Table 1

Proteomic analysis based on BALF for lung cancer

Study subjectsProteomic analysisValidation subjectsValidation methodSpecific proteins (numbers/name)CommentsRef.
NSCLC (n = 6) and control (n = 16)MALDI-TOF/TOF MSNANA2/HTN3 and S100A12HTN3 and S100A12 were significantly upregulated in the BALF of NSCLC patients.58
COPD (n = 15), NSCLC (n = 15), NSCLC with COPD (n = 15), and control group with neither NSCLC nor COPD (n = 15)2D-PAGE and MALDI-TOF/TOF MSPaired BALF proteinsWestern blot1/AKR1B10Compared with the control group, the expression of AKR1B10 was increased in the NSCLC group, while no difference was detected in the COPD group.59
Lung adenocarcinoma (n = 4) and benign lung diseases (n = 4)iTRAQ labeling and LC-MS/MSLung adenocarcinoma (n = 18), lung SQCC (n = 9), SCLC (n = 6), and benign lung diseases (n = 6)ELISA in BALF samples1/Napsin AThe protein level of Napsin A was significantly increased in BALF of adenocarcinoma.60
Lung cancer (n = 139) and benign lung diseases (n = 49)2D-PAGE and MSLung cancer (n = 204) and benign lung diseases (n = 48)Bead-based immunoassays in BALF samples.5/APOA1, CO4A, CRP, GSTP1, SAMPThe levels of these five proteins led to a lung cancer diagnostic panel with 95% Sn and 81% Sp.61
2/STMN1 and GSTP1The quantification of these two proteins differentiated NSCLC and SCLC patients with 90% Sn and 57% Sp.
Lung adenocarcinoma (n = 8) and non-tumor patients (n = 8)LC-MS/MSNANA33/S100-A8, TYMP, annexin A1, annexin A2, and TG2These five proteins of the DEPs were associated with lung cancer progression in previous studies and may be potential biomarkers for lung adenocarcinoma.62
Lung adenocarcinoma (n = 12) and non-tumor patients (n = 10)SWATH DIA MSNANA44/HPT, CO4A, GTSP1Three of the DEPs that we suggest as potential biomarkers were consistent with previous studies using BALF samples.63
NSCLC (n = 26) and non-tumor patients (n = 16)Label-free MSNSCLC (n = 46) and non-tumor patients (n = 26)ELISA in plasma3/Cystatin-C, Lipocalin-2, TIMP-1These three proteins were upregulated in BALF of NSCLC patients, and the results were confirmed in plasma.64
Lung adenocarcinoma (n = 5), lung SQCC (n = 4), SCLC (n = 4), and benign lung diseases (n = 3)MS-based quantitative N-glycoproteomicLung adenocarcinoma (n = 18), lung SQCC (n = 9), SCLC (n = 6), and benign lung diseases (n = 6)ELISA in BALF1/PeriostinThe expression of periostin was increased in BALF from all three tumor types, which is in agreement with the observation of elevated serum levels of this protein in a previous study.65
SCLC (n=5): tumor-bearing lungs and non-tumor lungsTMT-based quantitative MSPaired tumor tissuesIHC in SCLC tissues4/DSTN, RNPEP, CNDP2, and CA1These four proteins were upregulated in BALF from tumor-bearing lungs and tumor tissues.66
NASCLC-CellMiner resource2/CNDP2 and RNPEP1. CNDP2 and RNPEP appeared to be potential indicators for ASCL1-high and NEUROD1-high subtypes of SCLC. 2. CNDP2 was found to be positively correlated with responses to etoposide, carboplatin, and irinotecan.
  • NSCLC, non-small-cell lung cancer; MALDI-TOF/TOF, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight; MS, mass spectrometry; NA, not available; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; 2D-PAGE, two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis; iTRAQ, isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation; LC-MS/MS, liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry; SQCC, squamous cell carcinoma; SCLC, small cell lung cancer; SWATH, sequential windowed acquisition of all theoretical fragment ion mass spectra; DIA, data-independent acquisition; ELISA, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; Sn, sensitivity; Sp, specificity; DEPs, differentially expressed proteins; TMT, tandem mass tags; IHC, immunohistochemistry.

  • Indicates the analysis of BALF proteins by LC–MS/MS combining a simple sample pre-treatment and a DIA approach.

  • Indicates a bioinformatic resource for SCLC cell line genomics and pharmacology based on genomic signatures (https://discover.nci.nih.gov/rsconnect/SclcCellMinerCDB/).