Proteomic screening of glycoproteins in human plasma for frailty biomarkers

The application of proteomics methodology for analyzing human blood samples is of increasing importance as a noninvasive method for understanding, detecting, and monitoring disease. In particular, glycoproteomic analysis may be useful in the study of age-related diseases and syndromes, such as frailty. This study demonstrates the use of methodology for isolating plasma glycoproteins using lectins, comparing the glycoproteome by frailty status using two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and identifying glycoproteins using mass spectrometry. In a pilot study, we found seven glycoproteins to differ by at least twofold in prefrail compared with nonfrail older adults, including haptoglobin, transferrin, and fibrinogen, consistent with known inflammatory and hematologic changes associated with frailty. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay analysis found that plasma transferrin concentration was increased in frail and prefrail older adults compared with nonfrail, confirming our proteomic findings. This work provides evidence for using a reproducible methodology for conducting clinical proteomic comparative studies of age-related diseases.