Gender dependence for a subset of the low-abundance signaling proteome in human platelets.
The incidence of cardiovascular diseases is ten-times higher in males than females, although the biological basis for this gender disparity is not known. However, based on the fact that antiplatelet drugs are the mainstay for prevention and therapy, we hypothesized that the signaling proteomes in platelets from normal male donors might be more activated than platelets from normal female donors. We report here that platelets from male donors express significantly higher levels of signaling cascade proteins than platelets from female donors. In silico connectivity analysis shows that the 24 major hubs in platelets from male donors focus on pathways associated with megakaryocytic expansion and platelet activation. By contrast, the 11 major hubs in platelets from female donors were found to be either negative or neutral for platelet-relevant processes. The difference may suggest a biological mechanism for gender discrimination in cardiovascular disease.
Eidelman
Ofer
O
Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Genetics, USU Center for Medical Proteomics, Uniformed Services University, School of Medicine, USUHS, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA.
Jozwik
Catherine
C
Huang
Wei
W
Srivastava
Meera
M
Rothwell
Stephen W
SW
Jacobowitz
David M
DM
Ji
Xiaoduo
X
Zhang
Xiuying
X
Guggino
William
W
Wright
Jerry
J
Kiefer
Jeffrey
J
Olsen
Cara
C
Adimi
Nima
N
Mueller
Gregory P
GP
Pollard
Harvey B
HB