Hydrogen deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDX-MS) is a powerful biophysical technique being increasingly applied to a wide variety of problems. As the HDX-MS community continues to grow, adoption of best practices in data collection, analysis, presentation and interpretation will greatly enhance the accessibility of this technique to nonspecialists. Here we provide recommendations arising from community discussions emerging out of the first International Conference on Hydrogen-Exchange Mass Spectrometry (IC-HDX; 2017). It is meant to represent both a consensus viewpoint and an opportunity to stimulate further additions and refinements as the field advances.

We have performed a metabolite quantitative trait locus (mQTL) study of the 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H NMR) metabolome in humans, building on recent targeted knowledge of genetic drivers of metabolic regulation. Urine and plasma samples were collected from two cohorts of individuals of European descent, with one cohort comprised of female twins donating samples longitudinally. Sample metabolite concentrations were quantified by 1H NMR and tested for association with genome-wide single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Four metabolites' concentrations exhibited significant, replicable association with SNP variation (8.6×10−11

A comprehensive variation map of the human metabolome identifies genetic and stable-environmental sources as major drivers of metabolite concentrations. The data suggest that sample sizes of a few thousand are sufficient to detect metabolite biomarkers predictive of disease.

Three new naphthylisoquinoline alkaloids, the 7,3'-coupled ancistrotanzanine C (6), the 5,1'-coupled O-methylancistrocladinine (7), and the likewise 5,1'-coupled O,N-dimethylancistrocladine (8, previously known only as a partial-synthetic compound), have been isolated from the highland liana Ancistrocladus tanzaniensis, along with the two known 7,3'-coupled naphthylisoquinoline alkaloids ancistrocladidine (4) and ancistrotectorine (5). All of the compounds are S-configured at C-3 and bear an oxygen at C-6, and thus belong to the so-called Ancistrocladaceae type, similar to 1-3 previously isolated from this newly discovered plant species. The structural elucidation was achieved by chemical, spectroscopic, and chiroptical methods. The biological activities of the alkaloids against the pathogens causing malaria tropica, leishmaniasis, Chagas' disease, and African sleeping sickness were evaluated.