Resolving the synovial fluid proteome and peptidome for disease-specific mediators of inflammatory arthritis

Early administration of therapeutic agents is a leading approach to impede the progressive destruction of articular joints plagued by inflammatory arthritis (IA). Unfortunately, diagnostic tools for the detection of IA during its pre-clinical stage are greatly lacking. Soluble biomarkers originating from sites of synovitis may reveal the molecular constituents of aberrant signalling pathways leading to the development of arthritis. Our objective was to facilitate the discovery of putative biomarkers of IA and its subtypes, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA), by mining for proteins and peptides secreted into the synovial fluid (SF). Using a label-free, mass spectrometry (MS)-based approach, 419 proteins and 288 peptides were identified in IA SF. When supplemented with bioinformatic analysis, 11 and 16 high-priority protein and peptide candidate biomarkers were identified, respectively. Investigations into the biological and molecular relevance of selected candidates has revealed possible pathogenic roles in IA and its specific subtypes.M.Sc.2019-11-15 00:00:0