2D-DIGE and MALDI TOF/TOF MS analysis reveal that small GTPase signaling pathways may play an important role in cadmium-induced colon cell malignant transformation

• Colon epithelial cell line is firstly successfully transformed by cadmium.
• 2D-DIGE is applied to visualize the differentially expressed proteins.
• RhoA plays an important role in cadmium induced malignant transformation.
• Bioinformatic and experimental methods are combined to explore new mechanisms.

Cadmium is a toxic heavy metal present in the environment and in industrial materials. Cadmium has demonstrated carcinogenic activity that induces cell transformation, but how this occurs is unclear. We used 2D-DIGE and MALDI TOF/TOF MS combined with bioinformatics and immunoblotting to investigate the molecular mechanism of cadmium transformation. We found that small GTPases were critical for transformation. Additionally, proteins involved in mitochondrial transcription, DNA repair, and translation also had altered expression patterns in cadmium treated cells. Collectively, our results suggest that activation of small GTPases contributes to cadmium-induced transformation of colon cells.