Project description:To understand the age-dependent response to burn injury, blood samples from pediatric and adult patients were collected at different times after severe burn injury. Gene expression was measured using Affymetrix U133 Plus 2.0 arrays for both patient samples and healthy controls. Time points were binned into two groups: early stage for <11 days and middle stage for 11-49 days.
Project description:To understand the age-dependent response to burn injury, blood samples from pediatric and adult patients were collected at different times after severe burn injury. Gene expression was measured using Affymetrix U133 Plus 2.0 arrays for both patient samples and healthy controls. Time points were binned into two groups: early stage for <11 days and middle stage for 11-49 days. 114 arrays for 57 patients (2 time points per patient) and 63 arrays for 63 healthy controls.
Project description:Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) predominantly affects young children, but our understanding of AD pathogenesis is based on skin and blood samples from longstanding adult AD. Genomic biopsy profiling from early pediatric AD showed significant Th2 and Th17/Th22-skewing, without the characteristic adult Th1 up-regulation. Since obtaining pediatric biopsies is difficult, blood gene expression profiling may provide a surrogate for the pediatric skin signature. Objective: To define the blood profile and associated biomarkers of early moderate-to-severe pediatric AD. Methods: We compared microarrays and RT-PCR of blood cells from 28 AD children (<5yrs and within 6 months of disease onset) to healthy control blood cells. Differentially expressed genes/DEGs in blood (fold change/FCH>1.2 and false discovery rate/FDR<0.05) were then compared with skin DEGs. Results: Eosinophil and Th2 markers (IL5RA, IL1RL1/ST2, HRH4, CCR3, SIGLEC8, PRSS33, CLC from gene arrays; IL13/IL4/CCL22 from RT-PCR) were upregulated in early pediatric AD blood, while IFNG/Th1 was decreased. Th1 markers were negatively correlated with clinical severity (EASI, pruritus, transepidermal water loss/TEWL), whereas Th2/Th17-induced IL19 was positively correlated with SCORAD. While a few RT-PCR-defined immune markers (IL13/CCL22) were increased in blood, as previously also reported for skin, there was minimal overlap based on gene array DEGs. Conclusion: The whole blood signature of early moderate-to-severe pediatric AD blood cells show predominantly a Th2/eosinophil profile, but markers largely differ from the skin profile. Given their complementarity, pooling of biomarkers from blood and skin may improve profiling and predictions, providing insight regarding disease course allergic comorbidity development, and response to systemic medications.
Project description:Influenza virus is responsible for a large global burden of disease, especially in children. Multiple Organ Dysfunction Syndrome (MODS) is a life-threatening and fatal complication of severe influenza infection. We measured RNA expression of 469 biologically plausible candidate genes in children admitted to North American pediatric intensive care units with severe influenza virus infection with and without MODS. Whole blood samples from 191 influenza-infected children (median age 6.4 years, IQR: 2.2, 11) were collected a median of 27 hours following admission; for 45 children a second blood sample was collected approximately seven days later. Extracted RNA was hybridized to NanoString mRNA probes, counts normalized, and analyzed using linear models controlling for age and bacterial co-infections (FDR q<0.05). Comparing pediatric samples collected near admission, children with Prolonged MODS for ≥7 days (n=38; 9 deaths) had significant upregulation of nine mRNA transcripts associated with neutrophil degranulation (RETN, TCN1, OLFM4, MMP8, LCN2, BPI, LTF, S100A12, GUSB) compared to those who recovered more rapidly from MODS (n=27). These neutrophil transcripts present in early samples predicted Prolonged MODS or death when compared to patients who recovered, however in paired longitudinal samples, they were not differentially expressed over time. Instead, five genes involved in protein metabolism and/or adaptive immunity signaling pathways (RPL3, MRPL3, HLA-DMB, EEF1G, CD8A) were associated with MODS recovery within a week. Thus, early increased expression of neutrophil degranulation genes indicated worse clinical outcomes in children with influenza infection, consistent with reports in adult cohorts with influenza, sepsis, and acute respiratory distress syndrome.
Project description:Abstract Background: Cataracts are among the most common causes of childhood vision loss worldwide. This study seeks to identify differentially expressed proteins in the aqueous humor of pediatric cataract patients. Methods: Samples of aqueous humor were collected from pediatric and adult cataract patients and underwent mass spectrometry-based proteomic analysis. Samples of pediatric cataracts were grouped by subtype and compared to adult samples. Differentially expressed proteins in each subtype were identified. Gene ontology analysis was performed using WikiPaths for each cataract subtype. Results: Seven pediatric patients and ten adult patients were included in the study. Of the pediatric samples, all seven (100%) were male, three (43%) had traumatic cataracts, two (29%) had congenital cataracts, and two (29%) had posterior polar cataracts. Of the adult patients, seven (70%) were female and seven (70%) had predominantly nuclear sclerotic cataracts. 128 proteins were upregulated in the pediatric samples and 127 proteins were upregulated in the adult samples, with 75 proteins shared by both groups. Gene ontology analysis identified inflammatory and oxidative stress pathways as upregulated in pediatric cataracts. Conclusions: Inflammatory and oxidative stress mechanisms may be involved in pediatric cataract formation and warrant further investigation.
Project description:Pediatric MS patients suffer from severe first and second relapse but better recovery explained by difference in age-restricted transcriptional profiles associated with antigen-presentation and B-cell activation Herein, we compared the blood mononuclear cell transcriptome of pediatric and adult MS patients with recovery (PDMS-rec, ADMS-rec) and without recovery (PDMS-norec, ADMS-norec) 6 months after relapse. Healthy pediatric and adult subjects (PDC, ADC) were used as controls.
Project description:Background and objectives: This report describes an unusual presentation of severe hypertension (HTN) in a subset of pediatric kidney recipients treated with a steroid avoidance pediatric renal transplantation protocol. The HTN was secondary to atypical, reno-vascular abnormalities (RVA) of the transplanted vasculature, temporally associated with erythropoietin (EPO) use. Design, setting, participants, and measurements: To investigate the clinical significance underlying this event, a retrospective clinical study of 100 pediatric renal transplants was undertaken (50 steroid-free and 50 matched steroid-based controls), with peripheral blood transcriptional analysis of four RVA patients and controls. Results: Regardless of a higher observed incidence of anemia (p < 0.001) and greater overall EPO usage in the first post-transplant year in steroid-free patients, the incidence of new-onset HTN at one yr was significantly less in the steroid-free cohort (p = 0.03). Nevertheless, early EPO (first week post-transplant) was significantly associated with the combinatory findings of new-onset HTN (p = 0.03) and RVA (p = 0.007). Molecular mechanisms of RVA injury were investigated further by peripheral blood cDNA microarray gene expression profiling. A panel of 42 transcripts differentiated patients with RVA and HTN from three sets of matched controls, with and without HTN and EPO use, with 100% concordance (p < 0.001). The biological processes governed by these significant genes suggest a role for EPO regulation of growth factor receptor ubiquitination as a putative mechanism for renal vascular injury. Conclusion: This study cautions against the use early post-transplant use of EPO in immunosuppression regimens with steroid minimization/avoidance, which may have an increased incidence of post-transplant anemia. Set of arrays organized by shared biological context, such as organism, tumors types, processes, etc. Disease State: patient with high blood pressure Keywords: Logical Set Using regression correlation
Project description:Platelets play an important role in tumor growth and at the same time, platelet characteristics are affected by cancer presence. Therefore, we investigated whether the platelet proteome can be used as a source for biomarkers of early-stage cancer. Patients with early-stage lung (n=8) and head of pancreas cancer (n=4) were included, as were healthy sex- and age-matched controls for each subgroup. Blood samples were collected from controls and from patients before surgery. Furthermore, from six of the patients, a second sample was collected two months after surgery. NanoLC-MS/MS-based proteomics was used to quantify and compare the platelet proteome of patients to controls. Also, samples before surgery and after surgery were compared. Analysis revealed that the platelet proteome of patients with early-stage cancer is altered as compared to controls. In addition, the platelet proteome changed after tumor resection. Using the above data, in conjunction with quantitative filtering, we were able to select seven potential platelet-derived biomarkers of early-stage cancer. This pioneering study on the platelet proteome in cancer patients clearly identifies platelets as a new source of protein biomarkers of early-stage cancer.
Project description:This study investigates the dynamic alterations in high vaginal fluid (HVF) proteome and its correlation with physiological changes during progression of term pregnancy. The HVF samples were collected at three time points as defined as V1 (6-12 weeks), V2 (18-20 weeks) and V3 (26-28 weeks) and SWATH-MS strategy were applied to profile changes in protein expression at early and middle stage of pregnancy. Using in-house generated HVF-specific protein library, 61 proteins (>1.5 fold at V2/V1 or V3/V1, q-value <0.05) changed as a function of gestational age. The stage-specific expression pattern of these proteins was mainly associated with the biology of cervical remolding, fetal development and microbial defense.
Project description:This study investigates the dynamic alterations in high vaginal fluid (HVF) proteome and its correlation with physiological changes during progression of term pregnancy. The HVF samples were collected at three time points as defined as V1 (6-12 weeks), V2 (18-20 weeks) and V3 (26-28 weeks) and SWATH-MS strategy were applied to profile changes in protein expression at early and middle stage of pregnancy. Using in-house generated HVF-specific protein library, 61 proteins (>1.5 fold at V2/V1 or V3/V1, q-value <0.05) changed as a function of gestational age. The stage-specific expression pattern of these proteins was mainly associated with the biology of cervical remolding, fetal development and microbial defense.