Abstract:

BACKGROUND: The formation mechanism of biliary cast syndrome following liver transplantation has not been thoroughly illuminated, and it is unclear that whether some proteins correlated to the formation mechanism of biliary cast or prewarning to the formation of biliary cast.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the holoprotein expression in biliary cast syndrome patients following liver transplantation.
METHODS: Four patients underwent liver transplantation at Liver Transplantation Institute, General Hospital of Chinese People's Armed Police Force. Three months later, 10 g biliary cast was harvested. Four kinds of biliary cast specimens at different colors and textures were preserved at deep hypothermia, followed by protein abstraction and restriction enzyme digestion, the total protein abstraction solution of biliary cast were analyzed by high definition mass spectrometry and query on MASCOT database. All protein name of biliary cast were list, the conjunct protein was found by comparing 4 specimens.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: There were totally 208 proteins in 4 biliary cast specimens, 82, 44, 56 and 65, respectively. By comparison, 5 proteins were found to overlay in 2 biliary cast specimens, 7 proteins in 3 specimens and 13 proteins in 4 specimens. Among the latter 13 proteins, 5 unnamed-proteins, as well as 8 named-proteins (termed alpha-fibrinogen precursor, beta-fibrinogen precursor, fibrinogen gamma chain, proapolipoprotein, Chain A of Human Cathepsin G, S100 calcium-binding protein A9, lactoferrin) were included. The proteins exists in biliary cast, the common proteins of 4 biliary cast specimens imply a correlation between the formation of biliary cast and the exudative inflammation following the damage of biliary tract epithelium; Some proteins might be considered as a marker of prewarning the presence of biliary cast syndrome, judging the inflammation severity following the damage of biliary tract epithelium and the prognosis of biliary cast syndrome