Proteomics and the haematologist

Abstract

Understanding haematological malignancies at the protein level is important as the development of targeted treatments must be based on knowledge regarding the molecular pathogenesis of the tumour, inherited genetic variation and the mode of action of drugs. 'Proteomics' describes the analysis of the entire proteome of a cell or tissue and incorporates multiple technologies including Western blotting, two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, mass spectrometry, and ProteinChip-based technology. Although there are a limited number of studies to date in haematology those performed highlight the potential future impact of these technologies in the discovery of novel markers, proteins associated with drug resistance and the identification of tumour biomarkers which may facilitate the development of a rapid diagnostic test easily applicable in the clinical setting. Rapid large-scale analysis of the proteome in normal pathways and disease offers the opportunity of identification of potential diagnostic/prognostic markers and proteins associated with the malignant phenotype. This review discusses the current situation regarding the use of these technologies and the potential opportunities their future use may offer in the field of haematology.

Recent advances in blood‐related proteomics

“…Proteomics is becoming important for all medical specialties, notably hematology, and several papers have been published in leading hematology journals in order to introduce the subject to nonspecialists [4,133,178,179]. Here we have highlighted some of the progress achieved recently by studying the proteome of plasma/serum as well as of blood cells, and have shown that, in the near future, proteomics certainly will change the face of hematology.…”

Gene expression profiling in MDS and AML: potential and future avenues

“…86 Finally, proteomic approaches have been used to address several essential questions in normal and malignant haematopoiesis including studies on drug response and survival of AML patients. [87][88][89][90][91][92][93] In this study, integrative approaches are important, as mRNA expression does not always correlate with protein expression levels due to for example, mRNA instability, posttranscriptional regulation, translation initiation and protein stability. 94,95 Moreover, mRNA splice variants and post-translational modifications, which cannot be directly detected by microarray platforms based on 3 0 IVT (in-vitro transcription)-labeling protocols, can influence several critical parameters controlling the resulting protein function, including protein localization, protein activity, interaction with other molecules (for example, other proteins, nucleic acids and lipids) and turnover.…”

Approaching clinical proteomics: current state and future fields of application in fluid proteomics

“…In theory, it is possible to visualize up to 10,000 protein spots in a single large gel (48). To achieve higher resolution and to improve the detection of lowabundance proteins, several 2D-GE can be used with overlapping narrow pH gradients which helps reduce the amount of protein/spot (49)(50)(51). Proteins can be visualized using Coomassie brilliant blue or silver nitrate, or by the use of a sample pre-labeled with fluorescent dyes such as SYPRO Ruby and cyanine dyes (Cy2, Cy3, Cy5) (40,45,(52)(53)(54).…”