A review on application of metabolomic approaches in occupational health research

Metabolomics is an emerging omics technology in the post-gene era. It studies the whole biological processes and their metabolic characteristics through qualitative and quantitative analyses on the metabolic spectrum changes of organisms after being affected or disturbed (such as specific genetic mutation or environmental changing). Occupational health is a subject to study the possible influences of workplace environment or working conditions on the health of working population. Metabolomic technology can investigate the overall changes of metabolites of workers exposed to occupational environment, and clarify the health impacts of occupational environment from the perspective of metabolites, providing a new way of thinking for the research of occupational health. Researchers of occupational health have applied metabolomic approaches in studies about exposure to chemicals and physical factors, but available literatures are limited. The paper briefly introduced metabolomics and its technology, and reviewed the application of metabolomics in the studies of exposure to chemical toxicants such as organic solvents, polymer compounds, pesticides, metals, and physical factors in workplace environment. The results showed that the endogenous metabolites of occupational populations changed significantly compared with the general population, which may cause metabolic disorder and induce potential health risks. Besides, the paper analyzed the limitations of current application of metabolomics, and predicted its application prospect in occupational health.