代谢物组学是后基因时代出现的一门新兴“组学”学科。它能用反映整体的代谢物图直接认识生理和生化状态 ,因此能提供区别于其他“组学”而来的大量信息。代谢物组学已经用于评价实验动物模型和外源物产生的一系列代谢过程和作用机制、靶器官的效应、组织损伤。代谢物组学是新药研究开发的必要一部分 ,其应用涵盖新生物标志物的发现、新药筛选、安全性实验和作用机制研究。因此 ,在模型识别和确证、药物筛选、作用机制研究等方面具有理论意义和应用价值。

Metabonomics is a new branch of "-omics" science in post-gene time. The physiological and biochemical situation can be directly understood by its "metabolome profile" as a whole in metabonomics. Therefore it can provide a lot of information that differs from those came out of other "-omics". Metabonomics has been used to evaluate the test animal models and xenobiotics each producing a distinctive series of metabolic perturbations that are characteristic of the type of action mechanism, target organ of toxicity, and tissue damage. In research and development of new drugs, metabonomics is hopeful to be necessary part. Applying metabonomics involves metabolic databases for the use in discovery of new biomarkers, in screening of new drugs, in drug safety testing, and in action mechanism research. Metabonomics is also hopeful for modern research of Chinese materia medica.