Multidisciplinary approach combining food metabolomics and epidemiology identifies meglutol as an important bioactive metabolite in tempe, an Indonesian fermented food.

This study introduces a multidisciplinary approach to investigate bioactive food metabolites often overlooked due to their low concentrations. We integrated an in-house food metabolite library (n = 494), a human metabolite library (n = 891) from epidemiological studies, and metabolite pharmacological databases to screen for food metabolites with potential bioactivity. We identified six potential metabolites, including meglutol (3-hydroxy-3-methylglutarate), an understudied low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-lowering compound.

Improvement of the functional value of green soybean (edamame) using germination and tempe fermentation: A comparative metabolomics study.

Green soybean, also known as edamame, is a legume with high nutritional and functional value. Despite its growing popularity and potential health benefits, the functionality of green soybean has not been thoroughly studied. Previous research on the functionality of green soybean has largely focused on a limited number of specific, well-studied, bioactive metabolites, without comprehensively investigating the metabolome of this legume.

Metabolomics-driven strain improvement: A mini review.

In recent years, mass spectrometry-based metabolomics has been established as a powerful and versatile technique for studying cellular metabolism by comprehensive analysis of metabolites in the cell. Although there are many scientific reports on the use of metabolomics for the elucidation of mechanism and physiological changes occurring in the cell, there are surprisingly very few reports on its use for the identification of rate-limiting steps in a synthetic biological system that can lead to the actual improvement of the host organism. In this mini review, we discuss different strategies for improving strain performance using metabolomics data and compare the application of metabolomics-driven strain improvement techniques in different host microorganisms.