Identification of ALDH6A1 as a Potential Molecular Signature in Hepatocellular Carcinoma via Quantitative Profiling of the Mitochondrial Proteome.

Various liver diseases, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), have been linked to mitochondrial dysfunction, reduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and elevation of nitric oxide (NO). In this study, we subjected the human liver mitochondrial proteome to extensive quantitative proteomic profiling analysis and molecular characterization to identify potential signatures indicative of cancer cell growth and progression. Sequential proteomic analysis identified 2452 mitochondrial proteins, of which 1464 and 2010 were classified as nontumor and tumor (HCC) mitochondrial proteins, respectively, with 1022 overlaps.

-GlcNAcylation of the Tumor Suppressor FOXO3 Triggers Aberrant Cancer Cell Growth.

Posttranslational modifications of tumor suppressors can induce abnormal cell growth. Here, we identify site-specific -GlcNAcylation as a critical block of FOXO3 that may abrogate a part of the p53 pathway, resulting in aberrant cancer cell growth. Of seven -GlcNAcylation sites identified within the FOXO3 transactivation domain, we found that changes in -GlcNAcylation at Ser284 modulated p21-mediated cancer cell growth.

Abundance-ratio-based semiquantitative analysis of site-specific N-linked glycopeptides present in the plasma of hepatocellular carcinoma patients.

Aberrant structures of site-specific N-linked glycans are closely associated with the tumorigenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), one of the most common fatal cancers worldwide. Vitronectin (VTN) is considered a candidate glycobiomarker of HCC. In this study, we describe a reliable and simple quantification strategy based on abundance ratios of site-specific N-linked glycopeptides of VTN to screen for potential biomarkers.

Comprehensive genome-wide proteomic analysis of human placental tissue for the Chromosome-Centric Human Proteome Project.

As a starting point of the Chromosome-Centric Human Proteome Project (C-HPP), we established strategies of genome-wide proteomic analysis, including protein identification, quantitation of disease-specific proteins, and assessment of post-translational modifications, using paired human placental tissues from healthy and preeclampsia patients. This analysis resulted in identification of 4239 unique proteins with high confidence (two or more unique peptides with a false discovery rate less than 1%), covering 21% of approximately 20, 059 (Ensembl v69, Oct 2012) human proteins, among which 28 proteins exhibited differentially expressed preeclampsia-specific proteins. When these proteins are assigned to all human chromosomes, the pattern of the newly identified placental protein population is proportional to that of the gene count distribution of each chromosome.

Development and optimization of a method for the separation of platycosides in Platycodi Radix by comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography with mass spectrometric detection.

Comprehensive two-dimensional chromatography (LCxLC) using combinations of two columns (C(18) x CN and C(18) x NH(2)) was employed with electrospray (ESI) mass spectrometry to analyze platycosides from root extract. Based on the capability of the C(18), CN and NH(2) columns to separate the platycosides, the orthogonality in two-dimensional space according to each combination of columns was predicted from the correlation coefficients between the retention times of the 17 compounds separated by the independent CN and C(18) columns, and NH(2) and C(18) columns. The expected distribution of the peaks was also compared with the two-dimensional plots obtained by practical separation in an LCxLC system.