Antonucci R, Atzori L, Barberini L, Fanos V
Division of Neonatology and Pediatrics, Ospedale Nostra Signora di Bonaria, San Gavino Monreale, Italy.
Minerva Pediatr. 2010 Jun;62(3 Suppl 1):145-8.
Metabolomics is a new approach based on the systematic study of the full complement of metabolites in a biological sample. This technology consists of two sequential steps: (1) an experimental technique, based on mass spectrometry or nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, designed to profile low molecular weight compounds, and (2) multivariate data analysis. Metabolomic analysis of biofluids or tissues has been successfully used in the fields of physiology, diagnostics, functional genomics, pharmacology, toxicology and nutrition. Recent studies have evaluated how physiological variables or pathological conditions can affect metabolomic profiles of different biofluids in pediatric populations. Little is known about the overall metabolic status of the term and preterm neonate. On the other hand, the management of sick or preterm newborns might be improved if more information on perinatal/neonatal maturational processes and their metabolic background were available. At present, the use of metabolomics in Neonatology is still in the pioneering phase. Meaningful diagnostic information and simple, non-invasive collection techniques make urine a particularly suitable biofluid for metabolomic approach in neonatal medicine. Using NMR-based metabolomic analysis of urine, distinct metabolic patterns have been shown to be associated with different classes of gestational age in a population of preterm and term infants. Together with genomics and proteomics, metabolomics appears to be a promising tool in Neonatology for the monitoring of postnatal metabolic maturation, the identification of biomarkers as early predictors of outcome, the diagnosis and monitoring of various diseases and the "tailored" management of neonatal disorders.
代谢组学是一种基于系统研究生物样本中代谢物全貌的新方法。该技术包括两个连续步骤：（1）一种实验技术，基于质谱或核磁共振（NMR）光谱，旨在分析低分子量化合物，以及（2）多变量数据分析。生物流体或组织的代谢组学分析已成功应用于生理学、诊断学、功能基因组学、药理学、毒理学和营养学领域。最近的研究评估了生理变量或病理状况如何影响儿科人群中不同生物流体的代谢组学特征。关于足月儿和早产儿的整体代谢状态知之甚少。另一方面，如果能获得更多关于围产期/新生儿成熟过程及其代谢背景的信息，患病或早产新生儿的管理可能会得到改善。目前，代谢组学在新生儿学中的应用仍处于开拓阶段。有意义的诊断信息和简单、非侵入性的采集技术使尿液成为新生儿医学代谢组学方法特别合适的生物流体。通过对尿液进行基于NMR的代谢组学分析，已表明在早产儿和足月儿群体中，不同的代谢模式与不同孕周类别相关。与基因组学和蛋白质组学一起，代谢组学似乎是新生儿学中用于监测产后代谢成熟、识别作为结局早期预测指标的生物标志物、诊断和监测各种疾病以及对新生儿疾病进行“个性化”管理的一种有前途的工具。
