Untargeted Metabolomics and Proteomics Reveals Cocoa-Mediated Mitigation of Valproic Acid-Induced Dysregulation in a Zebrafish Model of Autism: Pilot Study

The study involved four groups: control, cocoa-treated, VPA-treated, and VPA + cocoa co-treated zebrafish. Embryos were exposed to VPA, alone or in combination with cocoa extract, from 6 hours post-fertilization (hpf) to 4.5 days post-fertilization (dpf).

Cocoa extract treatment was administered from 6 hpf to 6 dpf, alone or in combination with VPA. Each group consisted of six independent batches, with each containing 20 larvae. For untargeted proteomics and metabolomics analyses, three batched (n=3) were processed using a Shimadzu Nexera UHPLC system coupled with a high-resolution tandem mass spectrometer (Sciex TripleTOF 5600+).