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Updated: Apr 18, 2026
Absorption of Nasal and Bronchial Fluids: Precision Sampling of the Human Respiratory Mucosa and Laboratory Processing of Samples
Published on: January 21, 2018
Lipidomic profiling of sinus mucosa from patients with chronic rhinosinusitis
Farbod Fazlollahi1, Kessiri Kongmanas, Nongnuj Tanphaichitr
1Pasarow Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, NPI-Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA; Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, UCLA Health System, Los Angeles, California, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Abstract:
Sinusitis is a cause of significant morbidity, substantial healthcare costs, and negative effects on quality of life. The primary objective of this study is to characterize the previously unknown lipid profile of sinonasal mucosa from patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and from controls. Sinus mucosa samples were analyzed from 9 CRS patients with concomitant nasal polyps, 11 CRS patients without polyps, and 12 controls. Ten lone polyp samples were also analyzed. Samples were subjected to a modified Bligh/Dyer lipid extraction, then high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC), combined gas chromatography/electron impact-mass spectrometry (GC/EI-MS), and flow-injection/electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (FI/ESI-MS/MS). Data was analyzed for identification and profiling of major components. HPTLC revealed an array of species reflecting the lipid complexity of the samples. GC/EI-MS revealed cholesterol and several fatty acids. FI/ESI-MSMS revealed numerous lipid species, namely a host of phosphatidylcholines, phosphatidylethanolamines, ceramides and cholesteryl esters, but no detectable amounts of phosphatidyinositols or sulfated lipids. These results are a first step to uncover unique molecular biomarkers in CRS.
