A Novel Nanoproteomic Approach for the Identification of Molecular Targets Associated with Thyroid Tumors

• Published in: Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2020-11, Vol.10 (12), p.2370
• Main Authors: García-Vence, María, Chantada-Vázquez, María Del Pilar, Cameselle-Teijeiro, José Manuel, Bravo, Susana B, Núñez, Cristina
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biobanks; Biomarkers; Biopsy; Cancer; Diagnosis; Gene expression; gold nanoparticles (AuNPs); magnetic nanoparticles (FeNPs); Metastases; molecular target; Nanoparticles; Nodules; Papillary thyroid carcinoma; Paraffin; Paraffins; protein corona (PC); Proteins; Proteomics; Shotguns; silver nanoparticles (AgNPs); Sodium; Target recognition; Thyroid; Thyroid cancer; Tumors
• ISSN: 2079-4991; 2079-4991
• DOI: 10.3390/nano10122370

A thyroid nodule is the most common presentation of thyroid cancer; thus, it is extremely important to differentiate benign from malignant nodules. Within malignant lesions, classification of a thyroid tumor is the primary step in the assessment of the prognosis and selection of treatment. Currently, fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) is the preoperative test most commonly used for the initial thyroid nodule diagnosis. However, due to some limitations of FNAB, different high-throughput "omics" approaches have emerged that could further support diagnosis based on histopathological patterns. In the present work, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue specimens from normal (non-neoplastic) thyroid (normal controls (NCs)), benign tumors (follicular thyroid adenomas (FTAs)), and some common types of well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma (follicular thyroid carcinomas (FTCs), conventional or classical papillary thyroid carcinomas (CV-PTCs), and the follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinomas (FV-PTCs)) were analyzed. For the first time, FFPE thyroid samples were deparaffinized using an easy, fast, and non-toxic method. Protein extracts from thyroid tissue samples were analyzed using a nanoparticle-assisted proteomics approach combined with shotgun LC-MS/MS. The differentially regulated proteins found to be specific for the FTA, FTC, CV-PTC, and FV-PTC subtypes were analyzed with the bioinformatic tools STRING and PANTHER showing a profile of proteins implicated in the thyroid cancer metabolic reprogramming, cancer progression, and metastasis. These proteins represent a new source of potential molecular targets related to thyroid tumors.