Proteomics analysis indicates the involvement of immunity and inflammation in the onset stage of SOD1-G93A mouse model of ALS

Proteomic analysis of cerebrospinal fluid of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients in the presence of autologous bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells

BACKGROUND

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal and rapidly progressive motoneuron degenerative disorder. There are still no drugs capable of slowing disease evolution or improving life quality of ALS patients. Thus, autologous stem cell therapy has emerged as an alternative treatment regime to be investigated in clinical ALS.

METHOD

Using Proteomics and Protein-Protein Interaction Network analyses combined with bioinformatics, the possible cellular mechanisms and molecular targets related to mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs, 1 × 106 cells/kg, intrathecally in the lumbar region of the spine) were investigated in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of ALS patients who received intrathecal infusions of autologous bone marrow-derived MSCs thirty days after cell therapy. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD053129.

RESULTS

Proteomics revealed 220 deregulated proteins in CSF of ALS subjects treated with MSCs compared to CSF collected from the same patients prior to MSCs infusion. Bioinformatics enriched analyses highlighted events of Extracellular matrix and Cell adhesion molecules as well as related key targets APOA1, APOE, APP, C4A, C5, FGA, FGB, FGG and PLG in the CSF of cell treated ALS subjects.

CONCLUSIONS

Extracellular matrix and cell adhesion molecules as well as their related highlighted components have emerged as key targets of autologous MSCs in CSF of ALS patients.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Clinicaltrial.gov identifier NCT0291768. Registered 28 September 2016.

Current potential diagnostic biomarkers of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) currently lacks the useful diagnostic biomarkers. The current diagnosis of ALS is mainly depended on the clinical manifestations, which contributes to the diagnostic delay and be difficult to make the accurate diagnosis at the early stage of ALS, and hinders the clinical early therapeutics. The more and more pathogenesis of ALS are found at the last 30 years, including excitotoxicity, the oxidative stress, the mitochondrial dysfunction, neuroinflammation, the altered energy metabolism, the RNA misprocessing and the most recent neuroimaging findings. The findings of these pathogenesis bring the new clues for searching the diagnostic biomarkers of ALS. At present, a large number of relevant studies about the diagnostic biomarkers are underway. The ALS pathogenesis related to the diagnostic biomarkers might lessen the diagnostic reliance on the clinical manifestations. Among them, the cortical altered signatures of ALS patients derived from both structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging and the emerging proteomic biomarkers of neuronal loss and glial activation in the cerebrospinal fluid as well as the potential biomarkers in blood, serum, urine, and saliva are leading a new phase of biomarkers. Here, we reviewed these current potential diagnostic biomarkers of ALS.

Quantitative label-free proteomic analysis of excretory-secretory proteins in different developmental stages of Trichinella spiralis

Trichinella spiralis (T. spiralis) is a zoonotic parasitic nematode with a unique life cycle, as all developmental stages are contained within a single host. Excretory-secretory (ES) proteins are the main targets of the interactions between T. spiralis and the host at different stages of development and are essential for parasite survival. However, the ES protein profiles of T. spiralis at different developmental stages have not been characterized. The proteomes of ES proteins from different developmental stages, namely, muscle larvae (ML), intestinal infective larvae (IIL), preadult (PA) 6 h, PA 30 h, adult (Ad) 3 days post-infection (dpi) and Ad 6 dpi, were characterized via label-free mass spectrometry analysis in combination with bioinformatics. A total of 1217 proteins were identified from 9341 unique peptides in all developmental stages, 590 of which were quantified and differentially expressed. GO classification and KEGG pathway analysis revealed that these proteins were important for the growth of the larvae and involved in energy metabolism. Moreover, the heat shock cognate 71 kDa protein was the centre of protein interactions at different developmental stages. The results of this study provide comprehensive proteomic data on ES proteins and reveal that these ES proteins were differentially expressed at different developmental stages. Differential proteins are associated with parasite survival and the host immune response and may be potential early diagnostic antigen or antiparasitic vaccine candidates.

Potential biomarkers analysis and protein internal mechanisms by cold plasma treatment: Is proteomics effective to elucidate protein-protein interaction network and biochemical pathway?

New market trends of meat flavor, tenderness, and color quality indicators have prompted the research on meat preservation as a crucial topic to received attention. Present research about the effects of irradiation, cold plasma technology on meat is incomplete. There are strongly recommended that proteomics techniques be jointly to enhance the coverage of internal meat molecules for meat research. By identifying meat proteins, detecting biological functions, and quantifying the protein segments of specific meat biomarkers, which can be provided for the information of diagnostic components in preservative technologies. The current review provides scientific findings on various control strategies: (i) combine the data-independent acquisition to provide a reference for the meat molecular mechanism and rapid identification; (ii) design molecular networks biological functions assessment model; (iii) molecular investigations of cold plasma techniques and underlying mechanisms; (iv) explore the X-rays and γ-rays treatment in meat preservation and myoglobin change mechanism more comprehensively.

Global proteomic analysis reveals lysine succinylation contributes to the pathogenesis of aortic aneurysm and dissection

Protein lysine succinylation is a recently discovered posttranslational modification. This study examined the role of protein lysine succinylation in the pathogenesis of aortic aneurysm and dissection (AAD). 4D label-free LC-MS/MS analysis was used to perform the global profiles of succinylation in aortas obtained from 5 heart transplant donors, 5 patients with thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA), and 5 patients with thoracic aortic dissection (TAD). In comparison to normal controls, we detected 1138 succinylated sites from 314 proteins in TAA, and 1499 sites from 381 proteins in TAD. Among these, 120 differentially succinylated sites from 76 proteins overlapped between TAA and TAD (|log2FC| > 0.585, p < 0.05). These differentially modified proteins were mainly localized in the mitochondria and cytoplasm, and were primarily involved in diverse energy metabolic processes, including carbon metabolism, amino acid catabolism, and β-oxidation of fatty acids. By establishing an in vitro model of lysine succinylation in vascular smooth muscle cells, we observed changes in the activities of three key metabolic enzymes (PKM, LDHA, and SDHA). These findings suggest that succinylation potentially contributes to the pathogenesis of aortic diseases, and presents a valuable resource for investigating the functional roles and regulatory mechanisms of succinylation in AAD. SIGNIFICANCE: AAD are interrelated life-threatening diseases associated with high morbidity and mortality. Although we discovered that lysine succinylation was significantly up-regulated in the aorta tissues of patients with AAD, its role in the progression of aortic diseases is largely unknown. We conducted a 4D label-free LC-MS/MS analysis and identified 120 differentially succinylated sites on 76 proteins that overlapped between TAA and TAD as compared to normal controls. Lysine succinylation may contribute to the pathogenesis of AAD by regulating energy metabolism pathways. The proteins containing succinylated sites could be served as potential diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets for aortic diseases.