Proteomic Analysis of Human Sputum for the Diagnosis of Lung Disorders: Where Are We Today?

The identification of markers of inflammatory activity at the early stages of pulmonary diseases which share common characteristics that prevent their clear differentiation is of great significance to avoid misdiagnosis, and to understand the intrinsic molecular mechanism of the disorder. The combination of electrophoretic/chromatographic methods with mass spectrometry is currently a promising approach for the identification of candidate biomarkers of a disease. Since the fluid phase of sputum is a rich source of proteins which could provide an early diagnosis of specific lung disorders, it is frequently used in these studies. This report focuses on the state-of-the-art of the application, over the last ten years (2011–2021), of sputum proteomics in the investigation of severe lung disorders such as COPD; asthma; cystic fibrosis; lung cancer and those caused by COVID-19 infection. Analysis of the complete set of proteins found in sputum of patients affected by these disorders has allowed the identification of proteins whose levels change in response to the organism’s condition. Understanding proteome dynamism may help in associating these proteins with alterations in the physiology or progression of diseases investigated.     

Profiling the Proteome of Exhaled Breath Condensate in Healthy Smokers and COPD Patients by LC-MS/MS

Three pools of exhaled breath condensate (EBC) from non-smokers plus healthy smokers (NS + HS, n = 45); chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) without emphysema (COPD, n = 15) and subjects with pulmonary emphysema associated with α₁-antitrypsin deficiency (AATD, n = 23) were used for an exploratory proteomic study aimed at generating fingerprints of these groups that can be used in future pathophysiological and perhaps even clinical research. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was the platform applied for this hypothesis-free investigation. Analysis of pooled specimens resulted in the production of a “fingerprint” made of 44 proteins for NS/HS; 17 for COPD and 15 for the group of AATD subjects. Several inflammatory cytokines (IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-2; IL-12, α and β subunits, IL-15, interferon α and γ, tumor necrosis factor α); Type I and II cytokeratins; two SP-A isoforms; Calgranulin A and B and α1-antitrypsin were detected and validated through the use of surface enhanced laser-desorption ionization mass spectrometry (SELDI-MS) and/or by Western blot (WB) analysis. These results are the prelude of quantitative studies aimed at identifying which of these proteins hold promise as identifiers of differences that could distinguish healthy subjects from patients.     

Micellar electrokinetic chromatography: a convenient alternative to colorimetric and high performance liquid chromatographic detection to monitor protease activity

High performance capillary electrophoresis (HPCE) has been exploited as an analytical method alternative to current procedures for the determination of proteolytic activity of elastases from different sources. Due to some drawbacks with capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE), the mode of operation employed for the assay of elastolytic activity was micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC). Using a background electrolyte consisting of 35 mM sodium tetraborate, pH 9.3, containing 65 mM SDS and 15% v/v methanol, separation of intact peptide substrate from products of proteolytic reaction was easily achieved in a fused-silica capillary of 50 cm effective length x 75 microm ID. This allowed us to determine the rate of hydrolysis of substrates and to calculate the kinetic parameters Km and k(cat) of the proteases investigated. A comparison of these data with those obtained from high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-based experiments showed that MEKC is a convenient technique for studying protease kinetics.     

A Note on the Influence of the Mine Tailings Released in the Córrego do Feijão Mine Disaster on the Water Bodies of Brumadinho,Minas Gerais,Brazil

Mine Water and the Environment - The rupture of the Córrego do Feijão iron mine Tailings Dam I killed at least 260 people and had major environmental and social impacts. We analyzed the...