From differentiating metabolites to biomarkers

The current developments in metabolomics and metabolic profiling technologies have led to the discovery of several new metabolic biomarkers. Finding metabolites present in significantly different levels between sample sets, however, does not necessarily make these metabolites useful biomarkers. The route to valid and applicable biomarkers (biomarker qualification) is long and demands a significant amount of work. In this overview, we critically discuss the current state-of-the-art of metabolic biomarker discovery, with highlights and shortcomings, and suggest a pathway to clinical usefulness.