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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2017 Dec 14.
Published in final edited form as: Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2016 Mar 16;17(7):451–459. doi: 10.1038/nrm.2016.25

Figure 1. From metabolites to pathways and mechanisms.

Figure 1

The workflow outlines a holistic approach that begins with high-throughput untargeted metabolite profiling. Analysis of biofluids, cells or tissues reveals quantitative metabolite changes (as a result of a stimulus) that can be validated further. Metabolites can be mapped and analysed within metabolic pathways to relate the metabolites to each other, and within interconnected biological pathways, providing potential targets for further mechanistic studies. The combination of metabolomic, orthogonal biological analysis and isotope–assisted deciphering of pathways allows the mechanism of the aberrant phenotype to be ascertained.