Peptidomic analysis of follicular fluid in patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome

Ningyu Sun; Yuanyuan Chen; Lu Lu; Hua Yan; Jing Zhou; Kai Li; Wuwen Zhang; Lihua Yuan; Boon Chin Heng; Weiwei Zeng; Yin Shi; Guoqing Tong; Ping Yin

doi:10.3389/fcell.2023.1289063

Peptidomic analysis of follicular fluid in patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome

Front Cell Dev Biol. 2023 Nov 8:11:1289063. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2023.1289063. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Ningyu Sun^#¹, Yuanyuan Chen^#¹, Lu Lu^#¹, Hua Yan¹, Jing Zhou², Kai Li¹, Wuwen Zhang¹, Lihua Yuan³, Boon Chin Heng⁴, Weiwei Zeng⁵, Yin Shi^#⁶, Guoqing Tong^#⁷, Ping Yin^#¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Reproductive Medicine, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China.
² Department of Gynecology of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Changhai Hospital, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, China.
³ Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, China.
⁴ School of Stomatology, Peking University, Beijing, China.
⁵ Department of Gynecology, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China.
⁶ Key Laboratory of Acupuncture and Immunological Effects, Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China.
⁷ Department of Reproductive Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze and compare the differential expression of peptides within the follicular fluid of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) patients versus normal women by using peptidomics techniques. The underlying mechanisms involved in PCOS pathogenesis will be explored, together with screening and identification of potential functional peptides via bioinformatics analysis. Materials and methods: A total of 12 patients who underwent in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET) at the Reproductive Medicine Center of Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine from 1 September 2022 to 1 November 2022 were included in this study. The follicular fluid of PCOS patients (n = 6) and normal women (n = 6) were collected. The presence and concentration differences of various peptides were detected by the LC-MS/MS method. GO and KEGG analysis were performed on the precursor proteins of the differentially-expressed peptides, and protein network interaction analysis was carried out to identify functionally-relevant peptides among the various peptides. Results: A variety of peptides within the follicular fluid of PCOS versus normal patients were detected by peptidomics techniques. Altogether, 843 upregulated peptides and 236 downregulated peptides were detected (absolute fold change ≥2 and p < 0.05). Of these, 718 (718 = 488 + 230) peptides were only detected in the PCOS group, while 205 (205 = 174 + 31) were only detected in the control group. Gene Ontology enrichment and pathway analysis were performed to characterize peptides through their precursor proteins. We identified 18 peptides from 7 precursor proteins associated with PCOS, and 4 peptide sequences were located in the functional domains of their corresponding precursor proteins. Conclusion: In this study, differences in the follicular development of PCOS versus normal patients were revealed from the polypeptidomics of follicular development, which thus provided new insights for future studies on the pathological mechanisms of PCOS development.

Keywords: assisted reproduction; follicular fluid; in vitro fertilization; peptidomics analysis; polycystic ovarian syndrome.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This study was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos 82104555, 82205256, 82004398 and 81571442).