Untargeted serum metabolomics reveals specific metabolite abnormalities in patients with Crohn's disease

Crohn's disease (CD) is a subtype of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) characterized by skip intestinal lesions that can occur in any part of the gastrointestinal tract. Currently, the diagnosis of CD is based on clinical history, physical examination and complementary diagnostic tests. It is challenging for physicians to make a definitive diagnosis. This study aimed to analyze the variation in metabolites in CD serum and identify potential predictive biomarkers of CD diagnosis. We collected serum samples from 316 subjects, including patients with CD and healthy controls (HCs). Serum metabolomics was conducted using liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. Potential biomarkers were screened and evaluated by univariate and multivariate analyses. A panel of two metabolites (deoxycholic acid and palmitic amide) was identified as a specific biomarker of CD. Receiver operating characteristic analysis (ROC) showed that the panel had a sensitivity of 80.25% with a specificity of 95.54% in discriminating CD patients from healthy controls. The biomarkers identified are increased in CD compared with healthy controls. Our approach successfully identified serum biomarkers associated with CD patients. The potential biomarkers indicated that CD metabolic disturbance might be associated with bile acid biosynthesis, fatty acids and energy metabolism.