Thyroid tumors: novel insights from proteomic studies

Abstract

Several genomics-based techniques have been applied in the last decade to the molecular characterization of cancer, which has led to a variety of applications suitable for improved diagnosis, prognosis and prediction of outcome to treatment. Proteomics-based approaches have also been seen as crucial to the discovery of biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognosis of tumors, as well as for a better understanding of the molecular bases of cancer. Accordingly, proteomic techniques have been used extensively for a better molecular characterization of thyroid tumors. In this field, three main directions have been preceded: first, proteomic studies of model systems; second, proteomics of thyroid tumor specimens; and third, serum proteomics. In this review, we describe the most relevant results that have been obtained for tumors derived from thyroid follicular cells using various proteomic approaches.

Keywords::

• biomarker discovery
• differential proteomics
• fine-needle aspiration biopsy
• thyroid cancer
• thyroid cell

Financial & competing interests disclosure

This work was funded by grants from MIUR to Giuseppe Damante (PRIN 2007N8P32H_002) and to Gianluca Tell (FIRB RBRN07BMCT), and from the National Research Council (RSTL 862) and Regione Campania (RESMAC) to Andrea Scaloni. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.