Proteomic study of mesothelial and endothelial cross-talk: key lessons

Intercellular communication in peritoneal dialysis

Long-term peritoneal dialysis (PD) causes structural and functional alterations of the peritoneal membrane. Peritoneal deterioration and fibrosis are multicellular and multimolecular processes. Under stimulation by deleterious factors such as non-biocompatibility of PD solution, various cells in the abdominal cavity show differing characteristics, such as the secretion of different cytokines, varying protein expression levels, and transdifferentiation into other cells. In this review, we discuss the role of various cells in the abdominal cavity and their interactions in the pathogenesis of PD. An in-depth understanding of intercellular communication and inter-organ communication in PD will lead to a better understanding of the pathogenesis of this disease, enabling the development of novel therapeutic targets.

Secretome Analysis: Reading Cellular Sign Language to Understand Intercellular Communication

A significant portion of mammalian proteomes is secreted to the extracellular space to fulfill crucial roles in cell-to-cell communication. To best recapitulate the intricate and multi-faceted crosstalk between cells in a live organism, there is an ever-increasing need for methods to study protein secretion in model systems that include multiple cell types. In addition, posttranslational modifications further expand the complexity and versatility of cellular communication. This review aims to summarize recent strategies and model systems that employ cellular coculture, chemical biology tools, protein enrichment, and proteomic methods to characterize the composition and function of cellular secretomes. This is all geared towards gaining better understanding of organismal biology in vivo mediated by secretory signaling.