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Plasma Metabolic Profiling in Patients With Silicosis and Asbestosis
Mi Zhou1, Changjiang Xue, Yali Fan
1Department of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology, Clinical Center for Interstitial Lung Diseases, Beijing Chao-Yang Hospital, Capital Medical University, No. 8 Workers' Stadium South Road, Chao-Yang District, Beijing 100020, China (Zhou, Xue, Fan, Wu, Ma, Ye), Department of Occupational Diseases and Chemical Poisoning, the Fifth People's Hospital of Suzhou, the Affiliated Infectious Hospital of Soochow University, 10 Guangqian Road, Xiang-Cheng District, Suzhou 215131, Jiangsu Province, China (Zhou).
Objectives:
To explore the circulating metabolites and related pathways in silicosis and asbestosis exposure to different mineral dust.
Methods:
Plasma of 30 silicosis, 30 asbestosis, and 20 healthy controls was analyzed using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Metabolic networks and the relevance of the identified metabolic derangements were explored.
Results:
Compared with healthy controls, 37 and 39 dysregulated plasma metabolites were found in silicosis and asbestosis, respectively, of which the levels of 22 metabolites differed. Three major pathways were identified, among which arginine and proline metabolism was identified as the most closely related metabolic pathway.
Conclusions:
The types and quantities of up-regulated metabolites including lipids, amino acids, and carnitines differed between silicosis and asbestosis. Pathways inducing lung fibrosis were common to mineral dust exposure, while pathways related to oxidative stress and tumorigenesis differed between silicosis and asbestosis.
