Table 1.

Advantages and limitations of NMR compared to MS in metabolomics applications.

Metabolomics technique	Advantage	Disadvantage	Applicable substance
NMR spectroscopy	-High reproducibility, straightforward sample preparation, preservation of molecular integrity, potential sample reuse, cost-effectiveness, and greater ease of identification compared to MS [14]	-Lower detectable metabolites in urine sample and lower sensitivity compared to MS [14]	-Body fluids, in vivo and in situ studies [13]
GC-MS	-Higher specificity and sensitivity, available for comparison with a standard, and can be used for both targeted and nontargeted analyses compared to NMR spectroscopy [12]	-The manipulation of low volatile molecules can present difficulties [12]	-Heat stable, volatile, medium, and low polar molecules [14]
LC-MS	-Higher specificity and sensitivity, available for comparison with a standard, and can be used for both targeted and nontargeted analyses compared to NMR spectroscopy [12,14]	-Low retention for hydrophilic molecules and no complete database to compare with a standard [14]	-Most compounds, including those that exhibit heat-lability, nonvolatility, and resistance to derivatization [12]

MS, mass spectrometry; GC, gas chromatography; LC, liquid chromatography; NMR, nuclear magnetic resonance.