A novel integrated extraction protocol for multi-omic studies in heavily degraded samples

Abstract

The combination of multi-omic techniques, such as genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics and epigenomics, has revolutionised studies in medical research. These techniques are employed to support biomarker discovery, better understand molecular pathways and identify novel drug targets. Despite concerted efforts in integrating omic datasets, there is an absence of protocols that integrate all four biomolecules in a single extraction process. Here, we demonstrate for the first time a minimally destructive integrated protocol for the simultaneous extraction of artificially degraded DNA, proteins, lipids and metabolites from pig brain samples. We used an MTBE-based approach to separate lipids and metabolites, followed by subsequent isolation of DNA and proteins. We have validated this protocol against standalone extraction protocols and show comparable or higher yields of all four biomolecules. This integrated protocol is key to facilitating the preservation of irreplaceable samples while promoting downstream analyses and successful data integration by removing bias from univariate dataset noise and varied distribution characteristics.