A proteomic approach of pediatric astrocytomas: MiRNAs and network insight Ruth Ruiz Esparza-Garrido a, g, 1 , Miguel Á. Velázquez-Flores a, 1 , Jaime Diegopérez-Ramírez b , Enrique López-Aguilar c , Georgina Siordia-Reyes d , Magdalena Hernández-Ortiz e , Ángel G. Martínez-Batallar e , Sergio Encarnación-Guevara e , Fabio Salamanca-Gómez f , Diego Julio Arenas-Aranda a, ⁎ a Unidad de Investigación Médica en Genética Humana, Hospital de Pediatría, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, IMSS, 06720 México, D.F., Mexico b Servicio de Neurocirugía, Hospital de Pediatría, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, IMSS, 06720 México, D.F., Mexico c Servicio de Oncología, Hospital de Pediatría, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, IMSS, 06720 México, D.F., Mexico d Servicio de Patología, Hospital de Pediatría, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, IMSS, 06720 México, D.F., Mexico e Centro de Ciencias Genómicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 62210 Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico f Coordinación de Investigación en Salud, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, IMSS, 06720 México, D.F., Mexico g Posgrado en Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Av. Universidad 3000, C.P. 04510 Coyoacán, D. F., Mexico ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Article history: Received 17 May 2013 Accepted 12 September 2013 Pediatric astrocytomas, a leading cause of death associated with cancer, are the most common primary central nervous system tumors found in children. Most studies of these tumors focus on adults, not on children. We examined the global protein and microRNA expression pattern by 2D SDS-PAGE, mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF), and RT 2 miRNA PCR Array System. Proteomic studies revealed 49 proteins with changes on the expression. Interactome showed that vimentin, calreticulin, and 14-3-3 epsilon protein are hub proteins in these neoplasms. MicroRNA analyses demonstrated for the first time novel microRNAs involved in the astrocytoma biology. In conclusion, our results show that novel proteins and microRNAs with expression changes on pediatric astrocytoma could serve as biomarkers of tumor progression. Biological significance Astrocytomas are tumors that progress rapidly and that invade surrounding tissues. Although some drugs have been developed to treat these neoplasms, the mortality of patients is still very high. In this study, we describe for the first time, to our knowledge, some proteins and miRNAs associated with the biology of astrocytic tumors that could be postulated as possible diagnostic or prognostic biomarkers. Altogether, our results indicate that large-scale analyses allow making a fairly accurate prediction of different cellular processes altered in astrocytic tumors. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Pediatric astrocytoma Proteomic Protein–protein interactions Hub proteins Novel miRNAs JOURNAL OF PROTEOMICS 94 (2013) 162 – 175 ⁎ Corresponding author at: Unidad de Investigación Médica en Genética Humana, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, IMSS, 06720 México, D.F., Mexico. Tel.: +52 5552 56276941. E-mail address: arenasdi@gmail.com (D.J. Arenas-Aranda). 1 These authors contributed equally to this work. 1874-3919/$ – see front matter © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jprot.2013.09.009 Available online at www.sciencedirect.com ScienceDirect www.elsevier.com/locate/jprot