Ruey Leng Loo

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Dr. Ruey Leng Loo

Short Biography

Biography

Ruey Leng Loo completed a PhD in metabolic phenotyping at the Imperial College, London. After that, she was appointed as a Lecturer and was subsequently promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2017. She moved to Murdoch University in 2019 having secured a Western Australia Premier’s Science Mid-Career Fellowship.

Ruey Leng’s research focuses on biomarkers discovery in cardiovascular disease (CVD), and because the major contributing risk factors of CVD are largely affected by modifiable risk factors such as poor diet, she has also expanded her research interest to interrogate foods/food products that we eat and assess how foods affect human health a molecular level.

Expert Opinion

Question 1

1. When and why did you start using metabolomics in your investigations?

I first started using metabolomics during my PhD study in 2004 at the Imperial College London. The project applied NMR- based metabolomics to better understand the influence of diets on blood pressure. Prior to my PhD, I had no experience in metabolomics but my background in pharmacy and interest in gaining a better understanding on why people respond differently to diets and medications pique my interest in the field.

Question 2

2. What have you been working on recently?

My primary research focus remains on applying the metabolome-wide association approach to investigate cardiovascular disease risk using both population and clinical intervention studies. Since moving to the Australian National Phenome Centre (ANPC), Murdoch University in 2019, I have further expanded my research focus to include the analysis of food. I deeply characterise food compositions by leveraging the multiple analytical platforms available at the ANPC to understand the molecular basis of healthy nutrition, and ultimately connect nutritional quality and composition with positive healthcare outcomes through nutritional health claims. My research goal, therefore, aims to enable future preventative medicine strategies at the individual and population levels.

Question 3

3. You contributed to the development of the metabolome-wide association study (MWAS) approaches to molecular phenotyping, what are the biggest challenges in this field and how did you overcome that?

At the time, it was the first time metabolomics was used to analyse thousands of samples from a cross-sectional population study. The challenge is to identify a suitable data analysis strategy to unpick the subtle changes in the metabolic phenotypes and to understand the biological meaning behind these changes (and of course including the identification of the unknown metabolites). I was lucky to have good mentors so I was able to discuss these challenges with them and address them methodically.

Question 4

4. Since you are an expert in food metabolomics method development and application, are there any challenges applying metabolomics in food samples? How did you overcome this challenge?

First, I had a hard time maintaining the freshness of food samples. I often worked with perishable foods such as fruits and seafood from overseas, and I had great difficulty in finding ways to import food samples from overseas with minimal deterioration. To solve this problem, I spent a lot of time optimizing sampling, storage, and logistic methods. Needless to say, I was supported by the dedication of our international collaborators. Another important aspect of food metabolomics is the food-derived response variable, which is necessary to construct regression prediction models using metabolomes as explanatory variables. Especially in the case of secondary functions of foods, I had a great deal of difficulty in obtaining reproducible sensory evaluation data. At first, I depended on my collaborators who provided food samples for sensory evaluation, but recently, I have started to conduct sensory evaluation of various foods in my own laboratory.

Question 5

5. We are interested in one of your recent projects about contributing to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDG) (https://handaifoodloss.otri.osaka-u.ac.jp/), Could you explain in detail how metabolomics could contribute to this matter?

As you mentioned, I started the "Food loss and waste reduction innovation Hub" project with the support of JST last fiscal year. This project is a collaborative effort to develop new technologies such as "development of rapid monitoring technology for food functions" , "development of smart data logger system" and "development and utilization of zero-waste recycling food materials". In addition to the challenges of developing new technologies, the project is also involved in social science research projects such as "Building a sustainable socio-economics system through ethical consumption". The project is a large-scale fusion of the humanities and sciences, including research projects such as "Developing human resources for food solutions and creating opportunities through interactive international education programs". Food metabolomics technology targeting volatile metabolites is positioned as an important core competence technology in this project.

Question 6

6. Do you have any advice for early career researchers that interested to be involved in food metabolomics?

As I mentioned earlier, for successful food metabolomics, in addition to metabolomics techniques, "sample freshness maintenance techniques" and "procurement of useful response variables for social demand" are important. To achieve these goals, I think it is necessary to be constantly aware of global needs and to make diplomatic efforts to obtain the best collaborative research partners. Food research is more difficult to obtain research funds than medical research, but it is important to research that is indispensable for the future of the world. I hope that more young people will enter food metabolomics research.

See also