Special Issue Editors

Dr. Chiara Roberta Girelli

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Guest Editor

Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, Prov.le Lecce-Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Interests: nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy; chemometrics; foodomics; metabolomics; foodstuff geographical origin and quality assessment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Laura Del Coco

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, Via Province of Lecce-Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Interests: metabolomic analysis of biofluids (blood, urine, synovial fluid, cell lysates) and plant extracts using NMR spectroscopy and multivariate statistical methods; biomarker detection and molecular characterization in agrifood (EVOOs) and pharmaceuticals and medical use (human diseases); metabolomic analysis for sustainable farming, fisheries, and aquaculture
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Plant metabolomics has already been successfully employed in plant functional genomics, food science, and human nutrition. High-throughput analytical techniques (mass (MS) or nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy), in combination with statistical methods, aim to characterize plant metabolomes and the role of primary and secondary metabolites as end products of cell pathways. Moreover, metabolomics has emerged as an effective tool in food and nutrition sciences, allowing bioactive compounds, as well as their possible nutraceutical value for human health, to be chemically characterized. This Special Issue will focus on the study of plants’ metabolic profiles and their interaction with external agents (such as environmental variations) or pathogen attack, as well as the detection of relevant biomarkers. In particular, we invite the submission of manuscripts on plant metabolomes, as well as on their application for biomarker detection, quality control, and/or origin discrimination. All studies, including research papers and reviews related to these items, will be considered for publication.

Dr. Chiara Roberta Girelli
Dr. Laura Del Coco
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

plant fingerprinting
plant pathogen interactions
secondary metabolites
plant physiology
metabolomics
NMR spectroscopy
MS spectroscopy
antioxidants
phytochemistry
food chemistry

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 8350 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Multi-Omics Analyses Unravel Metabolic and Transcriptional Differences in Tender Shoots from Two Sechium edule Varieties

by Zhihui Du, Fei Qu, Chaojun Zhang, Zhilin Chen, Yurong Li and Linhong Wen

Curr. Issues Mol. Biol. 2023, 45(11), 9060-9075; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/cimb45110568 - 13 Nov 2023

Viewed by 687

Abstract

Chaylte vine, the tender shoot of Sechium edule, is popular among vegetable consumers because of its high nutritional content, crisp texture, and unique flavor. Existing studies on the nutrient composition of chaylte vines are mostly simple chemical determinations, which have limited the breeding of specialized cultivars and the development of related industries. Using metabolomics combined with transcriptomics, this study analyzed the metabolic characteristics and related molecular mechanisms of two common varieties of chaylte vines: green-skinned (SG) and white-skinned (SW). Between the two varieties, a total of 277 differentially accumulated metabolites (DAMs) and 739 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. Furthermore, chemical assays demonstrated that the SW exhibited a higher total flavonoid content and antioxidant capacity. In conclusion, it was found that the SG samples exhibited a higher diversity of flavonoid subclasses compared to the SW samples, despite having a lower total flavonoid content. This inconsistent finding was likely due to the differential expression of the phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) and chalcone synthase (CHS) genes in the two varieties. These results laid the foundation for investigating the mechanisms involved in flavonoid regulation and the breeding of specialized S. edule cultivars for chaylte vine production. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research in Plant Metabolomics, 2nd Edition)

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Review

Jump to: Research

13 pages, 1742 KiB

Open AccessReview

Plant Metabolomics: Current Initiatives and Future Prospects

by Sudha Manickam, Veera Ranjani Rajagopalan, Rohit Kambale, Raghu Rajasekaran, Selvaraju Kanagarajan and Raveendran Muthurajan

Curr. Issues Mol. Biol. 2023, 45(11), 8894-8906; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/cimb45110558 - 08 Nov 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2326

Abstract

Plant metabolomics is a rapidly advancing field of plant sciences and systems biology. It involves comprehensive analyses of small molecules (metabolites) in plant tissues and cells. These metabolites include a wide range of compounds, such as sugars, amino acids, organic acids, secondary metabolites (e.g., alkaloids and flavonoids), lipids, and more. Metabolomics allows an understanding of the functional roles of specific metabolites in plants’ physiology, development, and responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. It can lead to the identification of metabolites linked with specific traits or functions. Plant metabolic networks and pathways can be better understood with the help of metabolomics. Researchers can determine how plants react to environmental cues or genetic modifications by examining how metabolite profiles change under various crop stages. Metabolomics plays a major role in crop improvement and biotechnology. Integrating metabolomics data with other omics data (genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics) provides a more comprehensive perspective of plant biology. This systems biology approach enables researchers to understand the complex interactions within organisms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research in Plant Metabolomics, 2nd Edition)

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