Background: Lassa fever and Ebola are characterized by non-specific initial presentations that can progress to severe multisystem illnesses with high fatality rates.
Methods: Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry metabolomics was used to identify and confirm metabolites disrupted in the blood of Lassa fever and Ebola patients.
Results: The amino acid L-threonine is elevated during Lassa fever and Ebola.
Conclusions: Metabolomics may provide tools to identify pathways that are differentially affected during viral hemorrhagic fevers and guide development of diagnostics to monitor and predict outcome.