Screening of Serum Biomarkers and Establishment of a Decision Tree in Silica-Exposed Populations by Surface-Enhanced Laser Desorption Ionization Time-of-Fly Mass Spectrometry

• Published in: Journal of occupational and environmental medicine 2007-07, Vol.49 (7), p.764-770
• Main Authors: Wang, Shi-Xin, Zhao, Xue-Feng, Wei, Mao-Ti, Wu, You, Zeng, Jia-Wei, Liang, Xian-Cai, Yi, Jian-Hua, He, Bing, Tu, Zi-Guang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Biomarkers - blood; Chemical and industrial products toxicology. Toxic occupational diseases; China; Decision Trees; Desorption; Discriminant Analysis; Human exposure; Humans; Inorganic dusts (pneumoconiosises) and organic dusts (byssinosis etc.); Male; Mass Screening; Medical sciences; Miscellaneous; ORIGINAL ARTICLES; Peptides - analysis; Peptides - blood; Radiotherapy. Instrumental treatment. Physiotherapy. Reeducation. Rehabilitation, orthophony, crenotherapy. Diet therapy and various other treatments (general aspects); Scientific imaging; Silica; Silicosis - blood; Silicosis - diagnosis; Silicosis - physiopathology; Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; Studies; Toxicology
• ISSN: 1076-2752; 1536-5948
• DOI: 10.1097/JOM.0b013e318058aa16

Objective: To screen for serum biomarkers of silicosis and to study their roles using surface-enhanced laser desorption ionization time-offly mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF-MS) techniques. Methods: The serum protein/peptide profile on the CM 10 proteinchip was acquired using SELDI-TOF-MS from workers classified by the Chinese national diagnostic standard for pneumoconiosis. Discriminant analysis was performed to establish a decision tree using protein/peptide peaks. Results: Protein/peptide peaks changed much more in silica-exposed populations than they did in the control. Discriminant analysis using Wilks' lambda method could give high sensitivity and specificity in distinguishing the silicaexposed population from the control; the decision tree could give 100% sensitivity and 95 % specificity in distinguishing the silicosis phase among the control group. Conclusions: Special proteins/peptides may change in silica-exposed workers and these changes may be used to distinguish silica-exposed populations from the control with the proper discriminant analytical method.