Hepatocellular carcinoma
(HCC) is the most common form of hepatic
malignancies. The diagnosis of HCC remains challenging due to the
low sensitivity and specificity of the diagnostic method. Exosomes,
which are abundant in various proteins from parent cells, play pivotal
roles in intercellular communication and have been confirmed as promising
sources of disease biomarkers. Herein, we performed a simple but robust
proteomic profiling on exosomes derived from 1 μL of serum using
a data-independent acquisition (DIA) method for the first time, to
screen potential biomarkers for the diagnosis of HCC. Ten pivotal
differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) (von Willebrand factor (VWF),
LGALS3BP, TGFB1, SERPINC1, HPX, HP, HBA1, FGA, FGG, and FGB) were
screened as a potential candidate biomarker panel, which could completely
discriminate patients with HCC from normal control (NC). Interestingly,
Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) revealed that
the expression levels of four genes increased and those of six genes
decreased in HCC tissues compared with normal tissues, which were
in concordance with protein expression levels. In conclusion, we screened
10 exosomal proteins holding promise for acting as a potential candidate
biomarker panel for detection of HCC through a simple but robust proteomic
profiling.