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To date, the main limitations for LC-MS-based untargeted lipidomics reside in the lack of adequate computational and cheminformatics tools that are able to support the analysis of several thousands of species from biological samples, enabling data mining and automating lipid identification and external prediction processes. To address these issues, we developed Lipostar, novel vendor-neutral high-throughput software that effectively supports both targeted and untargeted LC-MS lipidomics, implementing data acquisition, user-friendly multivariate analysis (to be used for model generation and new sample predictions), and advanced lipid identification protocols that can work with or without the support of preformed lipid databases. Moreover, Lipostar integrates the lipidomic processes with a full metabolite identification (MetID) procedure, essential in drug safety applications and in translational studies. Case studies demonstrating a number of Lipostar features are also presented.

Over the last decade, technological advances have improved the sensitivity and selectivity of LC/MS analyzers, providing very efficient tools for lipidomics research. In particular, the nine lipid classes that constitute 99 % of the human serum lipidome (sterols, cholesteryl esters, phosphocholines, phosphoethanolamines, sphingomyelins, triacylglycerols, fatty acids, lysophosphocholines, and diacylglycerols) can be easily detected. However, until today there has not been a unique technique for sample preparation that provides a satisfactory recovery for all of these nine classes together. In this work, we have developed and validated a new one-phase extraction (OPE) method that overcomes this limitation. This method was also compared with the gold standard lipid extraction methods such as Folch, Bligh & Dyer, and recently developed methods with methanol and methyl-tert-butyl ether. Results demonstrate that the mixture of methanol/chloroform/MTBE (MMC) provides a recovery very close to 100 % for all nine lipid classes of the human serum investigated. For this extraction method, 100 μL of human serum is incubated with 2 mL of the solvents mixture, then vortexed and centrifuged. For its simplicity of execution, rapidity, reproducibility, and the reduced volume of sample required, this method opens the door to the use of human serum lipid profiling for large-scale applications in scientific research and clinical trials.

Lysosomes are acidic cell compartments containing a large set of hydrolytic enzymes. These lysosomal hydrolases degrade proteins, lipids, polysaccharides, and nucleic acids into their constituents. Materials to be degraded can reach lysosomes either from inside the cell, by autophagy, or from outside the cell, by different forms of endocytosis. In addition to their degradative functions, lysosomes are also able to extracellularly release their contents by lysosomal exocytosis. These organelles move from the perinuclear region along microtubules towards the proximity of the plasma membrane, then the lysosomal and plasma membrane fuse together via a Ca2+-dependent process. The fusion of the lysosomal membrane with plasma membrane plays an important role in plasma membrane repair, while the secretion of lysosomal content is relevant for the remodelling of extracellular matrix and release of functional substrates. Lysosomal storage disorders (LSDs) and age-related neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, share as a pathological feature the accumulation of undigested material within organelles of the endolysosomal system. Recent studies suggest that lysosomal exocytosis stimulation may have beneficial effects on the accumulation of these unprocessed aggregates, leading to their extracellular elimination. However, many details of the molecular machinery required for lysosomal exocytosis are only beginning to be unravelled. Here, we are going to review the current literature on molecular mechanisms and biological functions underlying lysosomal exocytosis, to shed light on the potential of lysosomal exocytosis stimulation as a therapeutic approach.

FMO enzymes (FMOs) play a key role in the processes of detoxification and/or bioactivation of specific pharmaceuticals and xenobiotics bearing nucleophilic centers. The N-oxide and S-oxide metabolites produced by FMOs are often active metabolites. The FMOs are more active than cytochromes in the brain and work in tandem with CYP3A4 in the liver. FMOs might reduce the risk of phospholipidosis of CAD-like drugs, although some FMOs metabolites seem to be neurotoxic and hepatotoxic. However, in silico methods for FMO metabolism prediction are not yet available. This paper reports, for the first time, a substrate-specificity and catalytic-activity model for FMO3, the most relevant isoform of the FMOs in humans. The application of this model to a series of compounds with unknown FMO metabolism is also reported. The model has also been very useful to design compounds with optimal clearance and in finding erroneous literature data, particularly cases in which substances have been reported to be FMO3 substrates when, in reality, the experimentally validated in silico model correctly predicts that they are not.

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Under physio-pathological conditions, cells release membrane-surrounded structures named Extracellular Vesicles (EVs), which convey their molecular cargo to neighboring or distant cells influencing their metabolism. Besides their involvement in the intercellular communication, EVs might represent a tool used by cells to eliminate unnecessary/toxic material. Here, we revised the literature exploring the link between EVs and redox biology. The first proof of this link derives from evidence demonstrating that EVs from healthy cells protect target cells from oxidative insults through the transfer of antioxidants. Oxidative stress conditions influence the release and the molecular cargo of EVs that, in turn, modulate the redox status of target cells. Oxidative stress-related EVs exert both beneficial or harmful effects, as they can carry antioxidants or ROS-generating enzymes and oxidized molecules. As mediators of cell-to-cell communication, EVs are also implicated in the pathophysiology of oxidative stress-related diseases. The review found evidence that numerous studies speculated on the role of EVs in redox signaling and oxidative stress-related pathologies, but few of them unraveled molecular mechanisms behind this complex link. Thus, the purpose of this review is to report and discuss this evidence, highlighting that the analysis of the molecular content of oxidative stress-released EVs (reminiscent of the redox status of originating cells), is a starting point for the use of EVs as diagnostic and therapeutic tools in oxidative stress-related diseases.