Stephanopoulos:Flux Determination: Difference between revisions
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One of the core convictions of our lab is that the study of metabolic fluxes and their relationship to other "omics" data is a prerequisite to understanding cellular physiology. Unlike metabolite, protein and mRNA measurements, which provide information about what is present inside the cell at a particular time, fluxes give insights into what the cell is actually doing with these molecules. They give us a traffic report that describes the flow of material throughout metabolism. This understanding can in turn provide clues as to how the cells should be manipulated in order to elicit a desired phenotype. | One of the core convictions of our lab is that the study of metabolic fluxes and their relationship to other "omics" data is a prerequisite to understanding cellular physiology. Unlike metabolite, protein and mRNA measurements, which provide information about what is present inside the cell at a particular time, fluxes give insights into what the cell is actually doing with these molecules. They give us a traffic report that describes the flow of material throughout metabolism. This understanding can in turn provide clues as to how the cells should be manipulated in order to elicit a desired phenotype. | ||
The flux maps we generate rely upon the marriage of precise experimental techniques and sophisticated computational algorithms for subsequent data analysis. Tracer molecules that incorporate stable isotopes (e.g. <sup>13</sup>C or <sup>2</sup>H) at specific positions are used to probe the flux state of the cell. By analyzing the rearrangement of these heavy atoms in excreted products and intracellular metabolites, we can extract information about the fluxes that gave rise to the observed labeling patterns. | The flux maps we generate rely upon the marriage of precise experimental techniques and sophisticated computational algorithms for subsequent data analysis. Tracer molecules that incorporate stable isotopes (e.g. <sup>13</sup>C or <sup>2</sup>H) at specific positions are used to probe the flux state of the cell. By analyzing the rearrangement of these heavy atoms in excreted products and intracellular metabolites, we can extract information about the fluxes that gave rise to the observed labeling patterns. Our method of choice for isotopic labeling is GC-MS due to its sensitivity and versatility. Through clever selection of chemical derivatizations and GC conditions, it is possible to selectively analyze specific classes of molecules or to canvass a wide range of metabolites simultaneously. | ||
Revision as of 12:54, 14 July 2006
One of the core convictions of our lab is that the study of metabolic fluxes and their relationship to other "omics" data is a prerequisite to understanding cellular physiology. Unlike metabolite, protein and mRNA measurements, which provide information about what is present inside the cell at a particular time, fluxes give insights into what the cell is actually doing with these molecules. They give us a traffic report that describes the flow of material throughout metabolism. This understanding can in turn provide clues as to how the cells should be manipulated in order to elicit a desired phenotype.
The flux maps we generate rely upon the marriage of precise experimental techniques and sophisticated computational algorithms for subsequent data analysis. Tracer molecules that incorporate stable isotopes (e.g. 13C or 2H) at specific positions are used to probe the flux state of the cell. By analyzing the rearrangement of these heavy atoms in excreted products and intracellular metabolites, we can extract information about the fluxes that gave rise to the observed labeling patterns. Our method of choice for isotopic labeling is GC-MS due to its sensitivity and versatility. Through clever selection of chemical derivatizations and GC conditions, it is possible to selectively analyze specific classes of molecules or to canvass a wide range of metabolites simultaneously.
