Vinculin Identified as a Potential Biomarker in Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome Based on iTRAQ and LC–MS/MS-Based Proteomic Analysis

Local vibration can induce vascular injuries, one example
is the
hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) caused by hand-transmitted vibration
(HTV). Little is known about the molecular mechanism of HAVS-induced
vascular injuries. Herein, the iTRAQ (isobaric tags for relative and
absolute quantitation) followed by liquid chromatography–tandem
mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) proteomics approach was applied
to conduct the quantitative proteomic analysis of plasma from specimens
with HTV exposure or HAVS diagnosis. Overall, 726 proteins were identified
in iTRAQ. 37 proteins upregulated and 43 downregulated in HAVS. Moreover,
37 upregulated and 40 downregulated when comparing severe HAVS and
mild HAVS. Among them, Vinculin (VCL) was found to be downregulated
in the whole process of HAVS. The concentration of vinculin was further
verified by ELISA, and the results suggested that the proteomics data
was reliable. Bioinformative analyses were used, and those proteins
mainly engaged in specific biological processes like binding, focal
adhesion, and integrins. The potential of vinculin application in
HAVS diagnosis was validated by the receiver operating characteristic
curve.