ABSTRACT
The entire collection of metabolites in a cell, organ, or organism is called the ‘metabolome’. The metabolome represents the end points of biological processes and so permits us to understand the phenotype of genetic or environmental inuences (e.g. diet) on an organism. The metabolome may be analysed through NMR studies of biological uids or tissue. By measuring the changes in the levels of metabolites (the ‘metabolic prole’) in cells or biouids, we can learn about how a stimulus affects metabolism, which might be important for understanding the toxicology of drugs or for identifying biomarkers of disease. A metabolic prole can, therefore, be seen as a potential ‘ngerprint’ for disease etc. Some illustrative applications are provided in Section 6.6.
