Proteomic profiling of expression of proteasomal subunits from livers of mice treated with diethylnitrosamine

Abstract

The liver plays a central role in transforming and clearing chemicals and is susceptible to the toxicity from these agents. Diethylnitrosamine is metabolized primarily in the liver by cytochrome P-450 and can cause DNA damage. The 26S proteasome is a large proteolytic complex that degrades ubiquitinated proteins, and regulates many physiological processes. We used proteomics-based approaches to examine expressional differences of liver proteasomal subunits from diethylnitrosamine-treated mice. The expression of most proteasomal subunits was observed to be upregulated in the analysis of 2DE and MALDI-TOF MS/MS. Some of these differentially expressed proteasomal subunits were further confirmed by Western blot, RT-PCR, and immunohistochemistry. Our results provided useful information on the relationship between the proteasomal complex and related diseases.