Project description:The search for novel biomarkers for respiratory diseases, especially those associated with extreme premature birth, has been a challenge over the past several decades. In this study, we performed a qualitative comparison of proteomic profiles derived from a novel noninvasive sampling methodology, nasopharyngeal aspiration, and an established invasive methodology, tracheal aspiration, in preterm neonates, to determine whether nasopharyngeal aspirates (NPAs) are suitable for respiratory biomarker research. Paired NPA and tracheal aspirate (TA) samples (N=5) were collected from 1-week-old neonates and analyzed via high-throughput proteomics. The shared and specific sample proteins were studied. Shared and sample-specific proteins were analyzed using state-of-the-art enrichment analyses to evaluate lung tissue specificity and proteomic similarity.
