Pilot-Scale Study Of Human Plasma Proteomics Identifies ApoE And IL33 As Markers In Atopic Asthma

Area of Science:

• * Respiratory Medicine
• * Immunology
• * Proteomics

Background:

• * Atopic asthma presents complex pathobiology with symptoms overlapping other respiratory conditions.
• * Identifying specific biomarkers is crucial for accurate diagnosis and effective management of atopic asthma.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To investigate plasma proteome and cytokine expression changes in atopic asthma.
• * To identify potential protein biomarkers for atopic asthma diagnosis and explore underlying aberrant pathways.

Main Methods:

• * Pilot study involving 5 healthy controls and 5 treatment-naïve atopic asthma patients.
• * Quantitative label-free liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry proteomics.
• * Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) and immunoblotting for protein validation.

Main Results:

• * Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) significantly downregulated in atopic asthma patients (50.74% decrease).
• * Interleukin 33 (IL33) significantly upregulated in atopic asthma patients (3.84-fold increase).
• * ApoE levels were also lower in atopic asthma compared to COPD patients (36.33% decrease).

Conclusions:

• * Downregulation of ApoE and upregulation of IL33 are characteristic of atopic asthma.
• * These protein expression profiles differentiate atopic asthma from healthy controls and COPD.
• * ApoE and IL33 show promise as a two-protein classifier for prognostic biomarker development in atopic asthma.