2. Academic Validation
  3. Serum Metabolomics Reveals Metabolomic Profile and Potential Biomarkers in Asthma

Serum Metabolomics Reveals Metabolomic Profile and Potential Biomarkers in Asthma

  • Allergy Asthma Immunol Res. 2024 May;16(3):235-252. doi: 10.4168/aair.2024.16.3.235.
Tao Zhu # 1,  Yuan Ma # 2,  Jiajia Wang 3,  Wei Xiong 4,  Ruolin Mao 2,  Bo Cui 2,  Zhihui Min 5,  Yuanlin Song 6,  Zhihong Chen 7
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Department of Respiratory Medicine and Critical Care Medicine, and Preclinical Research Center, Suining Central Hospital, Suining, China.
  • 2 Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai Institute of Respiratory Disease, Shanghai, China.
  • 3 Rheumatology Medicine, Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
  • 4 Department of Respiratory Medicine and Critical Care Medicine, Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
  • 5 Research Center of Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
  • 6 Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai Institute of Respiratory Disease, Shanghai, China. song.yuanlin@zs-hospital.sh.cn.
  • 7 Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai Institute of Respiratory Disease, Shanghai, China. chen.zhihong@zs-hospital.sh.cn.
  • # Contributed equally.
PMID: 38910282 DOI: 10.4168/aair.2024.16.3.235
Abstract

Purpose: Asthma is a highly heterogeneous disease. Metabolomics plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis and development of asthma. The main aims of our study were to explore the underlying mechanism of asthma and to identify novel biomarkers through metabolomics approach.

Methods: Serum samples from 102 asthmatic patients and 18 healthy controls were collected and analyzed using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) system. Multivariate analysis and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) were performed to explore asthma-associated metabolomics profile and metabolites. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) was used for pathway enrichment analysis. Subsequently, 2 selected serum hub metabolites, myristoleic acid and dodecanoylcarnitine, were replicated in a validation cohort using ultra-high performance LC-MS/MS system (UHPLC-MS/MS).

Results: Distinct metabolomics profile of asthma was revealed by multivariate analysis. Then, 116 overlapped asthma-associated metabolites between multivariate analysis and WGCNA, including 12 hub metabolites, were identified. Clinical features-associated hub metabolites were also identified by WGCNA. Among 116 asthma-associated metabolites, Sphingolipid metabolism and valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis were revealed by KEGG analysis. Furthermore, serum myristoleic acid and dodecanoylcarnitine were significantly higher in asthmatic patients than in healthy controls in validation cohort. Additionally, serum myristoleic acid and dodecanoylcarnitine demonstrated high sensitivities and specificities in predicting asthma.

Conclusions: Collectively, asthmatic patients showed a unique serum metabolome. Sphingolipid metabolism and valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis were involved in the pathogenesis of asthma. Furthermore, our results suggest the promising values of serum myristoleic acid and dodecanoylcarnitine for asthma diagnosis in adults.

Keywords

Asthma; diagnosis; metabolites; metabolomics; pathogenesis.

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