Potential Proteomic Biomarkers Associated To Mucosal Healing In Crohn’s Disease

Introduction and objectives: In Crohn's disease (CD), there is a discrepancy between clinical activity of the disease (symptoms) and intestinal healing. However absence of tissue healing is associated with the risk of relapse and tissue damage progression. Endoscopy is costly and invasive. Hence biomarkers correlating with intestinal healing could improve disease management. We aimed to identify potential biomarkers associated to CD mucosal healing by a shotgun proteomics label free study.
Methods: We used the STORI clinical trial cohort (n=103) aiming at identifying markers associated to relapse prediction after Infliximab treatment withdrawals. We used serum samples of patients in clinical remission, grouped according to the degree of intestinal healing seen at endoscopy. We performed depletion of the 20 most abundant plasma proteins on each serum pools and ran a proteomics label free differential analysis using 2D-nanoUPLC-MSE HDMS Synapt G1 for data acquisition and Protein Lynks Global Server vs 2.4 for data analysis (Waters, Corp., Milford, USA).
Results and Discussion: We obtained potential biomarkers and designed a multiplexed -selected reaction monitoring (SRM) method for validation of these candidates in each individual patient. The method may also be tested in an independent set of IBD patients with and without mucosal healing.
Conclusions: This research strategy and results of SRM validation of potential biomarkers associated to mucosal healing in this cohort of CD patients as well as the tests done on other CD patients, may provide new opportunities for CD follow-up tests development.