Exploratory study of proteins in urine of patients with histoplasma antigenuria

Disseminated histoplasmosis is an invasive fungal infection that can be fatal in patients with weak immune system. The goal of our exploratory study was to evaluate differences in urinary protein profiles among samples of healthy individuals, patients with proteinuria (PRU), and histoplasma antigenuria (HIS), and to identify physiological pathways associated with the excreted proteins. Urine samples were depleted of abundant proteins, deglycosylated, digested with trypsin, fractionated and analyzed by nano-LC-QTOF. The total number of human proteins identified in the samples was 117, of which 20 and 23 were unique to the samples from patients with PRU and HIS, respectively. Pathway analysis of proteins identified in samples of PRU and HIS patients suggested increased levels of proteins associated with acute response signaling, coagulation system, prothrombin activation, glucocorticoid regulation and the lipid antigen presentation signaling pathway networks. The obtained data provide information on protein expression associated with HIS, and suggest that further more rigorous studies aimed at the identification of proteins associated with proteinuria of different causes are feasible.