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Araujo ANM, Leroux IN, Furtado DZS, Ferreira APSDS, Batista BL, Silva HDT, Handakas E, Assunção NA, Olympio KPK. Integration of proteomic and metabolomic analyses: New insights for mapping informal workers exposed to potentially toxic elements. Front Public Health 2023; 10:899638. [PMID: 36761330 PMCID: PMC9905639 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.899638] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/29/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Occupational exposure to potentially toxic elements (PTEs) is a concerning reality of informal workers engaged in the jewelry production chain that can lead to adverse health effects. In this study, untargeted proteomic and metabolomic analyses were employed to assess the impact of these exposures on informal workers' exposome in Limeira city, São Paulo state, Brazil. PTE levels (Cr, Mn, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, Sn, Sb, Hg, and Pb) were determined in blood, proteomic analyses were performed for saliva samples (n = 26), and metabolomic analyses in plasma (n = 145) using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) coupled with quadrupole-time-of-flight (Q-TOF) mass spectrometry. Blood PTE levels of workers, controls, and their family members were determined by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). High concentration levels of Sn and Cu were detected in welders' blood (p < 0.001). Statistical analyses were performed using MetaboAnalyst 4.0. The results showed that 26 proteins were upregulated, and 14 proteins downregulated on the welder group, and thirty of these proteins were also correlated with blood Pb, Cu, Sb, and Sn blood levels in the welder group (p < 0.05). Using gene ontology analysis of these 40 proteins revealed the biological processes related to the upregulated proteins were translational initiation, SRP-dependent co-translational protein targeting to membrane, and viral transcription. A Metabolome-Wide Association Study (MWAS) was performed to search for associations between blood metabolites and exposure groups. A pathway enrichment analysis of significant features from the MWAS was then conducted with Mummichog. A total of 73 metabolomic compounds and 40 proteins up or down-regulated in welders were used to perform a multi-omics analysis, disclosing seven metabolic pathways potentially disturbed by the informal work: valine leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis, valine leucine and isoleucine degradation, arginine and proline metabolism, ABC transporters, central carbon metabolism in cancer, arachidonic acid metabolism and cysteine and methionine metabolism. The majority of the proteins found to be statistically up or downregulated in welders also correlated with at least one blood PTE level, providing insights into the biological responses to PTE exposures in the informal work exposure scenario. These findings shed new light on the effects of occupational activity on workers' exposome, underscoring the harmful effects of PTE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alda Neis Miranda Araujo
- Graduate Program in Translational Medicine, Paulista School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Federal University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Isabelle Nogueira Leroux
- School of Public Health, Department of Environmental Health, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Danielle Zildeana Sousa Furtado
- Department of Chemistry, Institute of Environmental, Chemical, and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo, Diadema, São Paulo, Brazil,Technology School of Teresina, Teresina, Piauí, Brazil
| | | | - Bruno Lemos Batista
- Center for Natural and Human Sciences, Federal University of ABC, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Heron Dominguez Torres Silva
- Department of Chemistry, Institute of Environmental, Chemical, and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo, Diadema, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Evangelos Handakas
- Department of Medicine, Computation and Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Nilson Antônio Assunção
- Department of Chemistry, Institute of Environmental, Chemical, and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo, Diadema, São Paulo, Brazil,Nilson Antônio Assunção ✉
| | - Kelly Polido Kaneshiro Olympio
- School of Public Health, Department of Environmental Health, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil,*Correspondence: Kelly Polido Kaneshiro Olympio ✉
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