Table 1.
Metabolomics activity screening examples
| Metabolite | System | Original observation | Induced phenotype | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Protectin D1 | Stem cell differentiation | Polyunsaturated fatty acid precursors decrease during differentiation | Promotes differentiation into neurons | 14 |
| cis-9,10-octadecenoamide (oleamide) | Sleep induction | Accumulated in cerebrospinal fluid of sleep-deprived felines | Induces sleep | 41 |
| Trimethylamine N-oxide | Cardiovascular disease | Augmented in plasma of subjects with cardiovascular risk | Increases scavenger receptors expression, foam cell formation and atherosclerotic lesions | 27,28 |
| N,N-dimethylsphingosine | Chronic pain | Increased in a rat model of chronic neuropathic pain | Elicits neuropathic pain behavior and cytokine release | 21 |
| PI(20:4/20:4) | Pathogen killing | Upregulated in zymosan-stimulated macrophages | Increases superoxide anion production and lysozyme release | 16 |
| 3-carboxy-4-methyl-5-propyl-2-furanpropanoic acid | Gestational and type 2 diabetes | Elevated in plasma in human and mice models of gestational diabetes and type 2 diabetes | Impairs glucose tolerance and β-cell function | 23 |
| 9-PAHSA | Type 2 diabetes | Increased in plasma and adipose tissue of diabetes-protected mice. Decreased in diabetic humans | Improves glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity | 22 |
| S-adenosyl methionine | Stem cell differentiation | Downregulated in naive embryonic stem cells | Induces differentiation to primed stem cells | 15 |
| cis-7-hexadecenoic acid (16:1n-9) | Cardiovascular disease | Elevated in atherosclerosis-initiating foamy monocytes and macrophages | Decreases inflammatory response to bacterial lipopolysaccharide in monocytes and macrophages | 17 |
| Dioxolane A3 | Acute inflammation | Increased in thrombin-activated platelets | Promotes neutrophil recruitment and activation | 18 |
| Proline, isoleucine, and phenylalanine | Synthetic mutualism | Secreted by Zymomonas mobilis | Results in rescue and growth of Escherichia coli auxotrophs in co-culture with Z. mobilis | 42 |
| l-arginine | Adaptive immune response | Decreased in activated naive T cells | Induces differentiation into memory-like cell, increases survival and anti-tumor activity | 19 |
| Taurine | Multiple sclerosis | Upregulated during oligodendrocyte precursor cell differentiation | Enhances oligodendrocyte differentiation and myelination | 20 |