NMR-based metabolomics in Alzheimer's disease research: a review

Alessia Vignoli; Leonardo Tenori

doi:10.3389/fmolb.2023.1308500

NMR-based metabolomics in Alzheimer's disease research: a review

Front Mol Biosci. 2023 Nov 30:10:1308500. doi: 10.3389/fmolb.2023.1308500. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Alessia Vignoli^{1

2}, Leonardo Tenori^{1

2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemistry "Ugo Schiff", University of Florence, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy.
² Magnetic Resonance Center (CERM), University of Florence, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy.
³ Consorzio Interuniversitario Risonanze Magnetiche MetalloProteine (CIRMMP), Sesto Fiorentino, Italy.

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder and represents the most common cause of dementia in the elderly population worldwide. Currently, there is no cure for AD, and the continuous increase in the number of susceptible individuals poses one of the most significant emerging threats to public health. However, the molecular pathways involved in the onset and progression of AD are not fully understood. This information is crucial for developing less invasive diagnostic instruments and discovering novel potential therapeutic targets. Metabolomics studies the complete ensemble of endogenous and exogenous metabolites present in biological specimens and may provide an interesting approach to identify alterations in multiple biochemical processes associated with AD onset and evolution. In this mini review, we summarize the results from metabolomic studies conducted using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy on human biological samples (blood derivatives, cerebrospinal fluid, urine, saliva, and tissues) from AD patients. We describe the metabolic alterations identified in AD patients compared to controls and to patients diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Moreover, we discuss the challenges and issues associated with the application of NMR-based metabolomics in the context of AD research.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; NMR; lipoproteins; metabolites; mild cognitive impairment.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. The authors acknowledge the funding by Associazione Italiana Ricerca Alzheimer Onlus–Airalzh (AGYR2022). The authors acknowledge co-funding from Next-Generation EU, in the context of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, Investment PE8–Project Age-It: “Ageing Well in an Ageing Society”. This resource was co-financed by the Next-Generation EU (DM 1557 11.10.2022).