Application of Mass Spectrometry Based Metabolic Profiling of Bronchial Lavage Fluids from Cystic Fibrosis Subjects

摘要

Searches in open metabolite databases were not able to identify m/z-RTs other than amino acids, highlighting the challenges of routine metabolite identification by MS. Thus, further refinement and standardization of MS-based profiling is needed. To overcome this limitation, 1H-NMR is well suited to complement the MS-based biomarkers, as demonstrated by our data. The observation of enriched amino acids in BALF from inflammed subjects is consistent with the known increase in protein content and increased proteolytic activity found in CF airway secretions. The presence of taurine strongly suggests accumulation of neutrophils in the air ways, since these cells are known to accumulate taurine. Previous analysis of sputum from CF subjects also demonstrated increased concentrations of amino acids and taurine. Thus, the biomakers identified in this study correspond well with known biology in CF airway secretions.