Metabolomic biomarkers in diabetic kidney diseases--A systematic review

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is generally characterized by increasing albuminuria in diabetic patients; however, few biomarkers are available to facilitate early diagnosis of this disease. The application of metabolomics has shown promises addressing this need. In this review, we conducted a search about metabolomic biomarkers in DKD patients through MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Database up to the end of March, 2015. 12 eligible studies were selected and evaluated subsequently through the use of QUADOMICS, a quality assessment tool. 7 of the 12 included studies were classified as 'high quality'. We also recorded specific study characteristics including participants' characteristics, metabolomic techniques, sample types, and significantly altered metabolites between DKD and control groups. Products of lipid metabolisms including esterified and non-esterified fatty acids, carnitines, phospholipids and metabolites involved in branch-chained amino acids and aromatic amino acids metabolisms were frequently affected biomarkers of DKD. Other differential metabolites were also found, while some of their associations with DKD were unclear. Further more studies are required to test these findings in larger, diverse ethnic populations with elaborate study designs, and finally we could translate them into the benefits of DKD patients.