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Metabolomics: a novel approach to identify potential diagnostic biomarkers and pathogenesis in Alzheimer’s disease

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Abstract

Although the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is still not fully understood, it is acknowledged that intervention should be made at the early stage. Therefore, identifying biomarkers for the clinical diagnosis is critical. Metabolomics, a novel “omics”, uses methods based on low-molecular-weight molecules, with high-throughput evaluation of a large number of metabolites that may lead to the identification of new disease-specific biomarkers and the elucidation of pathophysiological mechanisms. This review discusses metabolomics investigations of AD and potential future developments in this field.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology and Institute of Neurology, Rui Jin Hospital affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200025, China

    Xu-Hua Xu, Gang Wang & Sheng-Di Chen

  2. Neuroscience Research Australia and the University of New South Wales, Randwick, New South Wales, Australia

    Yue Huang

  3. Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Institute of Health Science, Shanghai Institutes of Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200025, China

    Sheng-Di Chen

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  1. Xu-Hua Xu
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  2. Yue Huang
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  3. Gang Wang
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  4. Sheng-Di Chen
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Correspondence to Gang Wang or Sheng-Di Chen.

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Xu, XH., Huang, Y., Wang, G. et al. Metabolomics: a novel approach to identify potential diagnostic biomarkers and pathogenesis in Alzheimer’s disease. Neurosci. Bull. 28, 641–648 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12264-012-1272-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12264-012-1272-0

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