title: The proteomic analysis of human neonatal umbilical cord serum by mass spectrometry.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the proteome composition and function of human neonatal arterial umbilical cord.
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum proteomic analyses were performed on samples from both males and females by using a combination of techniques: (1) removal of six high-abundance proteins, (2) tryptic digestion of low-abundance proteins, (3) separation of peptide mixtures by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC), and (4) peptide identification using electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS).
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 837 non-redundant proteins were identified, with 213 male-specific and 239 female-specific proteins. Among them, 319 proteins were identified by at least 2 distinct peptides. The subcellular localization, function, and pathway involvement for each of the identified proteins were analyzed. A comparison of this neonatal proteome to that of adult serum proteome revealed novel biomarkers, such as alpha-fetoprotein and periostin that were specific to newborn infants.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data will contribute to a better understanding of the composition of umbilical cord serum and aid the discovery of novel biomarkers for the prenatal diagnosis of fetal abnormalities.
authors.affiliation: China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Hong-juan
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Xue-jiang
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Lian-ming
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Liao
authors.forename: Zuo-min
authors.initials: ZM
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Jia-hao
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Sha
authors.forename: Yu-gui
authors.initials: YG
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.forename: Jia-yin
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001798:Blood Proteins / Q000737:chemistry*; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D040901:Proteomics / Q000379:methods*; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D021241:Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D001798:Blood Proteins