Acute Phase Proteins in Marine Mammals: State of Art, Perspectives and Challenges

Abstract

The term “acute phase response” (APR) is referred to a nonspecific and complex reaction of an organism that occurs shortly after any tissue damage, such as infection, trauma, neoplasia, inflammation, and stress. The APR can be identified and monitored with some laboratory tests, such as the concentration of several plasma proteins, the acute phase proteins (APPs). The APPs are components of the non-specific innate immune response, and their plasma concentration is proportional to the severity and/or the extent of tissue damage. The evaluation of health status of marine mammals is difficult because the classical clinical signs of illness used for human and domestic animals are difficult to recognize and understand. For this reason, in the past years, several efforts were done to identify laboratory markers of disease in these animals. The APPs have demonstrated their role as early markers of inflammation in veterinary medicine, thus several APPs were tested in marine mammals, such as C-reactive protein (CRP), serum amyloid-A (SAA), and Haptoglobin (Hp). However, the difficulty to extrapolate the knowledge about APPs in one species to another, the lack of specie-specific reagents, the absence of data about negative APPs have hampered their extent use in marine mammals. Herein, the state of art of APPs in marine mammals is reviewed, with particular attention to pre-analytical and analytical factors that should be taken into account in validation and interpretation of APPs assays. Moreover, the current application, potential utility and the future developments of APPs in marine mammals is highlighted and discussed.

Contribution of acute-phase reaction proteins to the diagnosis and treatment of 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19)

“…For some patients in the mild COVID-19 group, the value of CRP was still normal, but the value of SAA increased significantly. These results were consistent with the conclusion that CRP was more sensitive in bacterial infections than in viral infections, whereas, SAA increased more quickly and significantly than CRP in viral infections [9].…”

“…Acute-phase reaction proteins (APRPs) are reactive proteins, which are directly manifested as part of the body's stress response. In the case of infection or tissue damage, the inflammatory response stimulates the liver to synthesise and release APRPs in large quantities − a reaction that has been proved to be of great significance in suppressing inflammation and regulating immunity in the body [9]. Currently, there are no systematic analyses regarding the immunological characteristics of COVID-19.…”

Circulating Exosomes Are Strongly Involved in SARS-CoV-2 Infection

“…The acute-phase response is an innate body defense activated during acute illnesses, and it involves increased production of acute-phase proteins such as CRP and cytokines. In the case of an infection, the inflammatory response stimulates the liver to synthesize and release anti-inflammatory proteins that suppress inflammation and regulate immunity in the body ( Gelain and Bonsembiante, 2019 ). As already reported, SARS-CoV-2 infected patients show high levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines associated with pulmonary inflammation and extensive lung involvement; such inflammation has also been observed in SARS and MERS patients ( Coperchini et al, 2020 ).…”

Deiminated proteins and extracellular vesicles - Novel serum biomarkers in whales and orca

“…9). KEGG pathways for the complement and coagulation cascades were identified in all 5 cetacean species, and form part of the acute phase response and first line of immune defences against invading pathogens as well as in the clearance of necrotic or apoptotic cells (Dodds and Law, 1998;Fishelson et al, 2001;Gelain and Bonsembiante, 2019). Pathways for glycolysis/gluconeogenesis were identified in minke, fin, humpback and Cuvier's beaked whale.…”

“…Research into their immune systems may also further current understanding for resistance to cancer, insulin resistance and adaptions to hypoxia, highly relevant to a number of human pathologies (Tsagkogeorga et al, 2015;Tian et al, 2016;Seluanov et al, 2018). While cetacens have been studied for a range of immunological factors (Beineke et al, 2010;Zhou et al, 2018;Gelain and Bonsembiante, 2019) and assessed for conserved immunological and physiological mechanisms, including at the genetic level (Yim et al, 2014;McGowen et al, 2014;Braun et al, 2015;Lopes-Marques et al, 2018;Zhou et al, 2018), less emphasis has been on proteomic studies. No studies have hitherto assessed aspects of putative regulation via post-translational modifications, such as deimination, which may affect protein-protein interaction networks and therefore be critical for physiological and immunological functions.…”