Research The Bayer Scientific Magazin, Edition 28

TRACKING DOWN DISEASES: METABOLIC ANALYSIS ENABLES NEW APPROACHES

Decoding molecular patterns

They investigate metabolic processes in humans, animals, plants and microorganisms: scientists at Bayer are using innovative 

methods to identify new targets for active substances and to test innovative procedures, from an artificial nose used to diag-

nose lung diseases through to highly effective mass spectrometry used in the development of new crop protection agents. The 

key to their success: precise analysis of molecular fragments called metabolites. 

Bayer research 28    July 2015

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Our breath reveals our body’s secrets: 

each time we exhale, the air we breathe 

out contains a large number of mole-

cules. These metabolic products, known 

as metabolites, are already helping 

doctors to determine what diseases we 

have. If doctors detect nitric oxide in the 

breath of a patient, for example, it sig-

nifies that this person is suffering from 

asthma. A person’s “gas fingerprint” 

could be of interest as a procedure to 

help doctors diagnose lung disease. 

Researchers at Bayer are also using 

breath tests to investigate new ways 

of developing diagnostic procedures, 

monitoring the course of diseases and 

observing the body’s response to cer-

tain active substances. “Breath analysis 

can be used, for example, to detect the 

presence of biomarkers characteristic 

of certain diseases. And it is non-inva-

sive, meaning that we do not have to 

perform any surgical interventions on 

the patient’s body,” explains Dr. Julian I. 

Borissoff from Cardiovascular Research 

at Bayer HealthCare in Wuppertal. For 

example, these biomarkers could help 

researchers draw conclusions about met-

abolic activities and identify new under-

lying molecular mechanisms of diseases 

by comparing various breath patterns. 

Initial trials and studies to elucidate the 

potential of these future diagnostic tools 

are already under way in Bayer Health-

Care’s laboratories. 

“The answers to many medical ques-

tions can be found not just in our breath, 

but in particular also in our blood, urine, 

saliva and tissue fluids,” Borissoff ex-

plains. “All we have to know is which 

biomarkers, substance patterns and mo-

lecular fragments we are looking for.” 

This search is based on the knowledge 

that diseases lead to metabolic changes 

– and evidence of these changes can be 

found in the metabolites. “You could say 

they are the body’s chemical fingerprint,” 

the Bayer scientist says. This fingerprint 

can provide valuable information about 

where in the metabolic process active 

substances could most effectively in-

tervene. But although it sounds easy, 

it actually involves extensive research 

work: deciphering the metabolome, i.e. 

all metabolic characteristics of an or-

ganism, would mean having to analyze 

thousands of molecules – a mammoth 

task. Thanks to advances in mass spec-

trometry, however, it is now possible 

to detect a large number of different 

molecules relatively quickly and simul-

taneously. These are just some of the 

aspects that the metabolomics team 

is investigating. The researchers are 

part of an interdisciplinary, collabora-

tive effort at Bayer called the Nimbus 

project, in which Bayer’s life sciences 

subgroups are working together close-

ly to share their knowledge in order to 

identify new approaches for new active  

substances. 

After all, metabolic processes in hu-

mans aren’t the only source of important 

findings. This is why the researchers at 

Bayer CropScience are taking a closer 

look at the metabolite patterns of plants, 

insects and microorganisms. Their goal is 

to determine the metabolic fingerprints 

that characterize, for example, very 

healthy plants. “Using these patterns, 

we can examine both the mechanisms 

of action of chemical agents and the 

effects they have on the vitality of in-

sects, plants and microorganisms,” ex-

plains Dr. Mark-Christoph Ott, Head of 

Bioinformatics at Bayer CropScience in 

Monheim. 

The issues addressed are largely compa-

rable with those in the field of biomed-

icine. The scientists are also searching 

for metabolites that might, for example, 

indicate that pests have become resis-

tant to a specific active substance. “The 

molecular pattern reveals factors such 

as how well a plant’s photosynthesis 

process is working and the status of 

its nutrient supply,” Ott says. “Our goal 

is to identify both possible nutritional 

deficiencies as well as positive effects 

at an early stage, before the symptoms 

even become detectable or visible to the 

naked eye.”

Unlike genes and proteins, me-

tabolites serve as direct signatures of 

biochemical activity and are therefore 

easier to correlate with the phenotype 

(external appearance). There is a direct 

connection between the metabolite 

Molecular testing of the air from the lungs: breath analysis can detect biomarkers that are characteristic 

of specific diseases.

Metabolic profiles provide  an 

insight inside plants

Using biomarkers to  

detect diseases

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Bayer research 28    July 2015

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