State-of-the-Art Metabolomics: From Method Development to Rapid Diagnostics, Detection, and Profiling

Abstract

Metabolomics is a science concerned with the isolation and identification of small molecules (metabolites) from biological samples. A common goal of metabolomics is to investigate these molecules in order to better understand the intricate interactions between them and their relationship to human health. Metabolomic profiling has shown great potential in detecting and understanding biomarkers of a variety of diseases, of infectious or non-infectious origin. The goal of this dissertation research was to develop a state-of-the-art metabolomics approach to the investigation of metabolite alterations in juxtaposed biological cohorts (eg. healthy vs. disease; infected vs. uninfected). To establish a metabolomics pipeline of data acquisition and analysis, a series of research projects were pursued within the general context of rapid diagnostics, pathogen detection, and/or molecular profiling. From gastrointestinal health to identification of bacterial infection, this dissertation research aimed to develop the tools necessary for rapid-diagnostics of an array of diseases.