bioRxiv ScienceSearch

Biology subjects

Tamene, F.

Publications and source records attributed to Tamene, F..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

An integrated approach to comprehensively map the molecular context of proteins

Protein-protein interactions underlie almost all cellular functions. The comprehensive mapping of these complex cellular networks of stable and transient associations has been made available by affinity purification mass spectrometry (AP-MS) and more recently by proximity based labelling methods such as BioID. Due the advancements in both methods and MS instrumentation, an in-depth analysis of the whole human proteome is at grasps. In order to facilitate this, we designed and optimized an integrated approach utilizing MAC-tag combining both AP-MS and BioID in a single construct. We systematically applied this approach to 18 subcellular localization markers and generated a molecular context database, which can be used to define molecular locations for any protein of interest. In addition, we show that by combining the AP-MS and BioID results we can also obtain interaction distances within a complex. Taken together, our combined strategy offers comprehensive approach for mapping physical and functional protein interactions.

systems biology

Systems pathology analysis identifies neurodegenerative nature of age-related retinal diseases

Aging is a phenomenon associated with profound medical implications. Idiopathic epiretinal membrane (iEMR) and macular hole (MH) are the major vision-threatening vitreoretinal diseases affecting millions of aging people globally, making these conditions an important public health issue. The iERM is characterized by fibrous tissue developing on the surface of the macula, leading to biomechanical and biochemical macular damage. MH is a small breakage in the macula associated with many ocular conditions. Although several individual factors and pathways are suggested, a systems pathology level understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying these disorders is lacking. Therefore, we performed mass spectrometry based label-free quantitative proteomics analysis of the vitreous proteomes from patients with iERM (n=26) and MH (n=21) to identify the key proteins as well as the multiple interconnected biochemical pathways contributing to the development of these diseases. We identified a total of 1014 unique proteins, of which many were linked to inflammation and complement cascade, revealing the inflammational processes in retinal diseases. Additionally, we detected a profound difference in proteomes of the iEMR and MH compared to the non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy. A large number of neuronal proteins were present at higher levels in iERM and MH vitreous, including neuronal adhesion molecules, nervous system development proteins and signalling molecules. This points toward the important role of neurodegeneration component in the pathogenesis of age-related vitreoretinal diseases. Despite of marked similarities, several unique vitreous proteins were identified in both iERM and MH conditions, providing a candidate targets for diagnostic and new therapeutic approaches. Identification of previously reported and novel proteins in human vitreous humor from patient with iERM and MH provide renewed understanding of the pathogenesis of age-related vitreoretinal diseases.

biochemistry