Global, in Situ Analysis of the Structural Proteome in Individuals with Parkinson’s Disease to Identify a New Class of Biomarker

Marie-Therese Mackmull, Luise Nagel, Fabian Sesterhenn, Jan Muntel, Jan Grossbach, Patrick Stalder, Roland Bruderer, Lukas Reiter, Wilma D. J. van de Berg, Natalie de Souza, Andreas Beyer & Paola Picotti. Nature.

View Publication

This publication on Nature Structural and Molecular Biology is the result of the collaboration between the lab of Prof. Paola Picotti and Biognosys.
We applied global, in situ protein structural changes analysis using limited proteolysis–mass spectrometry (LiP–MS) and obtained deep insights into Parkinson’s Disease (PD) pathophysiology. Furthermore, we discovered a new concept of structural proteomics biomarkers with potentially improved performance over classical CSF biomarkers based on protein levels. This novel structural proteomics biomarker discovery approach could also be applied to other diseases involving dysfunctional proteins with altered structural states.
In the publication, you can further dig into the following:

—  Structurally altered proteins in CSF of individuals with PD
—  Candidate markers with a performance that approaches the ratio of oligomeric/total α-synuclein, which is the main known biochemical player in PD
—  Structurally informative peptides that provided complementary information to oligomeric/total α-synuclein levels to better classify healthy individuals and those with PD
—  Multiple detected proteins involved in processes misregulated in PD