The role of reporting standards for metabolite annotation and identification in metabolomic studies

The application of reporting standards in metabolomics allow data from different laboratories to be shared, integrated and interpreted. Although minimum reporting standards related to metabolite identification were published in 2007, it is clear that significant efforts are required to ensure their continuous update and appropriate use by the metabolomics community. These include their use in metabolomics data submission (e.g., MetaboLights) and as a requirement for publication in peer-reviewed journals (e.g., Metabolomics). The Data Standards and Metabolite Identification Task Groups of the international Metabolomics Society are actively working to develop and promote these standards and educate the community on their use.