Clinical Application of Metabolomics in Pancreatic Diseases: A Mini-Review

Lab Med. 2020 Mar 10;51(2):116-121. doi: 10.1093/labmed/lmz046.

Abstract

Metabolomics is a powerful new analytical method to describe the set of metabolites within cellular tissue and bodily fluids. Metabolomics can uncover detailed information about metabolic changes in organisms. The morphology of these metabolites represents the metabolic processes that occur in cells, such as anabolism, catabolism, inhomogeneous natural absorption and metabolism, detoxification, and metabolism of biomass energy. Because the metabolites of different diseases are different, the specificity of the changes can be found by metabolomics testing, which provides a new source of biomarkers for the early identification of diseases and the difference between benign and malignant states. Metabolomics has a wide application potential in pancreatic diseases, including early detection, diagnosis, and identification of pancreatic diseases. However, there are few studies on metabolomics in pancreatic diseases in the literature. This article reviews the application of metabolomics in the diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, and evaluation of pancreatic diseases.

Keywords: acute pancreatitis (AP); chronic pancreatitis (CP); early diagnosis; metabolomics; pancreatic cancer (PC); pancreatic disease.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Biomarkers / analysis
  • Diagnostic Tests, Routine / methods*
  • Disease Management
  • Early Diagnosis
  • Humans
  • Metabolomics / methods*
  • Pancreatic Diseases / diagnosis*
  • Prognosis
  • Sensitivity and Specificity

Substances

  • Biomarkers