What can metabolomics learn from genomics and proteomics?

After nearly a decade, metabolomics has begun to acquire some credence in the scientific community although its acceptance cannot be compared with that of its forerunners, genomics and proteomics. The legitimization of metabolomics as a valid scientific entity depends on the size of the research community it influences. By far the most effective medium for inoculation is the web infrastructure: public servers that accommodate experimental data, simple formats and guidelines for their interpretation, and connectivity between data and tools for analysis. When these elements satisfy the condition to initiate a social epidemic, metabolomics will be accepted as a fundamental data-driven science that can unite hitherto independently conducted research disciplines.