Evaluation of metabolomics as diagnostic targets in oral squamous cell carcinoma: a systematic review

Alapati, S., Fortuna, G., Ramage, G. and Delaney, C. (2023) Evaluation of metabolomics as diagnostic targets in oral squamous cell carcinoma: a systematic review. Metabolites, 13, 890. (doi: 10.3390/metabo13080890) (PMID:37766254) (PMCID:PMC10456490)

Abstract

In recent years, high-throughput technologies have facilitated the widespread use of metabolomics to identify biomarkers and targets for oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). As a result, the primary goal of this systematic review is to identify and evaluate metabolite biomarkers and their pathways for OSCC that featured consistently across studies despite methodological variations. Six electronic databases (Medline, Cochrane, Web of Science, CINAHL, ProQuest, and Embase) were reviewed for the longitudinal studies involving OSCC patients and metabolic marker analysis (in accordance with PRISMA 2020). The studies included ranged from the inception of metabolomics in OSCC (i.e., 1 January 2007) to 30 April 2023. The included studies were then assessed for their quality using the modified version of NIH quality assessment tool and QUADOMICS. Thirteen studies were included after screening 2285 studies. The majority of the studies were from South Asian regions, and metabolites were most frequently derived from saliva. Amino acids accounted for more than quarter of the detected metabolites, with glutamate and methionine being the most prominent. The top dysregulated metabolites indicated dysregulation of six significantly enriched pathways including aminoacyl-tRNA biosynthesis, glutathione metabolism and arginine biosynthesis with the false discovery rate (FDR) <0.05. Finally, this review highlights the potential of metabolomics for early diagnosis and therapeutic targeting of OSCC. However, larger studies and standardized protocols are needed to validate these findings and make them a clinical reality.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Ramage, Professor Gordon and Delaney, Mr Christopher and Fortuna, Dr Giulio

Creator Roles

Delaney, C.: Conceptualization, Methodology, Validation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Data curation, Writing – review and editing, Supervision
Fortuna, G.: Methodology, Writing – review and editing, Supervision
Ramage, G.: Resources, Writing – review and editing, Supervision

• Authors: Alapati, S., Fortuna, G., Ramage, G., and Delaney, C.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Medicine, Dentistry & Nursing > Dental School
• Journal Name: Metabolites
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2218-1989
• ISSN (Online): 2218-1989
• Copyright Holders: Copyright: © 2023 by the authors
• First Published: First published in Metabolites 13: 890
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence