Metabolomics of Biological Systems

Metabolomics is a relatively new scientific field concerned with the analysis of the metabolome, the set of all low-molecular-weight substances (generally smaller than 1,500 Da) found in living organisms and beyond. This analysis poses a challenge due to the high temporal dynamics of the metabolome and the widely varying concentrations of metabolites. However, knowledge of the metabolome and its changes in relation to various phenomena—such as pathological conditions in the body, changes in diet, and different plant cultivars—can often provide key insights for understanding these phenomena.

Our group focuses on metabolome analysis of primarily biological samples (body fluids, tissues) as well as plants, and on characterizing changes in the metabolome in connection with a variety of phenomena. For metabolome analysis, we use a variety of mass spectrometry techniques, often in combination with chromatographic methods, which allow us to identify individual metabolites associated with the changes we are studying in organisms.

Research topics

Metabolism in Atherosclerosis and Cardiovascular Diseases

We focus on researching the processes that occur during acute coronary syndrome (heart attack) or stroke. We study the structure of atherosclerotic plaques to better understand when these events occur and how to classify patients at high risk for these diseases.

The Impact of Diet and Supplements on Metabolism

We are interested in the impact of various types of diets and dietary supplements on human health and how this manifests itself in the set of small molecules within the body. We want to determine whether they actually have beneficial effects or are, at best, an expensive endeavor and, at worst, even dangerous.

Food Authentication Using Metabolomics

Each food product contains a specific set of small molecules that can serve as diagnostic markers for, for example, the variety, processing method, or sometimes even the country of origin. Based on this set of small molecules, it is possible to accurately characterize a food product even in cases where this cannot be done visually or through sensory evaluation.

Chemometrics and Advanced Statistical Methods

We are interested in the use of advanced methods—particularly machine learning—for the discovery of new biomarker candidates from small molecules, as well as the use of metabolomics for disease prediction.