Metabolomics as a tool to identify biomarkers to predict and improve outcomes in reproductive medicine: a systematic review

Abstract

A range of sophisticated modern metabolomic techniques are now more widely available and have been applied to the analysis of the female reproductive tract. However, this review has revealed the paucity of metabolomic studies in the field of fertility and the inconsistencies of findings between different studies, as well as a lack of research examining the metabolic effects of various gynecological diseases. By incorporating metabolomic technology into an increased number of well designed studies, a much greater understanding of infertility at a molecular level could be achieved. However, there is currently no evidence for the use of metabolomics in clinical practice to improve fertility outcomes.

Metabolic Profiling in Blastocoel Fluid and Blood Plasma of Diabetic Rabbits

“…Metabolites inside the cells are in dynamic balance with those in the surrounding milieu which perfuse the cells. Changes in metabolite profile within cells should be reflected in the composition of the surrounding milieu [9].…”

“…The analytical approaches for metabolomics are generally subdivided into either untargeted or targeted [10,11]. Both approaches have been used as a diagnostic tool for diseases in reproductive medicine [9]. On the one hand, it has been used for the prediction and diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) to provide novel insights into the onset, severity and progression of GDM [12]; the main results indicate that carbohydrate, fatty acid and amino acid metabolism are impaired in infants and mothers in GDM-affected pregnancies [13][14][15].…”

“…On the one hand, it has been used for the prediction and diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) to provide novel insights into the onset, severity and progression of GDM [12]; the main results indicate that carbohydrate, fatty acid and amino acid metabolism are impaired in infants and mothers in GDM-affected pregnancies [13][14][15]. On the other hand, metabolomics has been applied to the identification of non-invasive biomarkers for diagnostic and prognostic purposes in in vitro fertilisation (IVF) [9,16]. However, so far, the metabolic analysis of follicular fluid, embryo culture medium and/or blood plasma has revealed no single biomarker for IVF diagnostics, presumably because the metabolic picture is far more complex than can be explained by a single metabolite imbalance.…”

Detrimental effects of excessive fatty acid secretion on female sperm storage in chickens

“…Inspired by the analysis of the female RT in human infertility and subfertility [60], we performed global metabolomics on the UVJ tissue of hens for obtaining valuable information about the metabolism within SST cells. The most prominent aspects of the SST metabolic network are glutathione metabolism and galactose metabolism.…”

New tools and resources in metabolomics: 2016–2017

“…Metabolomics as a research tool has touched all aspects of healthcare and medicine. Some of the most recent studies in 2017 that have used metabolomics have included studies on pain , reproductive medicine , human breath , sweat analysis , coronary atherosclerosis , autophagy regulation , system‐wide coverage from single cells to entire planet , plant metabolomics , and exposome scale metabolomics among others.…”