Diabetes, a serious metabolic condition that results from higher than normal blood sugar levels, is a nationwide epidemic. According to the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation, more than 30 million Americans and 422 million people worldwide have been diagnosed with diabetes. Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is the most common form of diabetes representing about 90% of diabetic cases, according to the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation. While adults are especially at risk for T2D, the disease can also affect children and young adults. T2D causes an impaired response to insulin; blood suga ..read more

Human health is complex, and the influence each internal system has on another can be quite extensive. Take epilepsy, for instance. It is well-established that a low-carbohydrate, high-fat ketogenic diet (KD) can help treat refractory epilepsy, which affects more than a third of epileptic patients who don’t respond to existing anticonvulsive drugs. What scientists haven’t understood until recently is how this kind of diet translates to brain activity. Turns out the answer lies in the gut microbiome. In a study from a team at the University of California, Los Angeles, researchers ..read more

We sat down for a conversation with Nikole Kimes, Ph.D., Co-Founder and CEO of Siolta. The company’s name, which is pronounced sheel-ta, is a Gaelic word for “seeds” and speaks to the company’s microbial therapeutics that are created to reseed the depleted gut microbiome with naturally occurring bacteria, which are essential for a healthy immune system. Dr. Kimes’ interest in science resulted from two passions: human health and environmental ecosystems. Her intrinsic understanding that these two concepts are inevitably linked fueled her interest in science and eventually converged at ..read more

What about the microbiome of other body locations, particularly our largest organ – the skin? The gut feeling – where it all began For years, we have known that the billions of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms that live within us – known collectively as the microbiome – help in myriad ways to keep our bodies healthy. On the flip side, an unbalanced microbiome can foster or even directly drive a disease state. How do commensal microbes exert their beneficial and harmful effects on the health of the host? Small molecule metabolites are one of the primary mechanisms for the interacti ..read more

Metabolon’s platform delivers interpretive depth not possible elsewhere. Glyphosate is a common pesticide that targets the shikimate pathway of aromatic amino acid synthesis, specifically inhibiting an enzyme that is not present in mammalian systems. Therefore, it is highly specific to plants and some bacterial species. There has been some concern, however, that human exposure to glyphosate can affect health due to the alteration of the gut microbiome or by other, unknown mechanisms. A multi-omics approach provides valuable insights for investigating complex areas of science to enhance ou ..read more

Metabolomics offers unique hope in the battle against Parkinson’s disease through a simple skin swab. Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative brain condition that affects over 6 million people globally, second only in prevalence to Alzheimer’s disease1. Currently, there is no definitive diagnostic test for Parkinson’s disease, but recent evidence suggests that sebum biomarkers could provide a non-invasive solution for an early detection of the disease. Changes in the skin are common symptoms of Parkinson’s disease reported in up to 60% of people with Parkinson’s2. Many people with Parkinson ..read more

By: Lisa Freinkman, Ph.D. The consensus is clear: metabolomic data can play a pivotal role in understanding key questions across the life sciences. For example, in population health, metabolomics is increasingly viewed as a robust phenotyping tool with the power to link genomic and transcriptomic variation on the one hand with clinical outcomes on the other hand. Likewise, in drug development, metabolomics offers a vast trove of potential biomarkers for monitoring disease progression, drug efficacy, and both on- and off-target toxicity. Since small-molecule metabolites play an outsized role ..read more

Our gut microbiota is rich with biological insights, which can help clinical investigators better understand factors that influence both sickness and health. But despite its huge importance, this area of research is plagued by challenges. Stool samples from a diverse patient set are needed for researchers to gather valuable insights. Yet, collection, storage, and shipping issues constrain the quantity and quality of testable material. A new approach is needed to help researchers more fully explore the clues that live in the intestinal microbiota. To appreciate the challenges – and ..read more

Alpha-diversity in the gut microbiome holds many clues to understanding human health. Now those clues are more accessible because Institute for Systems Biology (ISB) researchers can predict the diversity of an individual’s gut microbiome by examining metabolites in the blood. By analyzing the de-identified multi-omic data from several hundred consenting participants in a consumer scientific wellness program, researchers found that they can predict the health-associated alpha diversity of the gut microbiome by using a model trained on 40 circulating blood metabolites. A ..read more

Diabetes, a serious metabolic condition that results from higher than normal blood sugar levels, is a nationwide epidemic. According to the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation, more than 30 million Americans and 422 million people worldwide have been diagnosed with diabetes. Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is the most common form of diabetes representing about 90% of diabetic cases, according to the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation. While adults are especially at risk for T2D, the disease can also affect children and young adults. T2D causes an impaired response to insulin; blood suga ..read more