Proteomic and metabolomic biomarkers for III–V semiconductors: And prospects for application to nano-materials

There has been an increased appreciation over the last 20 years that chemical agents at very low dose levels can produce biological responses in protein expression patterns (proteomic responses) or alterations in sensitive metabolic pathways (metabolomic responses). Marked improvements in analytical methodologies, such as 2-D gel electrophoresis, matrix-assisted laser desorption–time of flight (MALDI-TOF) and surface enhanced laser desorption–time of flight (SELDI-TOF) technologies are capable of identifying specific protein patterns related to exposure to chemicals either alone or as mixtures. The detection and interpretation of early cellular responses to chemical agents have also made great advances through correlative ultrastructural morphometric and biochemical studies. Similarly, advances in analytical technologies such as HPLC, proton NMR, MALDI-TOF, and SELDI-TOF have permitted early detection of changes in a number of essential metabolic pathways following chemical exposures by measurement of alterations in metabolic products from those pathways. Data from these approaches are increasingly regarded as potentially useful biomarkers of chemical exposure and early cellular responses. Validation and establishment of linkages to biological outcomes are needed in order for biomarkers of effect to be established. This short review will cover a number of the above techniques and report data from chemical exposures to two binary III–V semiconductor compounds to illustrate gender differences in proteomic responses. In addition, the use of these methodologies in relation to rapid safety evaluations of nanotechnology products will be discussed. (Supported in part by NIH R01-ES4879).