Volumetric Absorptive Microsampling in the Analysis of Endogenous Metabolites
de Sá E Silva et al.
The finding, in our words
This review surveyed the use of VAMS devices for analysing endogenous metabolites and biomarkers across the full analytical workflow, finding them reliable for biological analysis with improved analyte stability over liquid blood at ambient temperature and a straightforward acquisition model well suited to decentralised diagnostics.
A paraphrase to the Library’s standard, never the abstract. The source is one link away and is always the authority.
Volumetric absorptive microsampling showed better precision than dried blood spots and a metabolic profile closer to whole blood, with stable signalling lipids for 24 hours at room temperature but significant changes after one week unless stabilised, indicating feasibility for decentralised sampling with the need for storage strategies.
Untargeted metabolomic profiles from three blood microsampling devices aligned more closely with whole blood than with plasma, and all devices distinguished sex based on amino acids, lipids, and acylcarnitines. This validates that device choice can be tailored to the metabolites of interest for decentralised human biomonitoring.
A comparison of three patient-centric dried blood microsampling devices, paper DBS, Mitra and Tasso-M20, found strong to excellent correlation with traditional venous plasma for measuring branched-chain amino acids and ketoacids. Participants reported high acceptability and expressed a strong willingness to use these devices for decentralised self-collection.
In an untargeted metabolomics study, microsampling devices, particularly the Mitra and Capitainer, yielded metabolic profiles comparable or superior to plasma in feature number and intensity, and in the precision and stability of some metabolites. This supports their potential for large-scale, decentralised metabolic profiling, though the captured metabolite profile was application-dependent.
Capillary blood collection using volumetric absorptive microsampling demonstrated equivalent quantification of principal colonic polyphenol metabolites compared with matched venous plasma across a six-hour period following barley biscuit consumption. The technique successfully captured the pharmacokinetic profiles over 48 hours, confirming VAMS as a reliable alternative to venepuncture for dietary biomarker monitoring.