Coupling proteomics and transcriptomics in the quest of subtype-specific proteins in breast cancer

Breast-cancer subtypes present with distinct clinical characteristics. Therefore, characterization of subtype-specific proteins may augment the development of targeted therapies and prognostic biomarkers. To address this issue, MS-based secretome analysis of eight breast cancer cell lines, corresponding to the three main breast cancer subtypes was performed. More than 5200 non-redundant proteins were identified with 23, four, and four proteins identified uniquely in basal, HER2-neu-amplified, and luminal breast cancer cells, respectively. An in silico mRNA analysis using publicly available breast cancer tissue microarray data was carried out as a preliminary verification step. In particular, the expression profiles of 15 out of 28 proteins included in the microarray (from a total of 31 in our subtype-specific signature) showed significant correlation with estrogen receptor (ER) expression. A MS-based analysis of breast cancer tissues was undertaken to verify the results at the proteome level. Eighteen out of 31 proteins were quantified in the proteomes of ER-positive and ER-negative breast cancer tissues. Survival analysis using microarray data was performed to examine the prognostic potential of these selected candidates. Three proteins correlated with ER status at both mRNA and protein levels: ABAT, PDZK1, and PTX3, with the former showing significant prognostic potential.