Fluorescence microscopy of a zebrafish larva probed by a glass micro-sensor

imOmics International Alliance · formerly the NMT International Alliance

imOmics

The Science of Life–Environment Fluxes

Life is an open system. Every physiological process — signaling, nutrition, stress, disease — is written in the real-time fluxes of ions and molecules across the boundary between life and environment. We call this dynamic exchange the imOme. The science that studies it is imOmics (Ionic & Molecular Omics).

Explore the Science Join the Alliance Open the Flux Library

Why imOmics

A shared identity.

imOmics stands on a half-century of international science — the vibrating probe (1974), ion-flux theory (1986), MIFE (Tasmania), SIET/SERIS (MBL), and NMT (2001–). All of these techniques measure the imOme; all of their communities are founding citizens of imOmics.

A missing omics.

Genomics, proteomics and metabolomics describe what life contains; ionomics maps its static elemental composition. imOmics records life's dynamic conversation with the world — adding the time dimension to the omics family: DNA → RNA → Protein → imOme → Phenotype.

A neutral home.

The imOmics International Alliance (formerly the NMT International Alliance) is a scientist-governed home for a shared research field. Instrument makers are welcome partners — but the alliance bears the name of a scientific question, not of any product.

DNA RNA Protein imOme Phenotype

imOmics adds the time dimension to the omics family.

Why scientists trust imOmics

Built on proof, not promises.

A young field deserves old questions: will this last? Who stands behind it? Is the theory sound? We answer with history, not slogans.

A proven track record.

According to Zhongguancun Xuyue Non-invasive Micro-test Technology Industrial Alliance statistics, by the end of 2025 researchers using Xuyue/YoungerUSA products had completed more than 1,200 academic publications, including more than 900 SCI-indexed papers. According to company statistics, by 2026 hundreds of research institutions worldwide had used Xuyue NMT, with more than one thousand users.

Scientific continuity.

Academician Tingyun Kuang (recipient of the ‘Kuang Tingyun Star’ honour) and other senior scientists worked with Yue Xu to name NMT. In May 2026, Academician Kuang was appointed Chief Scientist of the GiP initiative.

A complete theoretical arc.

From the philosophy "Life ≡ f(Environment, t)" to the extended central dogma — DNA → RNA → Protein → imOme → Phenotype — to a living pipeline of technology (NMT), discipline (imOmics) and program (GiP): a closed loop from idea to data.

1,200+

academic publications (Alliance statistics, 2025)

900+

SCI-indexed papers (Alliance statistics, 2025)

Hundreds

research institutions using Xuyue NMT (company statistics, 2026)

30+

ions and molecules measurable

Enabling Technologies

One science, many instruments

One science, many instruments. Every technique that reads ion & molecule fluxes at the living boundary measures the imOme — and every one of their communities is a founding citizen of imOmics.

NMT

Non-invasive Micro-test Technology — commercialized from 2001 by YoungerUSA and Xuyue (Beijing); a primary enabling technology within the Alliance's shared flux-research ecosystem.

MIFE

Microelectrode Ion Flux Estimation — developed at the University of Tasmania (Newman laboratory, 1993–) and used by an international research community.

SIET

Scanning Ion-selective Electrode Technique — systematized at the MBL BioCurrents Center, Woods Hole, an NIH-funded national resource (1996–).

SERIS

Self-Referencing Ion-Selective technique — the MBL "self-referencing" sensor family named and advanced by Peter J. S. Smith and colleagues.

SVET

Scanning Vibrating Electrode Technique — mapping extracellular current density; the direct descendant of Jaffe & Nuccitelli's 1974 vibrating probe.

Lineage

1974–2026 · A half-century of international science

  1. 1974

    Vibrating Probe

    Jaffe & Nuccitelli invent the vibrating probe at MBL, Woods Hole.

  2. 1986

    Ion-Flux Theory

    Lucas & Kochian establish in-situ ion-flux measurement; validated by Newman et al. (1987).

  3. 1993

    MIFE

    The University of Tasmania builds the MIFE instrument system.

  4. 1996

    SIET / SERIS

    MBL BioCurrents (NIH national resource) systematizes self-referencing techniques.

  5. 2001

    NMT

    Yue (Jeff) Xu commercializes Non-invasive Micro-test Technology (YoungerUSA; Xuyue Beijing, 2005).

  6. 2020

    NMTIA

    The NMT International Alliance is founded.

  7. 2023

    imOmics defined

    Ionic & Molecular Omics formally defined in peer-reviewed literature (Xu et al.).

  8. 2026

    imOmics International Alliance

    NMTIA expands and becomes the imOmics International Alliance; the GiP initiative continues to develop.

Global imOme Project (initiative)

GiP — the Global imOme Project (initiative)

Join the developing network of standardized monitoring nodes working toward an open, cross-species database of life–environment fluxes.

Explore the initiative Open the Flux Library

An Alliance initiative · read at the Flux Library

Scientist-governed alliance

A scientist-governed alliance — a convener and coordinator that does not compete with researchers or institutions for funding.

Academic governance in formation

The Alliance is developing an internationally elected governance structure with an academic majority.

Open standards & open data

Methodology standards, open data formats and inter-laboratory comparisons are being developed openly.

Conflict-of-interest disclosure

A conflict-of-interest registry will be published as board and committee disclosures are filed.

From the Alliance

Latest News

All news & position papers

Membership

Join the Alliance

Founding-board invitations are open to representative scholars of the MIFE, SIET and SERIS communities. Membership is open to every scientist and institution studying life–environment fluxes.

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