Comprehensive metabolomic profiling of nutrients in fish and shrimp

Although fish and shrimp are commonly consumed in daily life and recognized as nutrient-rich species, global profiling of the endogenous nutrients in these species is lacking. Here, we optimized the sample preparation and data acquisition methods of metabolomics to comprehensively characterize the nutrients in selected fish and shrimp species and compared them with those in beef, leading to the identification of 71 differentially expressed metabolites. Of these, docosahexaenoic acid, taurine, choline and (lyso)phosphatidylcholines were found to be abundant in the examined fish species, while several nonessential amino acids were rich in the analyzed shrimp samples. Subsequently, the biological functions of the metabolites rich in shrimp were queried. Intriguingly, the examined nutrients exemplified by proline can significantly mitigate the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated inflammatory responses in BV2 cells and RAW264.7 cells. Collectively, our findings imply that the dietary intake of certain fish and shrimp species may benefit human health through alleviating inflammatory responses.

Automated summary

In this study, we comprehensively characterized the nutrients in selected fish and shrimp species and compared them with those in beef. We identified 71 differentially expressed metabolites, with docosahexaenoic acid, taurine, choline and (lyso)phosphatidylcholines found to be abundant in fish species, and several nonessential amino acids rich in shrimp samples. Furthermore, we found that certain nutrients in shrimp, such as proline, can alleviate LPS-stimulated inflammatory responses in BV2 cells and RAW264.7 cells. These findings suggest that the dietary intake of certain fish and shrimp species may benefit human health by alleviating inflammatory responses.