Discovery of potential ovarian cancer biomarkers using low molecular weight blood plasma proteome profiling by mass spectrometry

Abstract

At present, there is no screening test for the early detecting and monitoring of ovarian cancer, one of the most lethal form of gynaecological malig- nancy in the worldwide. In this study, the new methodology for the search of tumor markers of ovarian cancer, involving profiling the low-molec- ular blood plasma proteomes, is developed, unified and approved. The given approach included three basic components: pre-preparation of samples, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry and bioinformatics software for mass spectral data process- ing. Opportunities and prospects of the developed approach for the detection of potential ovarian cancer markers were shown. For search of po- tential tumor markers, screening of 40 blood plasma samples from ovarian cancer patients and 48 control samples were carried out. As a result of the present research, peptides/polypeptides which can be used in future for detecting this pathology were found out.

Keywords

• biomarkers
• ovarian cancer
• proteome
• blood plasma
• mass spectrometry