An m-health system was designed to provide videos for weekly health education and symptom flare self-management. O'Leary-Sant index and VAS scale as well as SF-36 health survey were administrated to evaluate the disease severity and quality of life (QoL), respectively. A total of 60 IC/BPS patients were recruited and randomly assigned to either control group (30 patients) or study group (30 patients) in sequence depending on their orders to visit our urological clinic. Patients in both control and study groups received regular treatments, while those in the study group received additional video-based intervention. Statistical analyses were conducted to compare the outcomes between baseline and post-intervention for both groups. The outcomes of video-based intervention were also compared with the text-based intervention conducted in our previous study. After video-based intervention, patients in the study group exhibited significant effect manifested in all disease severity and QoL assessments except the VAS pain scale, while no significance was found in the control group. Moreover, the study group exhibited more significant net improvements than the control group in 7 SF-36 constructs, except the mental health. The limitations include short intervention duration (8 weeks) and different study periods between text-based and video-based interventions. Video-based intervention is effective in improving the QoL of IC/BPS patients and outperforms the text-based intervention even in a short period of intervention. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  10. The Relative Effectiveness of Computer-Based and Traditional Resources for Education in Anatomy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Khot, Zaid; Quinlan, Kaitlyn; Norman, Geoffrey R.; Wainman, Bruce

    2013-01-01

    There is increasing use of computer-based resources to teach anatomy, although no study has compared computer-based learning to traditional. In this study, we examine the effectiveness of three formats of anatomy learning: (1) a virtual reality (VR) computer-based module, (2) a static computer-based module providing Key Views (KV), (3) a plastic…

  11. Designing Web-Based Educative Curriculum Materials for the Social Studies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Callahan, Cory; Saye, John; Brush, Thomas

    2013-01-01

    This paper reports on a design experiment of web-based curriculum materials explicitly created to help social studies teachers develop their professional teaching knowledge. Web-based social studies curriculum reform efforts, human-centered interface design, and investigations into educative curriculum materials are reviewed, as well as…

  12. College-Based Case Studies in Using PowerPoint Effectively

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Inoue-Smith, Yukiko

    2016-01-01

    This study reexamined PowerPoint's potential to enhance traditional pedagogical practices in higher education. The study addressed (1) the conditions under which PowerPoint meets students' needs in typical lecture-based classrooms, (2) whether professors consider PowerPoint-based lectures more effective than lectures supported by material on…

  13. Review Article: A comparison of flood and earthquake vulnerability assessment indicators

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    de Ruiter, Marleen C.; Ward, Philip J.; Daniell, James E.; Aerts, Jeroen C. J. H.

    2017-07-01

    In a cross-disciplinary study, we carried out an extensive literature review to increase understanding of vulnerability indicators used in the disciplines of earthquake- and flood vulnerability assessments. We provide insights into potential improvements in both fields by identifying and comparing quantitative vulnerability indicators grouped into physical and social categories. Next, a selection of index- and curve-based vulnerability models that use these indicators are described, comparing several characteristics such as temporal and spatial aspects. Earthquake vulnerability methods traditionally have a strong focus on object-based physical attributes used in vulnerability curve-based models, while flood vulnerability studies focus more on indicators applied to aggregated land-use classes in curve-based models. In assessing the differences and similarities between indicators used in earthquake and flood vulnerability models, we only include models that separately assess either of the two hazard types. Flood vulnerability studies could be improved using approaches from earthquake studies, such as developing object-based physical vulnerability curve assessments and incorporating time-of-the-day-based building occupation patterns. Likewise, earthquake assessments could learn from flood studies by refining their selection of social vulnerability indicators. Based on the lessons obtained in this study, we recommend future studies for exploring risk assessment methodologies across different hazard types.

  14. Mobile phone base stations-Effects on wellbeing and health.

    PubMed

    Kundi, Michael; Hutter, Hans-Peter

    2009-08-01

    Studying effects of mobile phone base station signals on health have been discouraged by authoritative bodies like WHO International EMF Project and COST 281. WHO recommended studies around base stations in 2003 but again stated in 2006 that studies on cancer in relation to base station exposure are of low priority. As a result only few investigations of effects of base station exposure on health and wellbeing exist. Cross-sectional investigations of subjective health as a function of distance or measured field strength, despite differences in methods and robustness of study design, found indications for an effect of exposure that is likely independent of concerns and attributions. Experimental studies applying short-term exposure to base station signals gave various results, but there is weak evidence that UMTS and to a lesser degree GSM signals reduce wellbeing in persons that report to be sensitive to such exposures. Two ecological studies of cancer in the vicinity of base stations report both a strong increase of incidence within a radius of 350 and 400m respectively. Due to the limitations inherent in this design no firm conclusions can be drawn, but the results underline the urgent need for a comprehensive investigation of this issue. Animal and in vitro studies are inconclusive to date. An increased incidence of DMBA induced mammary tumors in rats at a SAR of 1.4W/kg in one experiment could not be replicated in a second trial. Indications of oxidative stress after low-level in vivo exposure of rats could not be supported by in vitro studies of human fibroblasts and glioblastoma cells. From available evidence it is impossible to delineate a threshold below which no effect occurs, however, given the fact that studies reporting low exposure were invariably negative it is suggested that power densities around 0.5-1mW/m(2) must be exceeded in order to observe an effect. The meager data base must be extended in the coming years. The difficulties of investigating long-term effects of base station exposure have been exaggerated, considering that base station and handset exposure have almost nothing in common both needs to be studied independently. It cannot be accepted that studying base stations is postponed until there is firm evidence for mobile phones.

  15. Free-radical sensing by using naphthalimide based mesoporous silica (MCM-41) nanoparticles: A combined fluorescence and cellular imaging study

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jha, Gaurav; Roy, Subhasis; Sahu, Prabhat Kumar; Banerjee, Somnath; Anoop, N.; Rahaman, Abdur; Sarkar, Moloy

    2018-01-01

    Keeping in mind the advantages of material-based systems over simple molecule-based systems, we have designed and developed three inorganic-organic hybrid systems by anchoring 1,8-naphthalimide derivatives to mesoporous silica nanoparticles for detection of free radicals. Prior to photophysical study, systems are characterized by spectroscopic, microscopic and thermo-gravimetric techniques. Steady state and time-resolved fluorescence studies demonstrate that the hydrazine based system is senstive towards detection of various free radicals. Cellular imaging study reveals cell permeability and toxicity study demonstrates the non-toxic nature of the material. These studies have suggested that present system has the potential to be used in various biological applications.

  16. Nurses' perceptions of evidence-based practice: a quantitative study at a teaching hospital in Iran.

    PubMed

    Shafiei, Ebrahim; Baratimarnani, Ahmad; Goharinezhad, Salime; Kalhor, Rohollah; Azmal, Mohammad

    2014-01-01

    Evidence-based practice (EBP) provides nurses a method to use critically appraised and scientifically proven evidence for delivering quality health care and the best decision that leads to quality outcomes. The purpose of this study was to measure the practice, attitude and knowledge/skill of evidence-based practice of nurses in a teaching hospital in Iran. This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2011.The study sample was composed of 195 nurses who were working at the Fatemeh Zahra Hospital affiliated to Bushehr University of Medical Sciences (BPUMS). The survey instrument was a questionnaire based on Upton and Upton study. This tool measures Nurses' perceptions in the three sub-scales of practice, attitude and knowledge/skill of evidence-based practice. Descriptive statistical analysis was used to analyze the data. Pearson correlation coefficients were used to examine the relationship between subscales. The overall mean score of the evidence-based practice in this study was 4.48±1.26 from 7, and the three subscales of practice, attitude and knowledge/skill in evidence-based practice were, 4.58±1.24, 4.57±1.35 and 4.39±1.20, respectively. There was a strong relationship between knowledge and performance subscale (r=0.73,p<0.01). Findings of the study indicate that more training and education are required for evidence-based nursing. Successful implementation of evidence-based nursing depends on organizational plans and empowerment programs in hospitals. Hence, hospital managers should formulate a comprehensive strategy for improving EBP.

  17. A preliminary evaluation of the training effects of a didactic and simulation-based psychological first aid program in students and school counselors in South Korea.

    PubMed

    Lee, Jong-Sun; You, Sungeun; Choi, Yun-Kyeung; Youn, Hyae-Young; Shin, Hye Sook

    2017-01-01

    The present study aimed to examine the training effects of a didactic and simulation-based psychological first aid (PFA) program. Based on the competency-based model, the study sought to examine whether the PFA training would enhance knowledge, skills, and attitudes. Study 1 examined the training effects of the PFA program in a sample of undergraduate and graduate students in psychology. Study 2 was conducted with school counselors. In both studies, all participants completed a one-day PFA workshop with a 3-hour didactic lecture and a 3-hour simulation-based practice. Assessments were conducted prior to the didactic lecture and upon completion of the simulation-based practice. In study 1, an examination of pre- and posttest comparisons indicated that the training significantly improved students' PFA knowledge and perceived competence in PFA skill. In study 2, the same PFA training significantly improved school counselors' PFA knowledge, perceived competence in PFA skill, perceived preparedness and confidence to provide psychological assistance for future disasters, but their perceived willingness to participate in psychological assistance did not significantly change after the training. This study provides preliminary evidence supporting the effectiveness of the PFA training program using a combined method of didactic and simulation-based practice for disaster mental health providers in Korea.

  18. A preliminary evaluation of the training effects of a didactic and simulation-based psychological first aid program in students and school counselors in South Korea

    PubMed Central

    Lee, Jong-Sun; Choi, Yun-Kyeung; Youn, Hyae-young; Shin, Hye Sook

    2017-01-01

    The present study aimed to examine the training effects of a didactic and simulation-based psychological first aid (PFA) program. Based on the competency-based model, the study sought to examine whether the PFA training would enhance knowledge, skills, and attitudes. Study 1 examined the training effects of the PFA program in a sample of undergraduate and graduate students in psychology. Study 2 was conducted with school counselors. In both studies, all participants completed a one-day PFA workshop with a 3-hour didactic lecture and a 3-hour simulation-based practice. Assessments were conducted prior to the didactic lecture and upon completion of the simulation-based practice. In study 1, an examination of pre- and posttest comparisons indicated that the training significantly improved students’ PFA knowledge and perceived competence in PFA skill. In study 2, the same PFA training significantly improved school counselors’ PFA knowledge, perceived competence in PFA skill, perceived preparedness and confidence to provide psychological assistance for future disasters, but their perceived willingness to participate in psychological assistance did not significantly change after the training. This study provides preliminary evidence supporting the effectiveness of the PFA training program using a combined method of didactic and simulation-based practice for disaster mental health providers in Korea. PMID:28715481

  19. The Impact of a Teaching-Learning Program Based on a Brain-Based Learning on the Achievement of the Female Students of 9th Grade in Chemistry

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shabatat, Kawthar; Al-Tarawneh, Mohammed

    2016-01-01

    This study aimed at recognizing the impact of teaching-learning program based on a brain-based learning on the achievement of female students of 9th grade in chemistry, to accomplish the goal of this study the researchers designed instruments of: instructional plans, pre achievement and past achievement exams to use them for the study-validity and…

  20. Response efficacy: the key to minimizing rejection and maximizing acceptance of emotion-based anti-speeding messages.

    PubMed

    Lewis, I M; Watson, B; White, K M

    2010-03-01

    This study sought to improve understanding of the persuasive process of emotion-based appeals not only in relation to negative, fear-based appeals but also for appeals based upon positive emotions. In particular, the study investigated whether response efficacy, as a cognitive construct, mediated outcome measures of message effectiveness in terms of both acceptance and rejection of negative and positive emotion-based messages. Licensed drivers (N=406) participated via the completion of an on-line survey. Within the survey, participants received either a negative (fear-based) appeal or one of the two possible positive appeals (pride or humor-based). Overall, the study's findings confirmed the importance of emotional and cognitive components of persuasive health messages and identified response efficacy as a key cognitive construct influencing the effectiveness of not only fear-based messages but also positive emotion-based messages. Interestingly, however, the results suggested that response efficacy's influence on message effectiveness may differ for positive and negative emotion-based appeals such that significant indirect (and mediational) effects were found with both acceptance and rejection of the positive appeals yet only with rejection of the fear-based appeal. As such, the study's findings provide an important extension to extant literature and may inform future advertising message design. Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Towards Evidence-Based Practice in Language Intervention for Bilingual Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thordardottir, Elin

    2010-01-01

    Evidence-based practice requires that clinical decisions be based on evidence from rigorously controlled research studies. At this time, very few studies have directly examined the efficacy of clinical intervention methods for bilingual children. Clinical decisions for this population cannot, therefore, be based on the strongest forms of research…

  2. Amniotic fluid embolism mortality rate.

    PubMed

    Benson, Michael D

    2017-11-01

    The objective of this study was to determine the mortality rate of amniotic fluid embolism (AFE) using population-based studies and case series. A literature search was conducted using the two key words: 'amniotic fluid embolism (AFE)' AND 'mortality rate'. Thirteen population-based studies were evaluated, as well as 36 case series including at least two patients. The mortality rate from population-based studies varied from 11% to 44%. When nine population-based studies with over 17 000 000 live births were aggregated, the maternal mortality rate was 20.4%. In contrast, the mortality rate of AFE in case series varies from 0% to 100% with numerous rates in between. The AFE mortality rate in population-based studies varied from 11% to 44% with the best available evidence supporting an overall mortality rate of 20.4%. Data from case series should no longer be used as a basis for describing the lethality of AFE. © 2017 Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

  3. Qualitative Study of Functional Groups and Antioxidant Properties of Soy-Based Beverages Compared to Cow Milk

    PubMed Central

    Durazzo, Alessandra; Gabrielli, Paolo; Manzi, Pamela

    2015-01-01

    Soy-based beverages are a source of high quality proteins and balanced nutrients; they thus represent an alternative to milk in case of allergy to cow milk proteins or intolerance to lactose. In this research, antioxidant properties of soy-based beverages and UHT cow milk were studied. In addition, color parameters, by a quick and non-destructive methodology, were studied in order to verify a possible correlation with antioxidant properties and a qualitative analysis of the major functional groups undertaken by Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) on Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR) was carried out. Extractable and hydrolysable polyphenols were studied in soy-based beverages. However, only the extractable fraction was studied in UHT milk, which was characterized by a small amount of polyphenols. All color parameters showed highly significant differences among soy-based beverages and between soy-based beverages and cow milk. FTIR-ATR spectra of soy-based beverages and cow milk showed several differences in the various regions depending on both the specific contribution of molecular groups and different food items. PMID:26783841

  4. Clinical applications of cell-based approaches in alveolar bone augmentation: a systematic review.

    PubMed

    Shanbhag, Siddharth; Shanbhag, Vivek

    2015-01-01

    Cell-based approaches, utilizing adult mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), are reported to overcome the limitations of conventional bone augmentation procedures. The study aims to systematically review the available evidence on the characteristics and clinical effectiveness of cell-based ridge augmentation, socket preservation, and sinus-floor augmentation, compared to current evidence-based methods in human adult patients. MEDLINE, EMBASE, and CENTRAL databases were searched for related literature. Both observational and experimental studies reporting outcomes of "tissue engineered" or "cell-based" augmentation in ≥5 adult patients alone, or in comparison with non-cell-based (conventional) augmentation methods, were eligible for inclusion. Primary outcome was histomorphometric analysis of new bone formation. Effectiveness of cell-based augmentation was evaluated based on outcomes of controlled studies. Twenty-seven eligible studies were identified. Of these, 15 included a control group (8 randomized controlled trials [RCTs]), and were judged to be at a moderate-to-high risk of bias. Most studies reported the combined use of cultured autologous MSCs with an osteoconductive bone substitute (BS) scaffold. Iliac bone marrow and mandibular periosteum were frequently reported sources of MSCs. In vitro culture of MSCs took between 12 days and 1.5 months. A range of autogenous, allogeneic, xenogeneic, and alloplastic scaffolds was identified. Bovine bone mineral scaffold was frequently reported with favorable outcomes, while polylactic-polyglycolic acid copolymer (PLGA) scaffold resulted in graft failure in three studies. The combination of MSCs and BS resulted in outcomes similar to autogenous bone (AB) and BS. Three RCTs and one controlled trial reported significantly greater bone formation in cell-based than conventionally grafted sites after 3 to 8 months. Based on limited controlled evidence at a moderate-to-high risk of bias, cell-based approaches are comparable, if not superior, to current evidence-based bone grafting methods, with a significant advantage of avoiding AB harvesting. Future clinical trials should additionally evaluate patient-based outcomes and the time-/cost-effectiveness of these approaches. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  5. A Systematic Review of Promising Strategies of Faith-Based Cancer Education and Lifestyle Interventions Among Racial/Ethnic Minority Groups.

    PubMed

    Hou, Su-I; Cao, Xian

    2017-09-13

    Church-based interventions have been used to reach racial/ethnic minorities. In order to develop effective programs, we conducted a comprehensive systematic review of faith-based cancer prevention studies (2005~2016) to examine characteristics and promising strategies. Combination terms "church or faith-based or religion," "intervention or program," and "cancer education or lifestyle" were used in searching the five major databases: CINAHL; ERIC; Health Technology Assessments; MEDLINE; and PsycInfo. A total of 20 studies met study criteria. CDC's Community Guide was used to analyze and review group interventions. Analyses were organized by two racial groups: African American (AA) and Latino/Hispanic American groups. Results showed most studies reviewed focused on breast cancer alone or in combination with other cancers. Studies of Latino/Hispanic groups targeted more on uninsured, Medicare, or Medicaid individuals, whereas AA studies generally did not include specific insurance criteria. The sample sizes of the AA studies were generally larger. The majority of these studies reviewed used pre-post, posttest only with control group, or quasi-experience designs. The Health Belief Model was the most commonly used theory in both groups. Community-based participatory research and empowerment/ecological frameworks were also used frequently in the Latino/Hispanic studies. Small media and group education were the top two most popular intervention strategies in both groups. Although one-on-one strategy was used in some Latino studies, neither group used reducing client out-of-pocket costs strategy. Client reminders could also be used more in both groups as well. Current review showed church-based cancer education programs were effective in changing knowledge, but not always screening utilization. Results show faith-based cancer educational interventions are promising. To maximize intervention impact, future studies might consider using stronger study designs, incorporating a variety of proven effective strategies, including those frequently used evidence-based strategies, as well as exploring promising strategies among specific target groups.

  6. Observational studies using propensity score analysis underestimated the effect sizes in critical care medicine.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Zhongheng; Ni, Hongying; Xu, Xiao

    2014-08-01

    Propensity score (PS) analysis has been increasingly used in critical care medicine; however, its validation has not been systematically investigated. The present study aimed to compare effect sizes in PS-based observational studies vs. randomized controlled trials (RCTs) (or meta-analysis of RCTs). Critical care observational studies using PS were systematically searched in PubMed from inception to April 2013. Identified PS-based studies were matched to one or more RCTs in terms of population, intervention, comparison, and outcome. The effect sizes of experimental treatments were compared for PS-based studies vs. RCTs (or meta-analysis of RCTs) with sign test. Furthermore, ratio of odds ratio (ROR) was calculated from the interaction term of treatment × study type in a logistic regression model. A ROR < 1 indicates greater benefit for experimental treatment in RCTs compared with PS-based studies. RORs of each comparison were pooled by using meta-analytic approach with random-effects model. A total of 20 PS-based studies were identified and matched to RCTs. Twelve of the 20 comparisons showed greater beneficial effect for experimental treatment in RCTs than that in PS-based studies (sign test P = 0.503). The difference was statistically significant in four comparisons. ROR can be calculated from 13 comparisons, of which four showed significantly greater beneficial effect for experimental treatment in RCTs. The pooled ROR was 0.71 (95% CI: 0.63, 0.79; P = 0.002), suggesting that RCTs (or meta-analysis of RCTs) were more likely to report beneficial effect for the experimental treatment than PS-based studies. The result remained unchanged in sensitivity analysis and meta-regression. In critical care literature, PS-based observational study is likely to report less beneficial effect of experimental treatment compared with RCTs (or meta-analysis of RCTs). Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Evidence based practice beliefs and implementation among nurses: a cross-sectional study

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background Having a positive attitude towards evidence-based practice and being able to see the value of evidence-based practice for patients have been reported as important for the implementation of evidence-based practice among nurses. The aim of this study was to map self-reported beliefs towards EBP and EBP implementation among nurses, and to investigate whether there was a positive correlation between EBP beliefs and EBP implementation. Method We carried out a cross-sectional study among 356 nurses at a specialist hospital for the treatment of cancer in Norway. The Norwegian translations of the Evidence-based Practice Belief Scale and the Evidence-based Practice Implementation Scale were used. Results In total, 185 nurses participated in the study (response rate 52%). The results showed that nurses were positive towards evidence-based practice, but only practised it to a small extent. There was a positive correlation (r) between beliefs towards evidence-based practice and implementation of evidence-based practice (r = 0.59, p = 0.001). There was a statistical significant positive, but moderate correlation between all the four subscales of the EBP Beliefs Scale (beliefs related to: 1) knowledge, 2) resources, 3) the value of EBP and 4) difficulty and time) and the EBP Implementation Scale, with the highest correlation observed for beliefs related to knowledge (r = 0.38, p < .0001). Participants who had learned about evidence-based practice had significantly higher scores on the Evidence-based Practice Belief Scale than participants who were unfamiliar with evidence-based practice. Those involved in evidence-based practice working groups also reported significantly higher scores on the Evidence-based Practice Belief Scale than participants not involved in these groups. Conclusion This study shows that nurses have a positive attitude towards evidence-based practice, but practise it to a lesser extent. There was a positive correlation between beliefs about evidence-based practice and implementation of evidence-based practice. Beliefs related to knowledge appear to have the greatest effect on implementation of evidence-based practice. Having knowledge and taking part in evidence-based practice working groups seem important. PMID:24661602

  8. Academic Job Placements in Library and Information Science Field: A Case Study Performed on ALISE Web-Based Postings

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abouserie, Hossam Eldin Mohamed Refaat

    2010-01-01

    The study investigated and analyzed the state of academic web-based job announcements in Library and Information Science Field. The purpose of study was to get in depth understanding about main characteristics and trends of academic job market in Library and Information science field. The study focused on web-based version announcement as it was…

  9. Intrusion-based reasoning and depression: cross-sectional and prospective relationships.

    PubMed

    Berle, David; Moulds, Michelle L

    2014-01-01

    Intrusion-based reasoning refers to the tendency to form interpretations about oneself or a situation based on the occurrence of a negative intrusive autobiographical memory. Intrusion-based reasoning characterises post-traumatic stress disorder, but has not yet been investigated in depression. We report two studies that aimed to investigate this. In Study 1 both high (n = 42) and low (n = 28) dysphoric participants demonstrated intrusion-based reasoning. High-dysphoric individuals engaged in self-referent intrusion-based reasoning to a greater extent than did low-dysphoric participants. In Study 2 there were no significant differences in intrusion-based reasoning between currently depressed (n = 27) and non-depressed (n = 51) participants, and intrusion-based reasoning did not predict depressive symptoms at 6-month follow-up. Interestingly, previously (n = 26) but not currently (n = 27) depressed participants engaged in intrusion-based reasoning to a greater extent than never-depressed participants (n = 25), indicating the possibility that intrusion-based reasoning may serve as a "scar" from previous episodes. The implications of these findings are discussed.

  10. How Affectively-Based and Cognitively-Based Attitudes Drive Intergroup Behaviours: The Moderating Role of Affective-Cognitive Consistency

    PubMed Central

    Zhou, Jie; Dovidio, John; Wang, Erping

    2013-01-01

    The moderating role of affective-cognitive consistency in the effects of affectively-based and cognitively-based attitudes on consummatory and instrumental behaviors was explored using two experimental studies in the intergroup context. Study 1 revealed that affectively-based attitudes were better predictors than cognitively-based attitudes regardless of affective-cognitive consistency for consummatory behaviors (e.g., undergraduates’ supportive behaviors toward government officials). Study 2, which investigated task groups’ supportive behaviors toward an immediate supervisory group, found that for these instrumental behaviors cognitively-based attitudes were better predictors than affectively-based attitudes only when affective-cognitive consistency was high. The present research also examined the mechanism by which affective-cognitive consistency moderates the relative roles of affectively-based and cognitively-based attitudes in attitude-behavior consistency. Results indicated that attitude-behavior consistency is eroded primarily because of the weaker relationship of affective or cognitive components to behaviors than to general attitudes. The reciprocal implications of research on attitudes and work on intergroup relations are considered. PMID:24244751

  11. A Cultured Learning Environment: Implementing a Problem- and Service-Based Microbiology Capstone Course to Assess Process- and Skill-Based Learning Objectives

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Watson, Rachel M.; Willford, John D.; Pfeifer, Mariel A.

    2018-01-01

    In this study, a problem-based capstone course was designed to assess the University of Wyoming Microbiology Program's skill-based and process-based student learning objectives. Students partnered with a local farm, a community garden, and a free downtown clinic in order to conceptualize, propose, perform, and present studies addressing problems…

  12. [Physical Activity in the Context of Workplace Health Promotion: A Systematic Review on the Effectiveness of Software-Based in Contrast to Personal-Based Interventions].

    PubMed

    Rudolph, Sabrina; Göring, Arne; Padrok, Dennis

    2018-01-03

    Sports and physical activity interventions are attracting considerable attention in the context of workplace health promotion. Due to increasing digitalization, especially software-based interventions that promote physical activity are gaining acceptance in practice. Empirical evidence concerning the efficiency of software-based interventions in the context of workplace health promotion is rather low so far. This paper examines the question in what way software-based interventions are more efficient than personal-based interventions in terms of increasing the level of physical activity. A systematic review according to the specifications of the Cochrane Collaboration was conducted. Inclusion criteria and should-have criteria were defined and by means of the should-have criteria the quality score of the studies was calculated. The software-based and personal-based interventions are presented in 2 tables with the categories author, year, country, sample group, aim of the intervention, methods, outcome and study quality. A total of 25 studies are included in the evaluation (12 personal- and 13 software-based interventions). The quality scores of the studies are heterogeneous and range from 3 to 9 points. 5 personal- and 5 software-based studies achieved an increase of physical activity. Other positive effects on health could be presented in the studies, for example, a reduction in blood pressure or body-mass index. A few studies did not show any improvement in health-related parameters. This paper demonstrates that positive effects can be achieved with both intervention types. Software-based interventions show advantages due to the use of new technologies. Use of desktop or mobile applications facilitate organization, communication and data acquisition with fewer resources needed. A schooled trainer, on the other hand, is able to react to specific and varying needs of the employees. This aspect should be considered as very significant. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  13. [The scientific information that the pharmaceutical industry provides to family doctors].

    PubMed

    Rivera Casares, F; Richart Rufino, M J; Navas Cutanda, J; Rodríguez Górriz, E; Gómez Moruno, C; Gómez García, B

    2005-06-15

    To check whether the information in the written publicity that the pharmaceutical industry gives to family doctors really is based on the scientific studies that support it. Cross-sectional study. Health centre on the outskirts of a big city. Over a year, all the scientific studies that laboratory reps gave family doctors along with the advertising for medicines were collected. A total of 63 paired studies and advertising pieces were obtained. 1-3 advertising messages with each supporting study were selected and reviewed in a structured fashion. Then whether or not the messages selected were based on the study was appraised. 44.5% of the advertising messages were not based on the accompanying study; 29.9% clearly were based on the study; and in the rest there was a half-and-half relationship. There was a significant relationship between the evaluation of the advertising messages and the kind of study, masking and the kind of result variable. A high proportion of advertising messages are not based on the study that is reputed to support them. A critique of these studies has to be undertaken before the advertising messages can be looked at.

  14. 77 FR 31027 - Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Web-Based Assessment of the Clinical Studies Support...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-05-24

    ...; Comment Request; Web-Based Assessment of the Clinical Studies Support Center (CSSC) Summary: Under the... current valid OMB control number. Proposed Collection: Title: Web-Based Assessment of the Clinical Studies... Operations and Procedures (MOP); coordinating meeting space and logistics for in-person meetings, Web...

  15. A Pilot Study: Facilitating Cross-Cultural Understanding with Project-Based Collaborative Learning in an Online Environment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shadiev, Rustam; Hwang, Wu-Yuin; Huang, Yueh-Min

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated three aspects: how project-based collaborative learning facilitates cross-cultural understanding; how students perceive project-based collaborative learning implementation in a collaborative cyber community (3C) online environment; and what types of communication among students are used. A qualitative case study approach…

  16. Training Teachers to Conduct Trial-Based Functional Analyses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kunnavatana, S. Shanun; Bloom, Sarah E.; Samaha, Andrew L.; Dayton, Elizabeth

    2013-01-01

    The trial-based functional analysis (FA) is a promising approach to identification of behavioral function and is especially suited for use in educational settings. Not all studies on trial-based FA have included teachers as therapists, and those studies that have, included minimal information on teacher training. The purpose of this study was to…

  17. CBSS Outreach Project: Computer-Based Study Strategies for Students with Learning Disabilities. Final Report.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Anderson-Inman, Lynne; Ditson, Mary

    This final report describes activities and accomplishments of the four-year Computer-Based Study Strategies (CBSS) Outreach Project at the University of Oregon. This project disseminated information about using computer-based study strategies as an intervention for students with learning disabilities and provided teachers in participating outreach…

  18. Project Based Learning in Multi-Grade Class

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ciftci, Sabahattin; Baykan, Ayse Aysun

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to evaluate project based learning in multi-grade classes. This study, based on a student-centered learning approach, aims to analyze students' and parents' interpretations. The study was done in a primary village school belonging to the Centre of Batman, already adapting multi-grade classes in their education system,…

  19. 77 FR 12598 - Notice Correction; A Multi-Center International Hospital-Based Case-Control Study of Lymphoma in...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-03-01

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES National Institutes of Health Notice Correction; A Multi-Center International Hospital-Based Case-Control Study of Lymphoma in Asia (AsiaLymph) (NCI) The Federal... project titled, ``A multi-center international hospital-based case-control study of lymphoma in Asia (Asia...

  20. The Impact of "Virtualization" on Independent Study Course Completion Rates: The British Columbia Open University Experiment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Giguere, Louis

    2009-01-01

    In 1997 the British Columbia Open University (BCOU) adopted a virtualization strategy based primarily on twinning off-line independent study distance education courses (textbook-based with study guide and telephone and e-mail tutor support) with alternate online versions (textbook-based with integrated conferencing and communications provided…

  1. Adult Literacy: A Study of Community Based Literacy Programs. Revised and Updated. Volume II: Program Profiles.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Association for Community Based Education, Washington, DC.

    This volume accompanies a study of community-based approaches to literacy education for adults. It provides profiles of 26 community-based educational institutions that provided study data. Each profile provides name, address, and telephone number; contact; other project sites; institutional description; mission/purpose; approach; skills…

  2. Action Research Study. A Framework To Help Move Teachers toward an Inquiry-Based Science Teaching Approach.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Staten, Mary E.

    This action research study developed a framework for moving teachers toward an inquiry-based approach to teaching science, emphasizing elements, strategies, and supports necessary to encourage and sustain teachers' use of inquiry-based science instruction. The study involved a literature review, participant observation, focus group discussions,…

  3. GEE-based SNP set association test for continuous and discrete traits in family-based association studies.

    PubMed

    Wang, Xuefeng; Lee, Seunggeun; Zhu, Xiaofeng; Redline, Susan; Lin, Xihong

    2013-12-01

    Family-based genetic association studies of related individuals provide opportunities to detect genetic variants that complement studies of unrelated individuals. Most statistical methods for family association studies for common variants are single marker based, which test one SNP a time. In this paper, we consider testing the effect of an SNP set, e.g., SNPs in a gene, in family studies, for both continuous and discrete traits. Specifically, we propose a generalized estimating equations (GEEs) based kernel association test, a variance component based testing method, to test for the association between a phenotype and multiple variants in an SNP set jointly using family samples. The proposed approach allows for both continuous and discrete traits, where the correlation among family members is taken into account through the use of an empirical covariance estimator. We derive the theoretical distribution of the proposed statistic under the null and develop analytical methods to calculate the P-values. We also propose an efficient resampling method for correcting for small sample size bias in family studies. The proposed method allows for easily incorporating covariates and SNP-SNP interactions. Simulation studies show that the proposed method properly controls for type I error rates under both random and ascertained sampling schemes in family studies. We demonstrate through simulation studies that our approach has superior performance for association mapping compared to the single marker based minimum P-value GEE test for an SNP-set effect over a range of scenarios. We illustrate the application of the proposed method using data from the Cleveland Family GWAS Study. © 2013 WILEY PERIODICALS, INC.

  4. Lessons learned from a practice-based, multi-site intervention study with nurse participants

    PubMed Central

    Friese, Christopher R.; Mendelsohn-Victor, Kari; Ginex, Pamela; McMahon, Carol M.; Fauer, Alex J.; McCullagh, Marjorie C.

    2016-01-01

    Purpose To identify challenges and solutions to the efficient conduct of a multi-site, practice-based randomized controlled trial to improve nurses’ adherence to personal protective equipment use in ambulatory oncology settings. Design The Drug Exposure Feedback and Education for Nurses’ Safety (DEFENS) study is a clustered, randomized, controlled trial. Participating sites are randomized to web-based feedback on hazardous drug exposures in the sites plus tailored messages to address barriers versus a control intervention of a web-based continuing education video. Approach The study principal investigator, the study coordinator, and two site leaders identified challenges to study implementation and potential solutions, plus potential methods to prevent logistical challenges in future studies. Findings Noteworthy challenges included variation in human subjects protection policies, grants and contracts budgeting, infrastructure for nursing-led research, and information technology variation. Successful strategies included scheduled web conferences, site-based study champions, site visits by the principal investigator, and centrally-based document preparation. Strategies to improve efficiency in future studies include early and continued engagement with contract personnel in sites, and proposed changes to the common rule concerning human subjects. The DEFENS study successfully recruited 393 nurses across 12 sites. To date, 369 have completed surveys and 174 nurses have viewed educational materials. Conclusions Multi-site studies of nursing personnel are rare and challenging to existing infrastructure. These barriers can be overcome with strong engagement and planning. Clinical Relevance Leadership engagement, onsite staff support, and continuous communication can facilitate successful recruitment to a workplace-based randomized, controlled behavioral trial. PMID:28098951

  5. Emulsion based cast booster - a priming system

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gupta, R.N.; Mishra, A.K.

    2005-07-01

    This paper explores the potential of emulsion based cast booster to be used as primer to initiate bulk delivered emulsion explosives used in mines. An attempt has been made for comparative study between conventional cast booster and emulsion based cast booster in terms of the initiation process developed and their capability to develop and maintain the stable detonation process in the column explosives. The study has been conducted using a continuous velocity of detonation (VOD) measuring instrument. During this study three blasts have been monitored. In each blast two holes have been selected for study, the first hole being initiatedmore » with conventional cast booster while the other one with emulsion based cast booster. The findings of the study advocates that emulsion based cast booster is capable of efficient priming of bulk delivered column explosive with stable detonation process in the column. Further, the booster had advantages over the conventional PETN/TNT based cast booster. 5 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab., 1 photo.« less

  6. Classroom-Based Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior Interventions in Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

    PubMed

    McMichan, Lauren; Gibson, Ann-Marie; Rowe, David A

    2018-05-01

    It is reported that 81% of adolescents are insufficiently active. Schools play a pivotal role in promoting physical activity (PA) and reducing sedentary behavior (SB). The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate classroom-based PA and SB interventions in adolescents. A search strategy was developed using the Population Intervention Comparison Outcome Study (PICOS) design framework. Articles were screened using strict inclusion criteria. Study quality was assessed using the Effective Public Health Practice Project quality assessment tool ( http://www.ephpp.ca/tools.html ). Outcome data for preintervention and postintervention were extracted, and effect sizes were calculated using Cohen's d. The strategy yielded 7574 potentially relevant articles. Nine studies were included for review. Study quality was rated as strong for 1 study, moderate for 5 studies, and weak for 3 studies. Five studies were included for meta-analyses, which suggested that the classroom-based interventions had a nonsignificant effect on PA (P = .55, d = 0.05) and a small, nonsignificant effect on SB (P = .16, d = -0.11). Only 9 relevant studies were found, and the effectiveness of the classroom-based PA and SB interventions varied. Based on limited empirical studies, there is not enough evidence to determine the most effective classroom-based methodology to increase PA and SB.

  7. Web Searching: A Process-Oriented Experimental Study of Three Interactive Search Paradigms.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dennis, Simon; Bruza, Peter; McArthur, Robert

    2002-01-01

    Compares search effectiveness when using query-based Internet search via the Google search engine, directory-based search via Yahoo, and phrase-based query reformulation-assisted search via the Hyperindex browser by means of a controlled, user-based experimental study of undergraduates at the University of Queensland. Discusses cognitive load,…

  8. A Quantitative Exploration of Preservice Teachers' Intent to Use Computer-based Technology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kim, Kioh; Jain, Sachin; Westhoff, Guy; Rezabek, Landra

    2008-01-01

    Based on Bandura's (1977) social learning theory, the purpose of this study is to identify the relationship of preservice teachers' perceptions of faculty modeling of computer-based technology and preservice teachers' intent of using computer-based technology in educational settings. There were 92 participants in this study; they were enrolled in…

  9. The Effectiveness of Using Corpus-Based Materials in Vocabulary Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Paker, Turan; Özcan, Yeliz Ergül

    2017-01-01

    Our study aimed at finding out the effectiveness of corpus-based vocabulary teaching activities as well as students' attitudes towards concordance-based materials when corpus-based tasks in English vocabulary learning are used. The study was conducted in a preparatory school in a private university. The participants were 28 intermediate level…

  10. Teachers' Experiences with Integrating Play-Based Learning into Standards-Driven Curriculum: A Phenomenological Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nugent, Mary Beth Anderson

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe kindergarten teachers' experiences with integrating play-based learning into standards-based academic curriculum in a school district in South Carolina. Play-based learning experiences were defined as instances which allow children to engage in active, social learning experiences in…

  11. Attitudes of Nigerian Secondary School Teachers towards Media-Based Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ekpo, C. M.

    This document presents results of a study assessing the attitudes of secondary school teachers towards media based learning. The study explores knowledge of and exposure to media based learning techniques of a cross section of Nigerian secondary school teachers. Factors that affect the use of media based learning technique are sought. Media based…

  12. Investigating Effects of Problem-Based versus Lecture-Based Learning Environments on Student Motivation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wijnia, Lisette; Loyens, Sofie M. M.; Derous, Eva

    2011-01-01

    This study examines the effects of two learning environments (i.e., problem-based learning [PBL] versus lecture-based [LB] environments) on undergraduates' study motivation. Survey results demonstrated that PBL students scored higher on competence but did not differ from LB students on autonomous motivation. Analyses of focus groups further…

  13. Conducting Science Inquiry in Primary Classrooms: Case Studies of Two Preservice Teachers' Inquiry-Based Practices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Leonard, Jacqueline; Boakes, Norma; Moore, Cara M.

    2009-01-01

    This study examined the impact of an intervention designed to promote inquiry-based instruction among early childhood/elementary preservice teachers in Earth science. Preservice teachers participated in training sessions and community-based internships to deepen Earth science content knowledge and develop inquiry-based practices. Analyses of Earth…

  14. Testing Differential Effects of Computer-Based, Web-Based and Paper-Based Administration of Questionnaire Research Instruments

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hardre, Patricia L.; Crowson, H. Michael; Xie, Kui; Ly, Cong

    2007-01-01

    Translation of questionnaire instruments to digital administration systems, both self-contained and web-based, is widespread and increasing daily. However, the literature is lean on controlled empirical studies investigating the potential for differential effects of administrative methods. In this study, two university student samples were…

  15. Methodology Series Module 3: Cross-sectional Studies.

    PubMed

    Setia, Maninder Singh

    2016-01-01

    Cross-sectional study design is a type of observational study design. In a cross-sectional study, the investigator measures the outcome and the exposures in the study participants at the same time. Unlike in case-control studies (participants selected based on the outcome status) or cohort studies (participants selected based on the exposure status), the participants in a cross-sectional study are just selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria set for the study. Once the participants have been selected for the study, the investigator follows the study to assess the exposure and the outcomes. Cross-sectional designs are used for population-based surveys and to assess the prevalence of diseases in clinic-based samples. These studies can usually be conducted relatively faster and are inexpensive. They may be conducted either before planning a cohort study or a baseline in a cohort study. These types of designs will give us information about the prevalence of outcomes or exposures; this information will be useful for designing the cohort study. However, since this is a 1-time measurement of exposure and outcome, it is difficult to derive causal relationships from cross-sectional analysis. We can estimate the prevalence of disease in cross-sectional studies. Furthermore, we will also be able to estimate the odds ratios to study the association between exposure and the outcomes in this design.

  16. Methodology Series Module 3: Cross-sectional Studies

    PubMed Central

    Setia, Maninder Singh

    2016-01-01

    Cross-sectional study design is a type of observational study design. In a cross-sectional study, the investigator measures the outcome and the exposures in the study participants at the same time. Unlike in case–control studies (participants selected based on the outcome status) or cohort studies (participants selected based on the exposure status), the participants in a cross-sectional study are just selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria set for the study. Once the participants have been selected for the study, the investigator follows the study to assess the exposure and the outcomes. Cross-sectional designs are used for population-based surveys and to assess the prevalence of diseases in clinic-based samples. These studies can usually be conducted relatively faster and are inexpensive. They may be conducted either before planning a cohort study or a baseline in a cohort study. These types of designs will give us information about the prevalence of outcomes or exposures; this information will be useful for designing the cohort study. However, since this is a 1-time measurement of exposure and outcome, it is difficult to derive causal relationships from cross-sectional analysis. We can estimate the prevalence of disease in cross-sectional studies. Furthermore, we will also be able to estimate the odds ratios to study the association between exposure and the outcomes in this design. PMID:27293245

  17. Effectiveness of Mindfulness-based interventions on physiological and psychological complications in adults with diabetes: A systematic review.

    PubMed

    Noordali, Farhan; Cumming, Jennifer; Thompson, Janice L

    2017-07-01

    This systematic review aimed to examine the effectiveness of Mindfulness-based interventions in reducing diabetes-related physiological and psychological symptoms in adults with types 1 and 2 diabetes. Five databases were systematically searched. A total of 11 studies satisfied the inclusion criteria. Mindfulness-based intervention effectiveness for physiological outcomes (glycaemic control and blood pressure) was mixed. Mindfulness-based interventions appear to have psychological benefits reducing depression, anxiety and distress symptoms across several studies. Studies' short-term follow-up periods may not allow sufficient time to observe physiological changes or illustrate Mindfulness-based interventions' potential long-term efficacy. More long-term studies that include a consistent, standardised set of outcome measures are required.

  18. The generalization ability of SVM classification based on Markov sampling.

    PubMed

    Xu, Jie; Tang, Yuan Yan; Zou, Bin; Xu, Zongben; Li, Luoqing; Lu, Yang; Zhang, Baochang

    2015-06-01

    The previously known works studying the generalization ability of support vector machine classification (SVMC) algorithm are usually based on the assumption of independent and identically distributed samples. In this paper, we go far beyond this classical framework by studying the generalization ability of SVMC based on uniformly ergodic Markov chain (u.e.M.c.) samples. We analyze the excess misclassification error of SVMC based on u.e.M.c. samples, and obtain the optimal learning rate of SVMC for u.e.M.c. We also introduce a new Markov sampling algorithm for SVMC to generate u.e.M.c. samples from given dataset, and present the numerical studies on the learning performance of SVMC based on Markov sampling for benchmark datasets. The numerical studies show that the SVMC based on Markov sampling not only has better generalization ability as the number of training samples are bigger, but also the classifiers based on Markov sampling are sparsity when the size of dataset is bigger with regard to the input dimension.

  19. Individual Differences in Base Rate Neglect: A Fuzzy Processing Preference Index

    PubMed Central

    Wolfe, Christopher R.; Fisher, Christopher R.

    2013-01-01

    Little is known about individual differences in integrating numeric base-rates and qualitative text in making probability judgments. Fuzzy-Trace Theory predicts a preference for fuzzy processing. We conducted six studies to develop the FPPI, a reliable and valid instrument assessing individual differences in this fuzzy processing preference. It consists of 19 probability estimation items plus 4 "M-Scale" items that distinguish simple pattern matching from “base rate respect.” Cronbach's Alpha was consistently above 0.90. Validity is suggested by significant correlations between FPPI scores and three other measurers: "Rule Based" Process Dissociation Procedure scores; the number of conjunction fallacies in joint probability estimation; and logic index scores on syllogistic reasoning. Replicating norms collected in a university study with a web-based study produced negligible differences in FPPI scores, indicating robustness. The predicted relationships between individual differences in base rate respect and both conjunction fallacies and syllogistic reasoning were partially replicated in two web-based studies. PMID:23935255

  20. A Comparison of Topography-based and Selection-based Verbal Behavior in Typically Developed Children and Developmentally Disabled Persons with Autism

    PubMed Central

    Vignes, Tore

    2007-01-01

    This study is a replication of Sundberg and Sundberg (1990) that compared topography-based verbal behavior with selection-based verbal behavior in terms of acquisition, accuracy, and testing for the emergence of a new verbal relation. Participants were three typical children and three developmentally disabled persons with autism. The study sought to determine which paradigm (topography-based or selection-based) resulted in more rapid acquisition of tacts and intraverbals, which was associated with the fewest errors, and which paradigm resulted in the emergence of the highest number of new verbal relations. The results of the study showed that the six participants performed quite differently from one another. Most importantly, the results from the person with autism contradicted previous findings favoring selection-based verbal behavior over topography-based approaches for teaching verbal behavior to low-functioning individuals. PMID:22477385

  1. Numerical study of base pressure characteristic curve for a four-engine clustered nozzle configuration

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wang, Ten-See

    1993-01-01

    The objective of this study is to benchmark a four-engine clustered nozzle base flowfield with a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model. The CFD model is a three-dimensional pressure-based, viscous flow formulation. An adaptive upwind scheme is employed for the spatial discretization. The upwind scheme is based on second and fourth order central differencing with adaptive artificial dissipation. Qualitative base flow features such as the reverse jet, wall jet, recompression shock, and plume-plume impingement have been captured. The computed quantitative flow properties such as the radial base pressure distribution, model centerline Mach number and static pressure variation, and base pressure characteristic curve agreed reasonably well with those of the measurement. Parametric study on the effect of grid resolution, turbulence model, inlet boundary condition and difference scheme on convective terms has been performed. The results showed that grid resolution had a strong influence on the accuracy of the base flowfield prediction.

  2. Quality evaluation on an e-learning system in continuing professional education of nurses.

    PubMed

    Lin, I-Chun; Chien, Yu-Mei; Chang, I-Chiu

    2006-01-01

    Maintaining high quality in Web-based learning is a powerful means of increasing the overall efficiency and effectiveness of distance learning. Many studies have evaluated Web-based learning but seldom evaluate from the information systems (IS) perspective. This study applied the famous IS Success model in measuring the quality of a Web-based learning system using a Web-based questionnaire for data collection. One hundred and fifty four nurses participated in the survey. Based on confirmatory factor analysis, the variables of the research model fit for measuring the quality of a Web-based learning system. As Web-based education continues to grow worldwide, the results of this study may assist the system adopter (hospital executives), the learner (nurses), and the system designers in making reasonable and informed judgments with regard to the quality of Web-based learning system in continuing professional education.

  3. A systematic review of economic evaluations of population-based sodium reduction interventions.

    PubMed

    Hope, Silvia F; Webster, Jacqui; Trieu, Kathy; Pillay, Arti; Ieremia, Merina; Bell, Colin; Snowdon, Wendy; Neal, Bruce; Moodie, Marj

    2017-01-01

    To summarise evidence describing the cost-effectiveness of population-based interventions targeting sodium reduction. A systematic search of published and grey literature databases and websites was conducted using specified key words. Characteristics of identified economic evaluations were recorded, and included studies were appraised for reporting quality using the Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) checklist. Twenty studies met the study inclusion criteria and received a full paper review. Fourteen studies were identified as full economic evaluations in that they included both costs and benefits associated with an intervention measured against a comparator. Most studies were modelling exercises based on scenarios for achieving salt reduction and assumed effects on health outcomes. All 14 studies concluded that their specified intervention(s) targeting reductions in population sodium consumption were cost-effective, and in the majority of cases, were cost saving. Just over half the studies (8/14) were assessed as being of 'excellent' reporting quality, five studies fell into the 'very good' quality category and one into the 'good' category. All of the identified evaluations were based on modelling, whereby inputs for all the key parameters including the effect size were either drawn from published datasets, existing literature or based on expert advice. Despite a clear increase in evaluations of salt reduction programs in recent years, this review identified relatively few economic evaluations of population salt reduction interventions. None of the studies were based on actual implementation of intervention(s) and the associated collection of new empirical data. The studies universally showed that population-based salt reduction strategies are likely to be cost effective or cost saving. However, given the reliance on modelling, there is a need for the effectiveness of new interventions to be evaluated in the field using strong study designs and parallel economic evaluations.

  4. Does Film Affect Learning Engagement?: Historical Inquiry and the Document-Based Question in a Middle School Social Studies Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Paska, Lawrence M.

    2010-01-01

    This quasi-experimental study uses mixed methodologies to examine learning engagement on a social studies unit test based on primary and secondary sources (a "document-based question", or DBQ), to determine whether the use of film in a DBQ changes the nature of historical inquiry. The study was conducted in two Grade 7 classes taught by the same…

  5. Cobalt-Base Alloy Gun Barrel Study

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2014-07-01

    Cobalt-Base Alloy Gun Barrel Study by William S. de Rosset and Jonathan S. Montgomery ARL-RP-0491 July 2014 A reprint...21005-5069 ARL-RP-0491 July 2014 Cobalt-Base Alloy Gun Barrel Study William S. de Rosset and Jonathan S. Montgomery Weapons and Materials... Gun Barrel Study 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) William S. de Rosset and Jonathan S. Montgomery

  6. Internet interventions to support lifestyle modification for diabetes management: a systematic review of the evidence.

    PubMed

    Cotter, Alexander P; Durant, Nefertiti; Agne, April A; Cherrington, Andrea L

    2014-01-01

    The Internet presents a widely accessible, 24-h means to promote chronic disease management. The objective of this review is to identify studies that used Internet based interventions to promote lifestyle modification among adults with type 2 diabetes. We searched PubMed using the terms: [internet, computer, phone, smartphone, mhealth, mobile health, web based, telehealth, social media, text messages] combined with [diabetes management and diabetes control] through January 2013. Studies were included if they described an Internet intervention, targeted adults with type 2 diabetes, focused on lifestyle modification, and included an evaluation component with behavioral outcomes. Of the 2803 papers identified, nine met inclusion criteria. Two studies demonstrated improvements in diet and/or physical activity and two studies demonstrated improvements in glycemic control comparing web-based intervention with control. Successful studies were theory-based, included interactive components with tracking and personalized feedback, and provided opportunities for peer support. Website utilization declined over time in all studies that reported on it. Few studies focused on high risk, underserved populations. Web-based strategies provide a viable option for facilitating diabetes self-management. Future research is needed on the use of web-based interventions in underserved communities and studies examining website utilization patterns and engagement over time. © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. An exploration of the roles of nurse managers in evidence-based practice implementation.

    PubMed

    Wilkinson, Joyce E; Nutley, Sandra M; Davies, Huw T O

    2011-12-01

    Internationally, nurses face ongoing difficulties in making a reality of evidence-based practice. Existing studies suggest that nurse managers (NMs) should play a key role in leading and facilitating evidence-based practice, but the nature of this role has not yet been fully explored or articulated. This is one of the first studies to investigate the roles of NMs in evidence-based practice implementation. METHODOLOGY AND METHODS: Using a case study approach the study explores five propositions in relation to the NMs' potential evidence-based practice role and the extent to which their attitudes, knowledge, and skills support such a role. In doing so, it draws on interviews (n= 51), documentary analysis and observational data. Data analysis reveals that the role of NMs in facilitating evidence-based practice is under-articulated, largely passive and currently limited by competing demands. Progress in implementing evidence-based practice in the case study sites is largely explained by factors other than the role played by NMs. As such, the findings expose significant discrepancies between NMs' actual roles and those espoused in the literature as being necessary. Contextual factors are important and it is clear that the role of the contemporary NM places considerable emphasis on management and administration to the detriment of clinical practice concerns. The study reveals that NMs are only involved in evidence-based practice implementation in a passive role, not the full engagement described in the literature as being necessary. This study adds previously lacking detail of the roles of NMs. It elucidates why exhortations to NMs to become more involved in evidence-based practice implementation are ineffective without action to address the problems identified. Copyright ©2011 Sigma Theta Tau International.

  8. A Web-Based Video Digitizing System for the Study of Projectile Motion.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chow, John W.; Carlton, Les G.; Ekkekakis, Panteleimon; Hay, James G.

    2000-01-01

    Discusses advantages of a video-based, digitized image system for the study and analysis of projectile motion in the physics laboratory. Describes the implementation of a web-based digitized video system. (WRM)

  9. Group-based guilt as a predictor of commitment to apology.

    PubMed

    McGarty, Craig; Pedersen, Anne; Leach, Colin Wayne; Mansell, Tamarra; Waller, Julie; Bliuc, Ana-Maria

    2005-12-01

    Whether the Australian government should officially apologize to Indigenous Australians for past wrongs is hotly debated in Australia. The predictors of support amongst non-Indigenous Australians for such an apology were examined in two studies. The first study (N=164) showed that group-based guilt was a good predictor of support for a government apology, as was the perception that non-Indigenous Australians were relatively advantaged. In the second study (N=116) it was found that group-based guilt was an excellent predictor of support for apology and was itself predicted by perceived non-Indigenous responsibility for harsh treatment of Indigenous people, and an absence of doubts about the legitimacy of group-based guilt. National identification was not a predictor of group-based guilt. The results of the two studies suggest that, just as individual emotions predict individual action tendencies, so group-based guilt predicts support for actions or decisions to be taken at the collective level.

  10. Stirring up the Mud: Using a Community-Based Participatory Approach to Address Health Disparities through a Faith-Based Initiative

    PubMed Central

    Kaplan, Sue A.; Ruddock, Charmaine; Golub, Maxine; Davis, Joyce; Foley, Robert; Devia, Carlos; Rosen, Rosa; Berry, Carolyn; Barretto, Brenda; Carter, Toni; Irish-Spencer, Evalina; Marchena, Maria; Purcaro, Ellenrita; Calman, Neil

    2011-01-01

    This case study provides a mid-course assessment of the Bronx Health REACH faith-based initiative four years into its implementation. The study uses qualitative methods to identify lessons learned and to reflect on the benefits and challenges of using a community-based participatory approach for the development and evaluation of a faith-based program designed to address health disparities. Key findings concern the role of pastoral leadership, the importance of providing a religious context for health promotion and health equality messages, the challenges of creating a bilingual/bi-cultural program, and the need to provide management support to the lay program coordinators. The study also identifies lessons learned about community-based evaluation and the importance of addressing community concern about the balance between evaluation and program. Finally, the study identifies the challenges that lie ahead, including issues of program institution-alization and sustainability. PMID:20168022

  11. Gender-related model for mobile-based learning

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Simanjuntak, R. R.; Dewi, U. P.; Rifai, I.

    2018-03-01

    The study investigates gender influence on mobile-based learning. This case study of university students in Jakarta involved 235 students (128 male, 97 female). Results of this qualitative study showed 96% preference for mobile-based learning. A further 94% showed the needs for collaboration and authenticity for 92%. Hofstede’s cultural dimensions were used to identify the gender aspects of MALL. Preference for Masculinity (65%) was showed rather than Femininity (35%), even among the female respondents (70% of the population). Professions and professionalism received strongest preference (70%) while Individuality and Collectivism had equal preferences among students. Both female and male respondents requested Indulgence (84%) for mobile-based learning with more male respondents opted for Indulgence. The study provided a model for this gender sensitive mobile-based learning. Implications of implementing mobile-based learning as an ideal alternative for well-accommodated education are is also discussed.

  12. Nurse led home-based care for people with HIV/AIDS.

    PubMed

    Wood, Elizabeth M; Zani, Babalwa; Esterhuizen, Tonya M; Young, Taryn

    2018-03-27

    Home-based care is used in many countries to increase quality of life and limit hospital stay, particularly where public health services are overburdened. Home-based care objectives for HIV/AIDS can include medical care, delivery of antiretroviral treatment and psychosocial support. This review assesses the effects of home-based nursing on morbidity in people infected with HIV/AIDS. The trials studied are in HIV positive adults and children, regardless of sex or setting and all randomised controlled. Home-based care provided by qualified nurses was compared with hospital or health-facility based treatment. The following electronic databases were searched from January 1980 to March 2015: AIDSearch, CINAHL, Cochrane Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE, MEDLINE and PsycINFO/LIT, with an updated search in November 2016. Two authors independently screened titles and abstracts from the electronic search based on the study design, interventions and types of participant. For all selected abstracts, full text articles were obtained. The final study selection was determined with use of an eligibility form. Data extraction was performed independently from assessment of risk of bias. The results were analysed by narrative synthesis, in order to be able to obtain relevant effect measures plus 95% confidence intervals. Seven studies met the inclusion criteria. The trial size varied from 37 to 238 participants. Only one trial was conducted in children. Five studies were conducted in the USA and two in China. Four studies looked at home-based adherence support and the rest at providing home-based psychosocial support. Reported adherence to antiretroviral drugs improved with nurse-led home-based care but did not affect viral load. Psychiatric nurse support in those with existing mental health conditions improved mental health and depressive symptoms. Home-based psychological support impacted on HIV stigma, worry and physical functioning and in certain cases depressive symptoms. Nurse-led home-based interventions could help adherence to antiretroviral therapy and improve mental health. Further larger scale studies are needed, looking in more detail at improving medical care for HIV, especially related to screening and management of opportunistic infections and co-morbidities.

  13. Project Based Learning (PjBL) Practices at Politeknik Kota Bharu, Malaysia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rahman, Md. Baharuddin Haji Abdul; Daud, Khairul Azhar Mat; Jusoff, Kamaruzaman; Ghani, Nik Azida Abd

    2009-01-01

    This study explores the utilization of Project-based Learning module in the subject of project development for the Mechanical Engineering students at Politeknik Kota Bharu. This study focuses on the development of the PjBL module based on socio-constructivist approach. The objective of this study is to explore the influence of the utilization of…

  14. The Effects of Study Tasks in a Computer-Based Chemistry Learning Environment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Urhahne, Detlef; Nick, Sabine; Poepping, Anna Christin; Schulz , Sarah Jayne

    2013-01-01

    The present study examines the effects of different study tasks on the acquisition of knowledge about acids and bases in a computer-based learning environment. Three different task formats were selected to create three treatment conditions: learning with gap-fill and matching tasks, learning with multiple-choice tasks, and learning only from text…

  15. A Meta-Analysis of Video-Modeling Based Interventions for Reduction of Challenging Behaviors for Students with EBD

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Losinski, Mickey; Wiseman, Nicole; White, Sherry A.; Balluch, Felicity

    2016-01-01

    The current study examined the use of video modeling (VM)-based interventions to reduce the challenging behaviors of students with emotional or behavioral disorders. Each study was evaluated using Council for Exceptional Children's (CEC's) quality indicators for evidence-based practices. In addition, study effects were calculated along the three…

  16. The Role of Personality Traits in Web Based Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bayram, Servet; Deniz, Levent; Erdogan, Yavuz

    2008-01-01

    This study aims to investigate the relationships among personality traits and learners' academic achievement in a web based environment and attitudes towards web based education. 127 students enrolled in the e-MBA Masters Degree of Bilgi University constituted the study group of the research. A survey method was used for the study and the data…

  17. Critical Guidelines for U.S.-Based Counselor Educators When Working Transnationally: A Delphi Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smith, Paul H.; Benshoff, James M.; Gonzalez, Laura M.

    2018-01-01

    U.S.-based counselor education faculty increasingly are participating in transnational experiences, such as global research and study abroad. The purpose of this study was to develop guidelines for U.S.-based counselor educators when working transnationally. Using Delphi methodology, 69 consensus guidelines were developed from an expert panel.…

  18. Team-Based Simulation: Toward Developing Ethical Guidelines among American and Israeli Teachers in Jewish Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shapira-Lishchinsky, Orly; Glanz, Jeffrey; Shaer, Anat

    2016-01-01

    This study attempts to explore Israeli and American teachers' perceptions based on their ethical dilemmas in Jewish schools. A cross-national study was undertaken in Jewish schools, examining fifty teachers from Israel and fifty-one teachers from the United States. Designed with team-based simulations, this study revealed strong similarities…

  19. A Quantitative Study of Teacher Readiness to Teach School-Based HIV/AIDS Education in Kenyan Primary Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lang'at, Edwin K.

    2014-01-01

    Purpose and Method of Study: The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers' self-perceived readiness to teach school-based HIV/AIDS Awareness and Prevention education in Kenyan primary schools based on their knowledge, attitudes and instructional confidence. This research utilized a non-experimental quantitative approach with a…

  20. Validation of internet-based self-reported anthropometric, demographic data and participant identity in the Food4Me study

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    BACKGROUND In e-health intervention studies, there are concerns about the reliability of internet-based, self-reported (SR) data and about the potential for identity fraud. This study introduced and tested a novel procedure for assessing the validity of internet-based, SR identity and validated anth...

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