NMR-based metabolomics investigations of human biofluids offer great potential to uncover new biomarkers. In contrast to protocols for sample collection and biobanking, procedures for sample preparation prior to NMR measurements are still heterogeneous, thus compromising the comparability of the resulting data. Herein, we present results of an investigation of the handling of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples for NMR metabolomics research. Origins of commonly observed problems when conducting NMR experiments on this type of sample are addressed, and suitable experimental conditions in terms of sample preparation and pH control are discussed. Sample stability was assessed by monitoring the degradation of CSF samples by NMR, hereby identifying metabolite candidates, which are potentially affected by sample storage. A protocol was devised yielding consistent spectroscopic data as well as achieving overall sample stability for robust analysis. We present easy to adopt standard operating procedures with the aim to establish a shared sample handling strategy that facilitates and promotes inter-laboratory comparison, and the analysis of sample degradation provides new insights into sample stability.

中文翻译：

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追求实验重现性：一种用于基于NMR代谢组学和样品降解分析的脑脊液样品制备的有效方案。

基于NMR的人体生物流体代谢组学研究为发现新的生物标记物提供了巨大的潜力。与用于样品收集和生物存储的方案相反，在NMR测量之前用于样品制备的程序仍然是异类的，因此损害了所得数据的可比性。在这里，我们提出了用于NMR代谢组学研究的脑脊液（CSF）样品处理研究的结果。解决了在此类样品上进行NMR实验时通常观察到的问题的根源，并讨论了在样品制备和pH控制方面合适的实验条件。通过NMR监测CSF样品的降解来评估样品的稳定性，从而确定可能受样品存储影响的代谢物候选物。设计了一种协议，可产生一致的光谱数据，并实现整体样品稳定性以进行可靠的分析。我们提出易于采用的标准操作程序，旨在建立一个共享的样品处理策略，以促进和促进实验室间的比较，并且样品降解的分析为样品稳定性提供了新的见解。