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Hemida M, Barrientos RC, Singh AN, Losacco GL, Wang H, Guillarme D, Larson E, Xu W, Appiah-Amponsah E, Regalado EL. Automated multicolumn screening workflow in ultra-high pressure hydrophilic interaction chromatography for streamlined method development of polar analytes. J Chromatogr A 2024; 1733:465266. [PMID: 39163703 DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2024.465266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2024] [Revised: 08/12/2024] [Accepted: 08/13/2024] [Indexed: 08/22/2024]
Abstract
The pharmaceutical industry is rapidly advancing toward new drug modalities, necessitating the development of advanced analytical strategies for effective, meaningful, and reliable assays. Hydrophilic Interaction Chromatography (HILIC) is a powerful technique for the analysis of polar analytes. Despite being a well-established technique, HILIC method development can be laborious owing to the multiple factors that affect the separation mechanism, such as the selection of stationary phase chemistry, mobile phase eluents, and optimization of column equilibration time. Herein, we introduce a new automated multicolumn and multi-eluent screening workflow that streamlines the development of new HILIC assays, circumventing the existing tedious 'hit-or-miss' approach. A total of 12 complementary columns packed with sub-2 µm fully porous and 2.7 µm superficially porous particles operated on readily available ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography (UHPLC) instrumentation across a diverse set of commercially available polar stationary phases were investigated. Different mobile phases with pH ranging from pH 3 to 9 were evaluated using different organic modifiers. The gradient and column re-equilibration were judiciously set to ensure a reliable assay screening framework that indicates promising conditions for subsequent method optimization to achieve resolution of challenging mixtures. This UHPLC screening system is coupled with a diode array and charged aerosol detectors (DAD, CAD and mass spectrometry) to ensure versatile detection for a variety of compounds. This fast-screening platform lays the foundation for a convenient generic workflow, accelerating the pace of HILIC method development and transfer across both academic and industrial sectors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed Hemida
- Analytical Research and Development, MRL, Merck & Co., Inc., 126 E. Lincoln Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065, United States
| | - Rodell C Barrientos
- Analytical Research and Development, MRL, Merck & Co., Inc., 126 E. Lincoln Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065, United States.
| | - Andrew N Singh
- Analytical Research and Development, MRL, Merck & Co., Inc., 126 E. Lincoln Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065, United States
| | - Gioacchino Luca Losacco
- Analytical Research and Development, MRL, Merck & Co., Inc., 126 E. Lincoln Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065, United States.
| | - Heather Wang
- Analytical Research and Development, MRL, Merck & Co., Inc., 126 E. Lincoln Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065, United States
| | - Davy Guillarme
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Western Switzerland (ISPSO), University of Geneva, CMU - Rue Michel Servet 1, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland; School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Geneva, CMU - Rue Michel Servet 1, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Eli Larson
- Analytical Research and Development, MRL, Merck & Co., Inc., 126 E. Lincoln Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065, United States
| | - Wei Xu
- Analytical Research and Development, MRL, Merck & Co., Inc., 126 E. Lincoln Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065, United States
| | - Emmanuel Appiah-Amponsah
- Analytical Research and Development, MRL, Merck & Co., Inc., 126 E. Lincoln Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065, United States
| | - Erik L Regalado
- Analytical Research and Development, MRL, Merck & Co., Inc., 126 E. Lincoln Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065, United States.
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2
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Ponce LF, Bishop SL, Wacker S, Groves RA, Lewis IA. SCALiR: A Web Application for Automating Absolute Quantification of Mass Spectrometry-Based Metabolomics Data. Anal Chem 2024; 96:6566-6574. [PMID: 38642077 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.3c04988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/22/2024]
Abstract
Quantitative liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS)-based metabolomics is becoming an important approach for studying complex biological systems but presents several technical challenges that limit its widespread use. Computing metabolite concentrations using standard curves generated from standard mixtures of known concentrations is a labor-intensive process that is often performed manually. Currently, there are few options for open-source software tools that can automatically calculate metabolite concentrations. Herein, we introduce SCALiR (standard curve application for determining linear ranges), a new web-based software tool specifically built for this task, which allows users to automatically transform LC-MS signals into absolute quantitative data (https://www.lewisresearchgroup.org/software). SCALiR uses an algorithm that automatically finds the equation of the line of best fit for each standard curve and uses this equation to calculate compound concentrations from the LC-MS signal. Using a standard mix containing 77 metabolites, we show a close correlation between the concentrations calculated by SCALiR and the expected concentrations of each compound (R2 = 0.99 for a y = x curve fitting). Moreover, we demonstrate that SCALiR reproducibly calculates concentrations of midrange standards across ten analytical batches (average coefficient of variation 0.091). SCALiR can be used to calculate metabolite concentrations either using external calibration curves or by using internal standards to correct for matrix effects. This open-source and vendor agnostic software offers users several advantages in that (1) it requires only 10 s of analysis time to compute concentrations of >75 compounds, (2) it facilitates automation of quantitative workflows, and (3) it performs deterministic evaluations of compound quantification limits. SCALiR therefore provides the metabolomics community with a simple and rapid tool that enables rigorous and reproducible quantitative metabolomics studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis F Ponce
- Alberta Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Stephanie L Bishop
- Alberta Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Soren Wacker
- Alberta Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Ryan A Groves
- Alberta Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Ian A Lewis
- Alberta Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
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3
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Mandwal A, Bishop SL, Castellanos M, Westlund A, Chaconas G, Davidsen J, Lewis IA. MINNO: An Open Source Software for Refining Metabolic Networks and Investigating Complex Network Activity Using Empirical Metabolomics Data. Anal Chem 2024; 96:3382-3388. [PMID: 38359900 PMCID: PMC10902815 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.3c04501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2023] [Revised: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/19/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024]
Abstract
Metabolomics is a powerful tool for uncovering biochemical diversity in a wide range of organisms. Metabolic network modeling is commonly used to frame metabolomics data in the context of a broader biological system. However, network modeling of poorly characterized nonmodel organisms remains challenging due to gene homology mismatches which lead to network architecture errors. To address this, we developed the Metabolic Interactive Nodular Network for Omics (MINNO), a web-based mapping tool that uses empirical metabolomics data to refine metabolic networks. MINNO allows users to create, modify, and interact with metabolic pathway visualizations for thousands of organisms, in both individual and multispecies contexts. Herein, we illustrate the use of MINNO in elucidating the metabolic networks of understudied species, such as those of the Borrelia genus, which cause Lyme and relapsing fever diseases. Using a hybrid genomics-metabolomics modeling approach, we constructed species-specific metabolic networks for threeBorrelia species. Using these empirically refined networks, we were able to metabolically differentiate these species via their nucleotide metabolism, which cannot be predicted from genomic networks. Additionally, using MINNO, we identified 18 missing reactions from the KEGG database, of which nine were supported by the primary literature. These examples illustrate the use of metabolomics for the empirical refining of genetically constructed networks and show how MINNO can be used to study nonmodel organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayush Mandwal
- Department
of Physics and Astronomy, University of
Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary T2N 1N4, Alberta, Canada
| | - Stephanie L. Bishop
- Alberta
Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary T2N 1N4, Alberta, Canada
| | - Mildred Castellanos
- Department
of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Cumming School of Medicine,
Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, University
of Calgary, 2500 University
Dr NW, Calgary T2N 1N4, Alberta, Canada
| | - Anika Westlund
- Alberta
Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary T2N 1N4, Alberta, Canada
| | - George Chaconas
- Department
of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Cumming School of Medicine,
Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, University
of Calgary, 2500 University
Dr NW, Calgary T2N 1N4, Alberta, Canada
- Department
of Microbiology, Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Cumming School
of Medicine, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary T2N 1N4, Alberta, Canada
| | - Jörn Davidsen
- Department
of Physics and Astronomy, University of
Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary T2N 1N4, Alberta, Canada
- Hotchkiss
Brain Institute, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary T2N 1N4, Alberta, Canada
| | - Ian A. Lewis
- Alberta
Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary T2N 1N4, Alberta, Canada
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Lewis IA. Boundary flux analysis: an emerging strategy for investigating metabolic pathway activity in large cohorts. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2024; 85:103027. [PMID: 38061263 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2023.103027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Revised: 11/02/2023] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
Many biological phenotypes are rooted in metabolic pathway activity rather than the concentrations of individual metabolites. Despite this, most metabolomics studies only capture steady-state metabolism - not metabolic flux. Although sophisticated metabolic flux analysis strategies have been developed, these methods are technically challenging and difficult to implement in large-cohort studies. Recently, a new boundary flux analysis (BFA) approach has emerged that captures large-scale metabolic flux phenotypes by quantifying changes in metabolite levels in the media of cultured cells. This approach is advantageous because it is relatively easy to implement yet captures complex metabolic flux phenotypes. We describe the opportunities and challenges of BFA and illustrate how it can be harnessed to investigate a wide transect of biological phenomena.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian A Lewis
- Alberta Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
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5
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Arzamendi MJ, Habibyan YB, Defaye M, Shute A, Baggio CH, Chan R, Ohland C, Bihan DG, Lewis IA, Sharkey KA, McCoy KD, Altier C, Geuking MB, Nasser Y. Sex-specific post-inflammatory dysbiosis mediates chronic visceral pain in colitis. Gut Microbes 2024; 16:2409207. [PMID: 39360560 PMCID: PMC11451282 DOI: 10.1080/19490976.2024.2409207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2024] [Revised: 07/11/2024] [Accepted: 09/19/2024] [Indexed: 10/04/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite achieving endoscopic remission, over 20% of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients experience chronic abdominal pain. Visceral pain and the microbiome exhibit sex-dependent interactions, while visceral pain in IBD shows a sex bias. Our aim was to evaluate whether post-inflammatory microbial perturbations contribute to visceral hypersensitivity in a sex-dependent manner. METHODS Males, cycling females, ovariectomized, and sham-operated females were given dextran sodium sulfate to induce colitis and allowed to recover. Germ-free recipients received sex-appropriate and cross-sex fecal microbial transplants (FMT) from post-inflammatory donor mice. Visceral sensitivity was assessed by recording visceromotor responses to colorectal distention. The composition of the microbiota was evaluated via 16S rRNA gene V4 amplicon sequencing, while the metabolome was assessed using targeted (short chain fatty acids - SCFA) and semi-targeted mass spectrometry. RESULTS Post-inflammatory cycling females developed visceral hyperalgesia when compared to males. This effect was reversed by ovariectomy. Both post-inflammatory males and females exhibited increased SCFA-producing species, but only males had elevated fecal SCFA content. FMT from post-inflammatory females transferred visceral hyperalgesia to both males and females, while FMT from post-inflammatory males could only transfer visceral hyperalgesia to males. CONCLUSIONS Female sex, hormonal status as well as the gut microbiota play a role in pain modulation. Our data highlight the importance of considering biological sex in the evaluation of visceral pain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria J. Arzamendi
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Yasaman B. Habibyan
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Manon Defaye
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Adam Shute
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Cristiane H. Baggio
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Ronald Chan
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Christina Ohland
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Dominique G. Bihan
- Alberta Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Ian A. Lewis
- Alberta Centre for Advanced Diagnostics, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Keith A. Sharkey
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Kathy D. McCoy
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Christophe Altier
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Markus B. Geuking
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Yasmin Nasser
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
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6
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Menard J, Bagheri S, Menon S, Yu YT, Goodman LB. Noninvasive sampling of the small intestinal chyme for microbiome, metabolome and antimicrobial resistance genes in dogs, a proof of concept. Anim Microbiome 2023; 5:64. [PMID: 38104116 PMCID: PMC10725013 DOI: 10.1186/s42523-023-00286-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The gastrointestinal microbiome and metabolome vary greatly throughout the different segments of the gastrointestinal tract, however current knowledge of gastrointestinal microbiome and metabolome in health and disease is limited to fecal samples due to ease of sampling. The engineered Small Intestinal MicroBiome Aspiration (SIMBA™) capsule allows specific sampling of the small intestine in humans. We aimed to determine whether administration of SIMBA™ capsules to healthy beagle dogs could reliably and safely sample the small intestinal microbiome and metabolome when compared to their fecal microbiome and metabolome. RESULTS Eleven beagle dogs were used for the study. Median transit time of capsules was 29.93 h (range: 23.83-77.88). Alpha diversity, as measured by the Simpson diversity, was significantly different (P = 0.048). Shannon diversity was not different (P = 0.114). Beta diversity results showed a significant difference between capsule and fecal samples regarding Bray-Curtis, weighted and unweighted unifrac (P = 0.002) and ANOSIM distance metric s (R = 0.59, P = 0.002). In addition to observing a statistically significant difference in the microbial composition of capsules and feces, distinct variation in the metabolite profiles was seen between the sample types. Heat map analysis showed 16 compounds that were significantly different between the 2 sampling modes (adj-P value ranged between 0.004 and 0.036) with 10 metabolites more abundant in the capsule than in the feces and 6 metabolites more abundant in the feces compared to the capsules. CONCLUSIONS The engineered Small Intestinal MicroBiome Aspiration (SIMBA™) capsule was easy and safe to administer to dogs. Microbiome and metabolome analysis from the capsule samples were significantly different than that of the fecal samples and were like previously published small intestinal microbiome and metabolome composition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie Menard
- Department of Veterinary Diagnostic and Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
| | - Sahar Bagheri
- International Microbiome Center, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cummings School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | | | - Y Tina Yu
- Baker Institute for Animal Health and Department of Public and Ecosystem Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Laura B Goodman
- Baker Institute for Animal Health and Department of Public and Ecosystem Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
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Pormohammad A, Firrincieli A, Salazar-Alemán DA, Mohammadi M, Hansen D, Cappelletti M, Zannoni D, Zarei M, Turner RJ. Insights into the Synergistic Antibacterial Activity of Silver Nitrate with Potassium Tellurite against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0062823. [PMID: 37409940 PMCID: PMC10433965 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.00628-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The constant, ever-increasing antibiotic resistance crisis leads to the announcement of "urgent, novel antibiotics needed" by the World Health Organization. Our previous works showed a promising synergistic antibacterial activity of silver nitrate with potassium tellurite out of thousands of other metal/metalloid-based antibacterial combinations. The silver-tellurite combined treatment not only is more effective than common antibiotics but also prevents bacterial recovery, decreases the risk of future resistance chance, and decreases the effective concentrations. We demonstrate that the silver-tellurite combination is effective against clinical isolates. Further, this study was conducted to address knowledge gaps in the available data on the antibacterial mechanism of both silver and tellurite, as well as to give insight into how the mixture provides synergism as a combination. Here, we defined the differentially expressed gene profile of Pseudomonas aeruginosa under silver, tellurite, and silver-tellurite combination stress using an RNA sequencing approach to examine the global transcriptional changes in the challenged cultures grown in simulated wound fluid. The study was complemented with metabolomics and biochemistry assays. Both metal ions mainly affected four cellular processes, including sulfur homeostasis, reactive oxygen species response, energy pathways, and the bacterial cell membrane (for silver). Using a Caenorhabditis elegans animal model we showed silver-tellurite has reduced toxicity over individual metal/metalloid salts and provides increased antioxidant properties to the host. This work demonstrates that the addition of tellurite would improve the efficacy of silver in biomedical applications. IMPORTANCE Metals and/or metalloids could represent antimicrobial alternatives for industrial and clinical applications (e.g., surface coatings, livestock, and topical infection control) because of their great properties, such as good stability and long half-life. Silver is the most common antimicrobial metal, but resistance prevalence is high, and it can be toxic to the host above a certain concentration. We found that a silver-tellurite composition has antibacterial synergistic effect and that the combination is beneficial to the host. So, the efficacy and application of silver could increase by adding tellurite in the recommended concentration(s). We used different methods to evaluate the mechanism for how this combination can be so incredibly synergistic, leading to efficacy against antibiotic- and silver-resistant isolates. Our two main findings are that (i) both silver and tellurite mostly target the same pathways and (ii) the coapplication of silver with tellurite tends not to target new pathways but targets the same pathways with an amplified change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali Pormohammad
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- CCrest Laboratories, Inc., Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Andrea Firrincieli
- Department for Innovation in Biological, Agro-Food and Forest systems, University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy
| | - Daniel A. Salazar-Alemán
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Mehdi Mohammadi
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Dave Hansen
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Martina Cappelletti
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Davide Zannoni
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Mohammad Zarei
- Renal Division, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- John B. Little Center for Radiation Sciences, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Raymond J. Turner
- Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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8
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Mandwal A, Bishop SL, Castellanos M, Westlund A, Chaconas G, Lewis I, Davidsen J. Metabolic Interactive Nodular Network for Omics (MINNO): Refining and investigating metabolic networks based on empirical metabolomics data. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.07.14.548964. [PMID: 37503268 PMCID: PMC10370097 DOI: 10.1101/2023.07.14.548964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
Metabolomics is a powerful tool for uncovering biochemical diversity in a wide range of organisms, and metabolic network modeling is commonly used to frame results in the context of a broader homeostatic system. However, network modeling of poorly characterized, non-model organisms remains challenging due to gene homology mismatches. To address this challenge, we developed Metabolic Interactive Nodular Network for Omics (MINNO), a web-based mapping tool that takes in empirical metabolomics data to refine metabolic networks for both model and unusual organisms. MINNO allows users to create and modify interactive metabolic pathway visualizations for thousands of organisms, in both individual and multi-species contexts. Herein, we demonstrate an important application of MINNO in elucidating the metabolic networks of understudied species, such as those of the Borrelia genus, which cause Lyme disease and relapsing fever. Using a hybrid genomics-metabolomics modeling approach, we constructed species-specific metabolic networks for three Borrelia species. Using these empirically refined networks, we were able to metabolically differentiate these genetically similar species via their nucleotide and nicotinate metabolic pathways that cannot be predicted from genomic networks. These examples illustrate the use of metabolomics for the empirical refining of genetically constructed networks and show how MINNO can be used to study non-model organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayush Mandwal
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Stephanie L. Bishop
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Mildred Castellanos
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Cumming School of Medicine, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Anika Westlund
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - George Chaconas
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Cumming School of Medicine, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Ian Lewis
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Jörn Davidsen
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
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9
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Strauss JC, Haskey N, Ramay HR, Ghosh TS, Taylor LM, Yousuf M, Ohland C, McCoy KD, Ingram RJM, Ghosh S, Panaccione R, Raman M. Weighted Gene Co-Expression Network Analysis Identifies a Functional Guild and Metabolite Cluster Mediating the Relationship between Mucosal Inflammation and Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet in Ulcerative Colitis. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24087323. [PMID: 37108484 PMCID: PMC10138710 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24087323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Revised: 04/09/2023] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Diet influences the pathogenesis and clinical course of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The Mediterranean diet (MD) is linked to reductions in inflammatory biomarkers and alterations in microbial taxa and metabolites associated with health. We aimed to identify features of the gut microbiome that mediate the relationship between the MD and fecal calprotectin (FCP) in ulcerative colitis (UC). Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was used to identify modules of co-abundant microbial taxa and metabolites correlated with the MD and FCP. The features considered were gut microbial taxa, serum metabolites, dietary components, short-chain fatty acid and bile acid profiles in participants that experienced an increase (n = 13) or decrease in FCP (n = 16) over eight weeks. WGCNA revealed ten modules containing sixteen key features that acted as key mediators between the MD and FCP. Three taxa (Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, Dorea longicatena, Roseburia inulinivorans) and a cluster of four metabolites (benzyl alcohol, 3-hydroxyphenylacetate, 3-4-hydroxyphenylacetate and phenylacetate) demonstrated a strong mediating effect (ACME: -1.23, p = 0.004). This study identified a novel association between diet, inflammation and the gut microbiome, providing new insights into the underlying mechanisms of how a MD may influence IBD. See clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04474561).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaclyn C Strauss
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Natasha Haskey
- Department of Biology, Irving K Barber Faculty of Science, University of British Columbia-Okanagan, 3137 University Way, Kelowna, BC V1V 1V7, Canada
| | - Hena R Ramay
- International Microbiome Centre, HRIC 4AA08 Foothills Campus, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Tarini Shankar Ghosh
- APC Microbiome Ireland, College of Medicine and Health, University College Cork, College Road, National University of Ireland, T12 K8AF Cork, Ireland
| | - Lorian M Taylor
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Munazza Yousuf
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Christina Ohland
- International Microbiome Centre, HRIC 4AA08 Foothills Campus, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Kathy D McCoy
- International Microbiome Centre, HRIC 4AA08 Foothills Campus, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Richard J M Ingram
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Subrata Ghosh
- APC Microbiome Ireland, College of Medicine and Health, University College Cork, College Road, National University of Ireland, T12 K8AF Cork, Ireland
| | - Remo Panaccione
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Maitreyi Raman
- Department of Medicine, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
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Microbiota alters the metabolome in an age- and sex- dependent manner in mice. Nat Commun 2023; 14:1348. [PMID: 36906623 PMCID: PMC10008592 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-37055-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 03/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Commensal bacteria are major contributors to mammalian metabolism. We used liquid chromatography mass spectrometry to study the metabolomes of germ-free, gnotobiotic, and specific-pathogen-free mice, while also evaluating the influence of age and sex on metabolite profiles. Microbiota modified the metabolome of all body sites and accounted for the highest proportion of variation within the gastrointestinal tract. Microbiota and age explained similar amounts of variation the metabolome of urine, serum, and peritoneal fluid, while age was the primary driver of variation in the liver and spleen. Although sex explained the least amount of variation at all sites, it had a significant impact on all sites except the ileum. Collectively, these data illustrate the interplay between microbiota, age, and sex in the metabolic phenotypes of diverse body sites. This provides a framework for interpreting complex metabolic phenotypes and will help guide future studies into the role that the microbiome plays in disease.
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11
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Boness HVM, de Sá HC, Dos Santos EKP, Canuto GAB. Sample Preparation in Microbial Metabolomics: Advances and Challenges. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2023; 1439:149-183. [PMID: 37843809 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-41741-2_7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2023]
Abstract
Microbial metabolomics has gained significant interest as it reflects the physiological state of microorganisms. Due to the great variability of biological organisms, in terms of physicochemical characteristics and variable range of concentration of metabolites, the choice of sample preparation methods is a crucial step in the metabolomics workflow and will reflect on the quality and reliability of the results generated. The procedures applied to the preparation of microbial samples will vary according to the type of microorganism studied, the metabolomics approach (untargeted or targeted), and the analytical platform of choice. This chapter aims to provide an overview of the sample preparation workflow for microbial metabolomics, highlighting the pre-analytical factors associated with cultivation, harvesting, metabolic quenching, and extraction. Discussions focus on obtaining intracellular and extracellular metabolites. Finally, we introduced advanced sample preparation methods based on automated systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heiter V M Boness
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, BA, Brazil
| | - Hanna C de Sá
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, BA, Brazil
| | - Emile K P Dos Santos
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, BA, Brazil
| | - Gisele A B Canuto
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, BA, Brazil.
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12
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Mohammadi M, Bishop SL, Aburashed R, Luqman S, Groves RA, Bihan DG, Rydzak T, Lewis IA. Microbial containment device: A platform for comprehensive analysis of microbial metabolism without sample preparation. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:958785. [PMID: 36177472 PMCID: PMC9513318 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.958785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Metabolomics is a mainstream strategy for investigating microbial metabolism. One emerging application of metabolomics is the systematic quantification of metabolic boundary fluxes – the rates at which metabolites flow into and out of cultured cells. Metabolic boundary fluxes can capture complex metabolic phenotypes in a rapid assay, allow computational models to be built that predict the behavior of cultured organisms, and are an emerging strategy for clinical diagnostics. One advantage of quantifying metabolic boundary fluxes rather than intracellular metabolite levels is that it requires minimal sample processing. Whereas traditional intracellular analyses require a multi-step process involving extraction, centrifugation, and solvent exchange, boundary fluxes can be measured by simply analyzing the soluble components of the culture medium. To further simplify boundary flux analyses, we developed a custom 96-well sampling system—the Microbial Containment Device (MCD)—that allows water-soluble metabolites to diffuse from a microbial culture well into a bacteria-free analytical well via a semi-permeable membrane. The MCD was designed to be compatible with the autosamplers present in commercial liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry systems, allowing metabolic fluxes to be analyzed with minimal sample handling. Herein, we describe the design, evaluation, and performance testing of the MCD relative to traditional culture methods. We illustrate the utility of this platform, by quantifying the unique boundary fluxes of four bacterial species and demonstrate antibiotic-induced perturbations in their metabolic activity. We propose the use of the MCD for enabling single-step metabolomics sample preparation for microbial identification, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and other metabolic boundary flux applications where traditional sample preparation methods are impractical.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mehdi Mohammadi
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Stephanie L. Bishop
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Raied Aburashed
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Saad Luqman
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Ryan A. Groves
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Dominique G. Bihan
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Thomas Rydzak
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Ian A. Lewis
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- *Correspondence: Ian A. Lewis,
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Mapar M, Rydzak T, Groves RA, Lewis IA. Biomarker enrichment medium: A defined medium for metabolomic analysis of microbial pathogens. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:957158. [PMID: 35935218 PMCID: PMC9354526 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.957158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Microbes have diverse metabolic capabilities and differences in these phenotypes are critical for differentiating strains, species, and broader taxa of microorganisms. Recent advances in liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) allow researchers to track the complex combinations of molecules that are taken up by each cell type and to quantify the rates that individual metabolites enter or exit the cells. This metabolomics-based approach allows complex metabolic phenotypes to be captured in a single assay, enables computational models of microbial metabolism to be constructed, and can serve as a diagnostic approach for clinical microbiology. Unfortunately, metabolic phenotypes are directly affected by the molecular composition of the culture medium and many traditional media are subject to molecular-level heterogeneity. Herein, we show that commercially sourced Mueller Hinton (MH) medium, a Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) approved medium for clinical microbiology, has significant lot-to-lot and supplier-to-supplier variability in the concentrations of individual nutrients. We show that this variability does not affect microbial growth rates but does affect the metabolic phenotypes observed in vitro—including metabolic phenotypes that distinguish six common pathogens. To address this, we used a combination of isotope-labeling, substrate exclusion, and nutritional supplementation experiments using Roswell Park Memorial Institute (RPMI) medium to identify the specific nutrients used by the microbes to produce diagnostic biomarkers, and to formulate a Biomarker Enrichment Medium (BEM) as an alternative to complex undefined media for metabolomics research, clinical diagnostics, antibiotic susceptibility testing, and other applications where the analysis of stable microbial metabolic phenotypes is important.
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Moving beyond descriptive studies: harnessing metabolomics to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underpinning host-microbiome phenotypes. Mucosal Immunol 2022; 15:1071-1084. [PMID: 35970917 DOI: 10.1038/s41385-022-00553-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2022] [Revised: 07/04/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Advances in technology and software have radically expanded the scope of metabolomics studies and allow us to monitor a broad transect of central carbon metabolism in routine studies. These increasingly sophisticated tools have shown that many human diseases are modulated by microbial metabolism. Despite this, it remains surprisingly difficult to move beyond these statistical associations and identify the specific molecular mechanisms that link dysbiosis to the progression of human disease. This difficulty stems from both the biological intricacies of host-microbiome dynamics as well as the analytical complexities inherent to microbiome metabolism research. The primary objective of this review is to examine the experimental and computational tools that can provide insights into the molecular mechanisms at work in host-microbiome interactions and to highlight the undeveloped frontiers that are currently holding back microbiome research from fully leveraging the benefits of modern metabolomics.
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