Untargeted Metabolomics

For the untargeted metabolomics analyses, a full scan GC-MS is performed to profile the metabolome of a specific biological sample. NIST 17 library is used to identify the metabolites.

For liquid injection

A Thermo Trace 1310 Gas Chromatography Coupled to an ISQ Single Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer is used to perform the profiling of intracellular metabolites present in a biological sample. The different steps for this study are illustrated in the schematic reported below:

The extraction, the derivatization, the GC-MS run (80 minutes), and the data mining steps are explained in details in the protocol written by Cocuron et al. (2016).

For headspace and Solid Phase Micro-Extraction (SPME) injections

A Thermo Trace 1310 Gas Chromatography Coupled to an ISQ Single Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer is utilized to carry out the profiling of volatile organic compounds. The advantage of this technique compared to liquid injection, resides in a minimal manipulation of the biological sample. Indeed, tissues or liquid samples (fluids, juices…) are added directly to the GC-MS vials and analyzed in their native form. The data processing steps are identical to the ones described for the liquid injection. A typical run time is in the range of 20 to 60 minutes.