Using an Untargeted Metabolomics Approach to Identify Salivary Metabolites in Women with Breast Cancer
Daniele Xavier Assad,
Ana Carolina Acevedo,
Elisa Cançado Porto Mascarenhas,
Ana Gabriela Costa Normando,
Valérie Pichon,
Helene Chardin,
Eliete Neves Silva Guerra,
Audrey Combes
Affiliations
Daniele Xavier Assad
Laboratory of Oral Histopathology, Health Sciences Faculty, University of Brasília Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, Brasília DF 70910-900, Brazil
Ana Carolina Acevedo
Laboratory of Oral Histopathology, Health Sciences Faculty, University of Brasília Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, Brasília DF 70910-900, Brazil
Elisa Cançado Porto Mascarenhas
Laboratory of Oral Histopathology, Health Sciences Faculty, University of Brasília Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, Brasília DF 70910-900, Brazil
Ana Gabriela Costa Normando
Laboratory of Oral Histopathology, Health Sciences Faculty, University of Brasília Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, Brasília DF 70910-900, Brazil
Valérie Pichon
Department of Analytical, Bioanalytical Sciences and Miniaturization (LSABM), UMR CBI 8231, ESPCI Paris, CNRS, PSL University, 75005 Paris, Ide de France, France
Helene Chardin
Department of Analytical, Bioanalytical Sciences and Miniaturization (LSABM), UMR CBI 8231, ESPCI Paris, CNRS, PSL University, 75005 Paris, Ide de France, France
Eliete Neves Silva Guerra
Laboratory of Oral Histopathology, Health Sciences Faculty, University of Brasília Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, Brasília DF 70910-900, Brazil
Audrey Combes
Department of Analytical, Bioanalytical Sciences and Miniaturization (LSABM), UMR CBI 8231, ESPCI Paris, CNRS, PSL University, 75005 Paris, Ide de France, France
Metabolic alterations are a hallmark of the malignant transformation in cancer cells, which is characterized by multiple changes in metabolic pathways that are linked to macromolecule synthesis. This study aimed to explore whether salivary metabolites could help discriminate between breast cancer patients and healthy controls. Saliva samples from 23 breast cancer patients and 35 healthy controls were subjected to untargeted metabolomics using liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry and a bioinformatics tool (XCMS Online), which revealed 534 compounds, characterized by their retention time in reverse-phase liquid chromatography and by the m/z ratio detected, that were shared by the two groups. Using the METLIN database, 31 compounds that were upregulated in the breast cancer group (p < 0.05) were identified, including seven oligopeptides and six glycerophospholipids (PG14:2, PA32:1, PS28:0, PS40:6, PI31:1, and PI38:7). In addition, pre-treatment and post-treatment saliva samples were analyzed for 10 patients who experienced at least a partial response to their treatment. In these patients, three peptides and PG14:2 were upregulated before but not after treatment. The area under the curve, sensitivity, and specificity for PG14:2 was 0.7329, 65.22%, and 77.14%, respectively. These results provide new information regarding the salivary metabolite profiles of breast cancer patients, which may be useful biomarkers.
