Figure 3. Exploring metabolic exchange factors in the gut microbiome.
A. A hypothetical experiment is comparing germ-free versus gnotobiotic mouse (E. coli and K. pneumonia) gut to determine the role of these strains in host-microbe interactions. B. Imaging mass spectrometry of the mouse gut, comparing germ-free and gnotobiotic animals, allows putative bacterial metabolic exchange factors to be localized and identified chemically without labeling. Each false color image represents a given m/z value (CMR and PCD).