Modulation of Plasma Proteomic Profile by Regular Training in Male and Female Basketball Players: A Preliminary Study

Chronic lactate exposure promotes cardiomyocyte cytoskeleton remodelling

We investigated the effect of growing on lactate instead of glucose in human cardiomyocyte assessing their viability, cell cycle activity, oxidative stress and metabolism by a proteomic and metabolomic approach. In previous studies performed on elite players, we found that adaptation to exercise is characterized by a chronic high plasma level of lactate. Lactate is considered not only an energy source but also a signalling molecule and is referred as "lactormone"; heart is one of the major recipients of exogenous lactate. With this in mind, we used a cardiac cell line AC16 to characterize the lactate metabolic profile and investigate the metabolic flexibility of the heart. Interestingly, our data indicated that cardiomyocytes grown on lactate (72 h) show change in several proteins and metabolites linked to cell hypertrophy and cytoskeleton remodelling. The obtained results could help to understand the effect of this metabolite on heart of high-performance athletes.

Proteomic profiling of human menisci from mild joint degeneration and end-stage osteoarthritis versus healthy controls

Objective

To gain new insight into the molecular changes of the meniscus by comparing the proteome profiles of healthy controls with mild degeneration and end-stage osteoarthritis (OA).

Method

We obtained tissue plugs from lateral and medial menisci of 37 individuals (central part of the posterior horn) classified as healthy (n ​= ​12), mild signs of joint damage (n ​= ​13) and end-stage OA (n ​= ​12). The protein profile was analysed by nano-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry using data-independent acquisition and quantified by Spectronaut. Linear-mixed effects modelling was applied to extract the between-group comparisons.

Results

A similar protein profile was observed for the mild group as compared to healthy controls while the most different group was end-stage OA mainly for the medial compartment. When a pattern of gradual change in protein levels from healthy to end-stage OA was required, a 42-proteins panel was identified, suggesting a potential role in OA development. The levels of QSOX1 were lower and G6PD higher in the mild group following the proposed protein abundance pattern. Qualitative protein changes suggest lower levels of CYTL1 as a potential biomarker of early joint degradation.

Conclusion

For future targeted proteomic approaches, we propose a candidate panel of 42 proteins based on gradually altered meniscal posterior horn protein abundance patterns associated with joint degradation.

Chronic Training Induces Metabolic and Proteomic Response in Male and Female Basketball Players: Salivary Modifications during In-Season Training Programs

The aim of this study was to characterize the salivary proteome and metabolome of highly trained female and male young basketball players, highlighting common and different traits. A total of 20 male and female basketball players (10 female and 10 male) and 20 sedentary control subjects (10 female and 10 male) were included in the study. The athletes exercised at least five times per week for 2 h per day. Saliva samples were collected mid-season, between 9:00 and 11:00 a.m. and away from sport competition. The proteome and metabolome were analyzed by using 2DE and GC-MS techniques, respectively. A computerized 2DE gel image analysis revealed 43 spots that varied in intensity among groups. Between these spots, 10 (23.2%) were differentially expressed among male athletes and controls, 22 (51.2%) between female basketball players and controls, 11 spots (25.6%) between male and female athletes, and 13 spots (30.2%) between male and female controls. Among the proteins identified were Immunoglobulin, Alpha-Amylase, and Dermcidin, which are inflammation-related proteins. In addition, several amino acids, such as glutamic acid, lysine, ornithine, glycine, tyrosine, threonine, and valine, were increased in trained athletes. In this study, we highlight that saliva is a useful biofluid to assess athlete performance and confirm that the adaptation of men and women to exercise has some common features, but also some different sex-specific behaviors, including differential amino acid utilization and expression of inflammation-related proteins, which need to be further investigated. Moreover, in the future, it will be interesting to examine the influence of sport-type on these differences.