title: Effects of a honeybee sting on the serum free amino acid profile in humans.
abstract: The aim of this study was to assess the response to a honeybee venom by analyzing serum levels of 34 free amino acids. Another goal of this study was to apply complex analytic-bioinformatic-clinical strategy based on up-to-date achievements of mass spectrometry in metabolomic profiling. The amino acid profiles were determined using hybrid triple quadrupole/linear ion trap mass spectrometer coupled with a liquid chromatography instrument. Serum samples were collected from 27 beekeepers within 3 hours after they were stung and after a minimum of 6 weeks following the last sting. The differences in amino acid profiles were evaluated using MetaboAnalyst and ROCCET web portals. Chemometric tests showed statistically significant differences in the levels of L-glutamine (Gln), L-glutamic acid (Glu), L-methionine (Met) and 3-methyl-L-histidine (3MHis) between the two analyzed groups of serum samples. Gln and Glu appeared to be the most important metabolites for distinguishing the beekeepers tested shortly after a bee sting from those tested at least 6 weeks later. The role of some amino acids in the response of an organism to the honeybee sting was also discussed. This study indicated that proposed methodology may allow to identify the individuals just after the sting and those who were stung at least 6 weeks earlier. The results we obtained will contribute to better understanding of the human body response to the honeybee sting.
authors: Department of Inorganic & Analytical Chemistry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznań, Poland.
authors: Jan
authors: J
authors: Matysiak
authors: Department of Inorganic & Analytical Chemistry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznań, Poland.
authors: Paweł
authors: P
authors: Dereziński
authors: Department of Inorganic & Analytical Chemistry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznań, Poland.
authors: Agnieszka
authors: A
authors: Klupczyńska
authors: Ward of Paediatric Diseases, L. Perzyna Regional Unified Hospital in Kalisz, Kalisz, Poland.
authors: Joanna
authors: J
authors: Matysiak
authors: Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznań, Poland.
authors: Elżbieta
authors: E
authors: Kaczmarek
authors: Department of Inorganic & Analytical Chemistry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznań, Poland.
authors: Zenon J
authors: ZJ
authors: Kokot
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000596:Amino Acids / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D019540:Area Under Curve; D056630:Beekeeping; D001516:Bees / Q000502:physiology; D001733:Bites and Stings; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016018:Least-Squares Analysis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012372:ROC Curve; D021241:Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids