Laboratory of Experimental Optometry, Centre for Myopia Research, School of Optometry, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong, SAR, P.R. China.
Int J Mol Med. 2021 May;47(5). doi: 10.3892/ijmm.2021.4916. Epub 2021 Mar 24.
The tear film is a layer of body fluid that maintains the homeostasis of the ocular surface. The superior accessibility of tears and the presence of a high concentration of functional proteins make tears a potential medium for the discovery of non‑invasive biomarkers in ocular diseases. Recent advances in mass spectrometry (MS) have enabled determination of an in‑depth proteome profile, improved sensitivity, faster acquisition speed, proven variety of acquisition methods, and identification of disease biomarkers previously lacking in the field of ophthalmology. The use of MS allows efficient discovery of tear proteins, generation of reproducible results, and, more importantly, determines changes of protein quantity and post‑translation modifications in microliter samples. The present review compared techniques for tear collection, sample preparation, and acquisition applied for the discovery of tear protein markers in normal subjects and multifactorial conditions, including dry eye syndrome, diabetic retinopathy, thyroid eye disease and primary open‑angle glaucoma, which require an early diagnosis for treatment. It also summarized the contribution of MS to early discovery by means of disease‑related protein markers in tear fluid and the potential for transformation of the tear MS‑based proteome to antibody‑based assay for future clinical application.
泪膜是维持眼表内稳态的一层体液。由于眼泪具有较高的可及性，且含有高浓度的功能性蛋白质，因此眼泪是发现眼部疾病无创生物标志物的潜在介质。近年来，质谱（MS）技术的进步使得能够深入分析蛋白质组谱，提高了灵敏度，加快了采集速度，证明了多种采集方法的有效性，并鉴定了以前在眼科领域缺乏的疾病生物标志物。MS 的应用可有效发现泪蛋白，生成可重复的结果，更重要的是，可确定微升样本中蛋白质数量和翻译后修饰的变化。本综述比较了用于收集、制备和获取泪液样本的技术，用于发现正常人群和多因素条件下的泪蛋白标志物，包括干眼症、糖尿病视网膜病变、甲状腺眼病和原发性开角型青光眼，这些疾病需要早期诊断和治疗。本文还总结了 MS 通过泪液中与疾病相关的蛋白标志物进行早期发现的贡献，以及将基于 MS 的泪液蛋白质组转化为抗体检测的潜力，以用于未来的临床应用。
