Posters

In metabolic profiling, multivariate data analysis techniques are used to interpret 1D 1H–NMR data. Multivariate data analysis techniques require that peaks are located in the same variables in every spectrum – this requirement is not met in native NMR spectra. Current state-of-the-art alignment algorithms are unable to align peaks when the spatial order of the peaks changes. We present the Fuzzy Generalized Hough Transform alignment which solves the alignment problem.

A metabolomic approach was used to detect changes in urinary metabolic profile of rats treated orally with methylmercury (MeHg), a ubiquitous fish contaminant with well known neurotoxic properties. An aliquot of urine was collected on day 14, extracted and the extract successively methoxymated and trimethylsilylated prior to analysis by GC/TOF-MS. Results indicate that several metabolic pathways were altered by MeHg treatment, including urea cycle, glutathione metabolism and amino acid degradati

Metabolite profiling (HPLC-UV-MS) was performed for extracts from Tithonia diversifolia (Td) and Smallanthus sonchifolius (Ss) leaves [aqueous crude (ACE); leaf rinse (LRE); 70%MeOH rinsed leaves (GFE)]. LREs presented mainly sesquiterpene lactones (SLs) and flavonoids. FGEs and ACEs presented mainly chlorogenic acids. SLs were not detected in GFEs but traces were detected in ACEs. All extracts presented anti-inflammatory potential. LREs were highly toxic while GFEs did not presented significant

This poster presents our results to date using clozapine (a compound known to be associated with GSH-adduct formation) as substrate and using stable isotope GSH (GSH13C2,15N) to enhance specificity. In addition, all analyses have been conducted using an Waters Acquity UPLC-MS/MS. Results we have obtained in hepatocytes are compared against findings using human liver microsomes (HLM).

As part of our objective to systematically characterize the human metabolome and advance the fields of quantitative metabolomics, we present a global metabolic profiling of the human serum. Our experimental results indicated that global metabolic profiling methods can routinely detect more than 4200 different compounds in serum.

In vivo and in vitro magnetic resonance (MR) spectroscopy are both used to obtain complementary information about the metabolic state of living tissue/tissue extracts, respectively. However, comparisons between in vivo and in vitro measurements are rare. The aim of this study was to compare results from in vivo and in vitro MR spectroscopy to study inter-regional variations and the effects of social isolation on metabolite levels in rat brain.

Sequenom EpiTYPER analysis of GNAS methylation in Pseudohypoparathyroidism type Ib patients reveals overall GNAS methylation defects also for the familial cases. Such abnormalities are not detectable via old methodologies such as PCR followed by methylation specific restriction digestion and are here for the first time described.

By bioinformatics we predicted that miR-23b could recognize two sites in the 3’ UTR of uPA (urokinase-type plasminogen activator) and four sites in the 3’ UTR of c-met (hepatocyte growth factor receptor). miR-23b transfections in SKHep1C3 caused uPA and c-met decreased and migration and proliferation inhibition of SKHep1C3; anti-miR-23b transfection in human fibroblasts upregulated uPA and c-met. uPA and c-met shared a common microRNA that negatively regulates their expression.

Metabolomics investigates changes in quantities of metabolites. However, blood plasma is a complex, heterogeneous mixture of components which undergo a variety of possible molecular interactions. In particular, many low molecular weight compounds (including drugs) can exist both ‘free’ in solution, bound to proteins or within organised aggregates of macromolecules. To study the effects of e.g. disease on these interactions we have developed a technique termed ‘interactive metabolomics’.