In October 2025, Dr. Craig Woods (pictured using specialized centrifuge) of Animal Health Consultants started a placebo-controlled study to evaluate the effects of an antioxidant-fatty acid tablet on the metabolism of older dogs. Dogs will receive placebo or study product over the course of 5-6 weeks before analyzing serum samples for hundreds of biochemical metabolites that may reflect mitochondrial function among other biochemical functions. In tandem with canine metabolomic profiling, dogs are being assessed by physical examinations, owner assessments and routine blood profiles.
The study is being conducted at Arizona Animal Hospital in North Scottsdale, Arizona, a state-of-the-art facility equipped with specialized research equipment and cryostorage units. To ensure samples remain cold after collection, processing is performed using a refrigerated centrifuge as the heat generated from standard centrifuges could impact results. After processing, samples are immediately frozen in vapor phase liquid nitrogen with additional serum samples stored in a -80ºC cryofreezer until final analysis.
Metabolomics is an emerging field in multi-omics research (e.g., genomics, epigenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, lipidomics, etc.) which is focused on measuring intermediate and/or end-product cellular metabolites in tissues or bodily fluids such as sugars, carbohydrates, phosphorylated compounds, organic acids, amino acids, and fatty acids. In addition to applications in canine nutrition, metabolomics is also being applied to in the areas of drug development, longevity, exercise physiology, and environmental exposures as well informing on systems-level biology.
Related Article: Canine Metabolomic Advances;
Carlos, G., dos Santos, F.P. & Fröehlich, P.E. Canine metabolomics advances. Metabolomics 16, 16 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11306-020-1638-7