UCL-MetIsoLib: A Public High-Resolution Tandem Mass Spectrometry Library for HILIC-Based Isomer-Resolved Profiling of Glycolysis, Central Carbon Metabolism, and Beyond in Urine, Plasma, Tissues, Cells, and Patient-Derived Organoids

We present UCL-MetIsoLib, a publicly accessible high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (HRMS/MS) library developed for HILIC-based, ion-pairing-free, isomer-resolved metabolomics using a bioinert UHPLC system and the Acquity Premier BEH Amide column. The platform integrates two complementary methods operating under distinct chromatographic conditions (pH 3.5, ESI<sup>+</sup>; pH 11.0, ESI<sup>-</sup>), enabling broad metabolic coverage. A total of 334 metabolites are annotated in the library structure, with thiol derivatization incorporated into the extraction protocol to mitigate redox-driven artifacts. Metabolite identification is supported by 245 authentic reference standards and curated according to MSI Level 1 and Level 2 criteria. Validation followed FDA guidelines for bioanalytical method validation across five biological matrices─urine, plasma, tissues, cells, and patient-derived colorectal organoids. The method demonstrated high precision (<15% RSD intra/inter-day) and recovery (85-115% across all QC levels). To demonstrate biological applicability, UCL-MetIsoLib was applied to a case study comparing healthy and colorectal cancer-derived organoids. The method enabled confident annotation of metabolite isomers, including key glycolytic intermediates such as DHAP and GA3P, as well as sugar phosphates from the glycolysis and pentose phosphate pathways. Metabolic alterations were observed in tumor organoids, including accumulation of nucleotide derivatives and shifts in central carbon metabolism. The library is constantly under expansion and is freely available in its latest version at: https://github.com/kserafimov10/UCLMetIsoLib.

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Journal
Analytical Chemistry
Published
2025-09-22
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.5c03390
Primary Topic
Metabolomics and Mass Spectrometry Studies
Type
article
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article

UCL-MetIsoLib: A Public High-Resolution Tandem Mass Spectrometry Library for HILIC-Based Isomer-Resolved Profiling of Glycolysis, Central Carbon Metabolism, and Beyond in Urine, Plasma, Tissues, Cells, and Patient-Derived Organoids

Cyril Corbet, Michael Lämmerhofer, Maria Virginia Giolito, Marc Van den Eynde et al.
Analytical Chemistry
Metabolomics and Mass Spectrometry Studies
article

UCL-MetIsoLib: A Public High-Resolution Tandem Mass Spectrometry Library for HILIC-Based Isomer-Resolved Profiling of Glycolysis, Central Carbon Metabolism, and Beyond in Urine, Plasma, Tissues, Cells, and Patient-Derived Organoids

Cyril Corbet, Michael Lämmerhofer, Maria Virginia Giolito, Marc Van den Eynde, Olivier Féron, Ophélie Renoult, Sébastien Ibanez, Kristian Serafimov, Julien Pierrard, Florine Laloux-Morris, Sarah Srhir, Paula Varon Rugeles
article en

Abstract

We present UCL-MetIsoLib, a publicly accessible high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (HRMS/MS) library developed for HILIC-based, ion-pairing-free, isomer-resolved metabolomics using a bioinert UHPLC system and the Acquity Premier BEH Amide column. The platform integrates two complementary methods operating under distinct chromatographic conditions (pH 3.5, ESI<sup>+</sup>; pH 11.0, ESI<sup>-</sup>), enabling broad metabolic coverage. A total of 334 metabolites are annotated in the library structure, with thiol derivatization incorporated into the extraction protocol to mitigate redox-driven artifacts. Metabolite identification is supported by 245 authentic reference standards and curated according to MSI Level 1 and Level 2 criteria. Validation followed FDA guidelines for bioanalytical method validation across five biological matrices─urine, plasma, tissues, cells, and patient-derived colorectal organoids. The method demonstrated high precision (<15% RSD intra/inter-day) and recovery (85-115% across all QC levels). To demonstrate biological applicability, UCL-MetIsoLib was applied to a case study comparing healthy and colorectal cancer-derived organoids. The method enabled confident annotation of metabolite isomers, including key glycolytic intermediates such as DHAP and GA3P, as well as sugar phosphates from the glycolysis and pentose phosphate pathways. Metabolic alterations were observed in tumor organoids, including accumulation of nucleotide derivatives and shifts in central carbon metabolism. The library is constantly under expansion and is freely available in its latest version at: https://github.com/kserafimov10/UCLMetIsoLib.

Analytical ChemistryVol. 97(39)
Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc (BE), Institut Universitaire de Recherche Clinique (FR), Radiation Oncology Associates (US), University of Tübingen (DE), UCLouvain (BE)
Openalex Percentile: Top 77%
Metabolomics and Mass Spectrometry Studies
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