Development of high-performance two-dimensional gel electrophoresis for human hair shaft proteome

Proteomics of appetite-regulating system influenced by menstrual cycle and intensive exercise in female athletes: a pilot study

Female athletes who endure intense training are at risk of developing the 'female athlete triad,' making energy intake management crucial. However, the fluctuations in estradiol and progesterone levels throughout the menstrual cycle present a challenge in maintaining consistent energy intake. This study aimed to uncover the underlying factors associated with appetite regulation linked to menstrual phases and exercise using proteomic approach. Five female athletes engaged in 60 min of bicycle exercise, followed by 90 min of rest, during both the follicular and luteal phases. Serum samples were collected before, during, and after exercise, and the serum proteome was analyzed using 2D-gel electrophoresis. A total of 511 spots were detected in the subjects' serum profiles, with significant decreases observed in haptoglobin during the luteal phase and complement component 3 during bicycle training. Unsupervised learning with a generalized estimating equation analysis showed that serum peptide YY (PYY), an appetite suppressor, significantly influenced the fluctuations of serum proteins induced by exercise (p < 0.05). Regression analysis demonstrated a positive correlation between PYY and serum IgM (R = 0.87), implying that the intestinal environment and the immune response in female athletes may contribute to appetite regulation.

Longitudinal proteomics study of serum changes after allogeneic HSCT reveals potential markers of metabolic complications related to aGvHD

Even though hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) allows successful treatment for many malignant and non-malignant disorders, its curative potential remains limited by severe side effects, including infections and other transplant-related complications such as graft-versus-host disease (GvHD). This study examined changes in serum proteome via high-performance two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) during HSCT to search for diagnostic biomarkers for post-HSCT complications. Longitudinal proteomic analysis revealed proteins related to metabolic complications and hemolytic anemia. Retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4), a reliable marker of insulin resistance, was identified, and is possibly associated with the onset mechanism of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGvHD) and/or skin GvHD. Although the cause of insulin resistance is not fully understood, it is thought to be associated with adipocytes inflammation induced by RBP4, iron overload and hemolytic anemia after HSCT, as observed in this study. The present study has demonstrated that insulin resistance and metabolic complications could be immediate complications after transplantation and are associated with aGvHD. The biomarkers revealed in this study are promising tools to be used for improving the early diagnosis of HSCT-associated complications, especially aGvHD, possibly even before clinical manifestations.

Valorization of Human Hair and Its Derivatives in Tissue Engineering: A Review

Human hair is a potential biomaterial for biomedical applications. Improper disposal of human hair may pose various adverse effects on the environment and human health. Therefore, proper management of human hair waste is pivotal. Human hair fiber and its derivatives offer various advantages as biomaterials such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, low toxicity, radical scavenging, electroconductivity, and intrinsic biological activity. Therefore, the favorable characteristics of human hair have rendered its usage in tissue engineering (TE) applications including skin, cardiac, nerve, bone, ocular, and periodontal. Moreover, the strategies by utilizing human hair as a biomaterial for TE applications may reduce the accumulation of human hair. Thus, it also improves human hair waste management while promoting natural, environmental-friendly, and nontoxic materials. Furthermore, promoting sustainable materials production will benefit human health and well-being. Hence, this article reviews and discusses human hair characteristics as sustainable biomaterials and their recent application in TE applications. Impact Statement This review article highlights the sustainability aspects of human hair as raw biomaterials and various elements of human hair that could potentially be used in tissue engineering (TE) applications. Furthermore, this article discusses numerous benefits of human hair, highlighting its value as biomaterials in bioscaffold development for TE applications. Moreover, this article reviews the role and effect of human hair in various TE applications, including skin, cardiac, nerve, bone, ocular, and periodontal.

Potential use of human hair shaft keratin peptide signatures to distinguish gender and ethnicity

Background

Most human hairs collected at old crime scenes do not contain nuclear DNA and are therefore of less value for forensic investigations. In the present study, hair shaft proteins were extracted from 40 healthy subjects between the ages of 21 to 40 years and profiled using gel electrophoresis-based proteomics to determine if they can be used to distinguish gender and ethnicity.

Methods

Extraction of the human hair shaft proteins was performed using a newly developed alkaline solubilisation method. The extracts were profiled by 2-dimensional electrophoresis and resolved protein spots were identified by mass spectrometry and queried against the human hair database. The study was then followed-up by immunoblotting of the identified hair shaft keratin of interest using commercially available antibodies.

Results

Separation of the human hair shaft proteins by 2-dimensional electrophoresis generated improved and highly resolved profiles. Comparing the hair shaft protein profiles of 10 female with 10 male subjects and their identification by mass spectrometry and query of the human hair database showed significant altered abundance of truncated/processed type-II keratin peptides K81 (two spots), K83 (one spot) and K86 (three spots). The 2-dimensional electrophoresis profiling of 30 hair shaft samples taken from women of similar age range but from three distinctive ethnic subpopulations in Malaysia further showed significant altered abundance of one type-I and four type-II truncated/processed keratin peptides including K33b, K81, K83 and K86 (2 spots) between at least two of the ethnic groups. When a followed-up immunoblotting experiment was performed to detect the relative expression of the K86 peptides using commercialised antibodies, similar trends of expression were obtained. The present data, when taken together, demonstrated the potential use of keratin peptide signatures of the human hair shaft to distinguish gender and ethnicity although this needs to be further substantiated in a larger scale study.

Proteomic analysis of Nrk gene-disrupted placental tissue cells explains physiological significance of NRK

Objective

NRK is a unique X chromosome-linked protein kinase expressed predominantly in placenta. The gene knockout causes placental overgrowth and delayed labor of Nrk-null fetuses from dams in mouse. To clarify unknown mechanisms behind the Nrk-null phenotypes, protein expression profiles were analyzed in the Nrk-null placenta using a high-performance two-dimensional electrophoresis methodology.

Results

Among around 1800 spots detected, we characterized a dozen protein spots whose expression levels were significantly altered in the Nrk-null placenta compared to wild-type. Analyzing these data sets is expected to reflect the difference physiologically in the presence or absence of NRK, facilitating the development of therapeutic strategies.