Investigation of the individual human sulfatome in plasma and urine samples reveals an age-dependency

Metabolic microbiome interaction with the human host has been linked to human physiology and disease development. The elucidation of this interspecies metabolite exchange will lead to identification of beneficial metabolites and disease modulators. Their discovery and quantitative analysis requires the development of specific tools and analysis of specific compound classes. Sulfated metabolites are considered a readout for the co-metabolism of the microbiome and their host. This compound class is part of the human phase II clearance process of xenobiotics and is the main focus in drug or doping metabolism and also includes dietary components and microbiome-derived compounds. Here, we report the targeted analysis of sulfated metabolites in plasma and urine samples in the same individuals to identify the core sulfatome and similarities between these two sample types. This analysis of 27 individuals led to the identification of the core sulfatome of 41 metabolites in plasma and urine samples as well as an age effect for 15 metabolites in both sample types.