United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, Plant Genetics Research Unit, 975 North Warson Road, St. Louis, MO 63132, United States; Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, 975 North Warson Road, St. Louis, MO 63132, United States.
Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Vanderbilt University, PMB 351604, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, Nashville, TN 37235, United States; Department of Molecular Physiology & Biophysics, Vanderbilt University, PMB 351604, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, Nashville, TN 37235, United States.
Curr Opin Biotechnol. 2020 Aug;64:92-100. doi: 10.1016/j.copbio.2019.11.003. Epub 2019 Dec 20.
Metabolism is dynamic and must function in context-specific ways to adjust to changes in the surrounding cellular and ecological environment. When isotopic tracers are used, metabolite flow (i.e. metabolic flux) can be quantified through biochemical networks to assess metabolic pathway operation. The cellular activities considered across multiple tissues and organs result in the observed phenotype and can be analyzed to discover emergent, whole-system properties of biology and elucidate misconceptions about network operation. However, temporal and spatial challenges remain significant hurdles and require novel approaches and creative solutions. We survey current investigations in higher plant and animal systems focused on dynamic isotope labeling experiments, spatially resolved measurement strategies, and observations from re-analysis of our own studies that suggest prospects for future work. Related discoveries will be necessary to push the frontier of our understanding of metabolism to suggest novel solutions to cure disease and feed a growing future world population.
新陈代谢是动态的，必须以特定于上下文的方式发挥作用，以适应周围细胞和生态环境的变化。当使用同位素示踪剂时，可以通过生化网络量化代谢物流量（即代谢通量），以评估代谢途径的运作。在多个组织和器官中考虑的细胞活动导致了观察到的表型，可以对其进行分析，以发现生物学的整体系统特性和阐明对网络运作的误解。然而，时间和空间方面的挑战仍然是重大障碍，需要新的方法和创造性的解决方案。我们调查了目前在高等植物和动物系统中进行的侧重于动态同位素标记实验、空间分辨测量策略以及对我们自己研究的重新分析的观察的研究，这些研究为未来的工作提供了前景。需要相关的发现来推动我们对新陈代谢理解的前沿，以提出治疗疾病和养活不断增长的未来世界人口的新解决方案。
