Shigella spp. are one of the most important etiological factors for people who are living in developing countries and travelers to tropical countries. High priority has been given by the World Health Organization to the development of vaccines to control Shigellosis caused by these bacteria. However, information regarding to profile of immunogenic proteins of Shigella is not available now. In the present study, sub-immunoproteomics was applied to screen novel immunogenic proteins which could be reacted with antisera produced by challenge of a whole bacterium. Our results indicated that 13 immunogens were identified, in which seven proteins and six proteins from outer membrane and soluble proteome, respectively. Of the 13 proteins, 12 showed to be novel immunogens. These results suggest that immunoproteomics can greatly improve the chances of identification and result in discovery of novel immunogenic proteins.

Proteome analysis by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) together with mass spectrometry was applied to screen acute phase response (APR)-related proteins with low molecular weight in loach skin following injury. Furthermore, Western blotting and function tests were applied to confirm the results obtained from the proteomic study. Fifteen APR-related proteins with sixteen spots (PLA with two spots) on a 2-DE map were identified in this study. Furthermore, six were knownacute phase proteins including galactose-binding lectin (GBL), lysozyme, C3, CD59, double PLA and 50s ribosomal protein; while ATP kinase, zinc finger protein 183, alpha-neurotoxin homology, angiostatin, serine/threonine kinase, metalloproteinase inhibitor, regulator of G-protein 4, cryptdin-9 and disintegrin trigranin were found by our lab to be APR-related proteins. In addition, our results suggest that proteomes with low molecular weight can be characterized by 2-DE with a Tris-tricine system followed by mass spectrometry.

Diseases caused by microorganisms can be controlled by vaccines, which require neutralizing antigens. Therefore, it is very important to identify highly efficient immunogens for immune prevention. By combining immunoproteomics and bacterial challenge after immunization, we developed a rapid method for screening protected antigens of pathogenic bacteria in aquaculture. Our approach may be divided into three consecutive steps. First, dominant immunogens of outer membrane proteins are screened by immunoproteomics. Second, proteins with the ability to induce production of neutralizing antibodies are identified from the immunogens by virulent bacterium challenge following vaccination. Third, vaccine candidates are determined by evaluation of neutralizing abilities. Information on the candidates has been obtained for further gene cloning by mass spectrometry. Our results indicate that highly efficient protected antigens were identified from the outer membrane proteome of Aeromonas hydrophila, in which an immunogen showed 71.4% protective ability with multivalent functions to A. hydrophila and Aeromonas sobria. In summary, we have developed a high-throughout, accurate, rapid and highly efficient method which will play an active role in immune prevention for microbiological diseases.

Human gastric carcinoma BGC-823 cells underwent morphological differentiation and cell cycle arrest in vitro when treated with 5 mM hexamethylene bisacetamide (HMBA) for 48 h. To further understand the mechanism of HMBA-induced differentiation, proteomic methodologies were applied to screen and identify altered proteins involved in the commitment of BGC-823 cells to differentiate. Five distinct altered proteins were acquired by two-dimensional (2-D) PAGE and were consequently identified as ras-related protein rab-35 (Rab-35), splice truncated isoform of transmembrane protease, serine 3 (serine TADG-12), regulator of G-protein signaling 1 (RGS1), ret finger protein-like 1 (RFPL1) and F-actin capping protein alpha-3 subunit (GSG3) by analysis of mass spectrograph. Of the five proteins, serine TADG-12 down-regulated under the detectable level after HMBA treatment, Rab-35, RGS1 and RFPL1 sharply up-regulated within the HMBA-induced BGC-823 cells, and GSG3, appearing in both treated and untreated cells, remarkably increased within BGC-823 cells after HMB Astimulation. Our results implicate that the molecular mechanism of BGC-823 cell differentiation in response to HMBA may involved in complex processes including a signaling network linking vesicle transport, actin cytoskeleton remodeling except for morphology differentiation, cell cycle G1 arrest.

In the present study, we developed a quick, highly specific method for detection of Shigella species by combining immunocapturing of the bacteria and a universal primer PCR. The method drastically enhances test sensitivity, and it can be used not only for identification of Shigella species in the environment but also for rapid detection of other pathogens.