mView™ FAQs

Very broadly, an mView study is undertaken to understand the biochemical changes in a complex biological system by comparing relative changes in biochemical concentrations between control and treated groups. The study involves analyzing hundreds of biochemicals in a sample, detecting amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids, cofactors, nucleosides and other biochemicals. From this analysis, it is possible to quickly pinpoint biochemical perturbations related to the experiment—be it a drug dosage, a disease state, dietary change or other experimental variable.

A typical study involves a comparison between control group and an experimental group. For example, the control group could be plasma from animals fed a normal diet whereas the experimental group is plasma fed a diet high in a specific nutrient. By analyzing the global biochemical profile in each group the fold-change, relative to the control of each biochemical, can be determined. Time course studies can also be done using time-matched controls. For example, urine from rats dosed with a drug can be collected over several weeks and compared to t=0.

For minimum statistical power, the following requirements must be met:

The number of samples in the control and experimental groups must be balanced (i.e. same number in each group)

The number of samples in each group depends on the biological variability of the system. Below are the minimum number of samples for each group:

• Cell culture: 6
• Animals: 8
• Humans: 10-25 (depending on gender, age, ethnic matching plus diet control)

For example, in a study involving mice exposed to a carcinogen, the minimum number of samples for the study would be 16, 8 control mice (not exposed) and 8 experiment mice (exposed).

We have experience analyzing plasma, serum, urine, tissue, cells, media, CSF, saliva and skin.

Urine, plasma and media: 100 µL

Tissue: 50 mg

Cells: 5 x 10⁶

The number of named biochemicals detected and identified depends on the specific matrix being analyzed. For example, we can detect more biochemicals in urine than in plasma. On average, the number ranges from 200-300 individual biochemicals.

When we analyze samples, a number of biochemical species are identified. By comparing each biochemical to our database, the biochemicals which match our database are identified, or named.

• Amino acids
• Essential
• Non-essential
• Acylated
• Carbohydrates
• Sugars
• Amino sugars
• Glycolysis metabolites
• Gluconeogenesis metabolites
• Nucleotide sugars
• Lipids
• Fatty acids
• Carnitines
• Glycerolipids
• Bile acids
• Steroids
• Energy Metabolism
• Krebs cycle metabolites
• Oxidative phosphorylation metabolites
• Nucleotides
• Purine metabolites
• Pyrimidine metabolites
• Xenobiotics

Because mView studies profile a broad range of biochemicals, they are typically used to understand the global effects of a biological perturbation, be it drug, disease or diet. Understanding global effects can then be used to pinpoint specific biochemical pathways, helping to better understand the mechanism of the perturbation

1. Fill out and submit the study submission form on the website.
2. Metabolon will review the study details and email the study proposal to you, with detailed pricing, delivery times and a sample collection protocol.
3. After approving the study, Metabolon will send sample shipping information.
4. Samples are shipped to Metabolon for processing and analysis.
5. After analysis, the results are emailed to you.

An mView study can deliver three types of data, a biochemical data file, statistical heat map and unsupervised classification. The biochemical data file is delivered as part of any mView project whereas the statistical heat map and unsupervised classification are optional:

• Biochemical Data File. The spreadsheet file contains information about each sample processed: biochemical name, super pathway, sub pathway, KEGG ID, HMDB ID and relative amount detected. The data is provided in two forms, raw and imputed.
• Statistical Heat Map. Statistical analysis of the data shows the fold change of each biochemical, grouped by super and sub pathway, and color coded in terms of increase or decrease relative to control.
• Unsupervised Classification. The final data will be clustered using an unsupervised hierarchical cluster analysis. (Sample Cluster Analysis)

The heat map and unsupervised classification can be generated at any time after the study. The cost will be on your study proposal quote.

The cost depends on the number of samples and the type of data report requested. Exact pricing can be determined on the Study Proposal Submission Form.