Sex Differences in Protein Expression and Their Perturbations in Amniotic Fluid Cells of Down Syndrome Fetuses

Down syndrome (DS)
is the most common chromosomal condition associated
with intellectual disability and is characterized by a variety of
additional clinical findings. The pathogenesis of DS and the differences
between the sexes are not clear. In order to identify differentially
expressed proteins that might be employed as potential biological
markers and elucidate the difference in pathogenesis between different
genders of T21 fetuses, providing clues for individualized detection
and treatment is essential. Amniocyte samples of T21 males, T21 females,
CN males, and CN females were collected by amniocentesis. The quantitative
value of the peptide corresponding to each sample was determined through
quantitative analysis by mass spectrometry. We identified many differentially
expressed proteins between T21 fetuses and CN fetuses/T21 males and
CN males/T21 females and CN females/and T21 males and T21 females.
These differential proteins are associated with many important biological
processes and affect the development of multiple systems, including
the heart, hematopoietic, immune, reproductive, and nervous systems.
Our results show sex-specific modulation of protein expression and
biological processes and provide new insights into sex-specific differences
in the pathogenesis of DS.