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Updated: Jan 3, 2026
High-Throughput Transcriptome Analysis for Investigating Host-Pathogen Interactions
Published on: March 5, 2022
iTRAQ-based high-throughput proteomics analysis reveals alterations of plasma proteins in patients infected with
Junmei Bian1, Min Liang1, Shuxian Ding1
1Tongren Hospital of Wuhan University (Wuhan Third Hospital), Wuhan, PR China.
Insights
Human bocavirus (HBoV) causes acute respiratory tract infections in children. This study identified 293 differentially expressed proteins in HBoV-infected patients, revealing key pathways involved in the disease
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Proteomics
- Bioinformatics
Background:
- Human bocavirus (HBoV) is a significant cause of acute respiratory tract infections (ARTI) in children.
- While HBoV's clinical impact is known, the molecular mechanisms of its pathogenesis remain unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the proteomic profile of HBoV-infected individuals with ARTI.
- To identify differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) and elucidate molecular pathways involved in HBoV pathogenesis.
Main Methods:
- Proteomic analysis of plasma samples from ARTI cases and healthy controls using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ).
- Bioinformatic analyses including Gene Ontology (GO), Cluster of Orthologous Groups (COG), and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment.
- Validation of candidate protein expression using western blotting.
Main Results:
- Identified 293 DEPs between ARTI cases and healthy controls (148 upregulated, 135 downregulated).
- Enrichment analysis revealed involvement of complement activation, immunity, inflammation, signal transduction, and metabolism.
- KEGG analysis highlighted pathways such as Wnt signaling, PPAR signaling, and complement and coagulation cascades.
Conclusions:
- This is the first iTRAQ-based proteomic study of HBoV-infected ARTI cases.
- The findings provide a foundation for understanding the molecular pathogenesis of HBoV infection in children.
- Identified DEPs and pathways offer potential targets for future research and therapeutic strategies.
Abstract:
Human bocavirus (HBoV) is a member of the genus Bocavirus, family Parvoviridae, and subfamily Parvovirus and was first identified in nasopharyngeal aspirates of Swedish children with acute respiratory tract infection (ARTI) in 2005. It is the causative agent of nasopharyngeal aspirate disease and death in children. The HboV genomic structure is a linear single-stranded DNA (ssDNA). Its clinical pathogenic characteristics have been extensively studied, however, at present the molecular mechanism underlying the pathogenesis of HBoV infection is not completely clear. In this study, a total of 293 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) between ARTI cases and healthy plasma samples were characterized using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ)-coupled bioinformatics analysis, among which 148 were up-regulated and 135 were down-regulated. Gene Ontology (GO) and Cluster of Orthologous Groups of proteins (COG) annotated an enrichment of DEPs in complement activation and biological processes like immunity, inflammation, signal transduction, substance synthesis, and metabolism. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis enriched DEPs mainly in the Wnt signaling pathway (ko04310), PPAR signaling pathway (ko03320), intestinal immune network for IgA production (ko04672), complement and coagulation cascades (ko04610), Toll-like receptor signaling pathway (ko04620) and B cell receptor signaling pathway (ko04662). Further, expression levels of three candidate proteins (upregulated PPP2R1A and CUL1, and downregulated CETP) were validated using western blotting. Our investigation is the first analysis of the proteomic profile of HBoV-infected ARTI cases using the iTRAQ approach, providing a foundation for a better molecular understanding of the pathogenesis of ARTI in children.
