Vol. 6, Issue 11 (2017)

Author(s):
Tehmeena Ahad and Jasia Nissar

Abstract:
Metabolomics detects and quantifies the low molecular weight molecules, known as metabolites (constituents of the metabolome), produced by active, living cells under different conditions and times in their life cycles. NMR is playing an important role in metabolomics because of its ability to observe mixtures of small molecules in living cells or in cell extracts. Metabolomics, a new technology, is a promising tool for food processors, food quality and safety laboratories, food chain providers, and also plant breeders. Metabolomics involves the rapid, high throughput characterization of the small molecule metabolites found in an organism. Metabolome is closely tied to the genotype of an organism, its physiology and its environment and offers a unique opportunity to look at genotype-phenotype relationships. Metabolomics is increasingly being used in a variety of health applications including pharmacology, pre-clinical drug trials, toxicology, transplant monitoring, newborn screening and clinical chemistry. However, a key limitation to metabolomics is the fact that the human metabolome is not at all well characterized.