Protein Profiles of Human Serum by SELDI-TOF-MS with Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes as Absorbent

The present paper describes a biomarker capturing strategy based on the enrichment efficiency of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) for peptides and proteins from human serum. The method is shown to enrich proteins/peptides, and the captured molecules were profiled using surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF-MS). Mass spectra of the MWCNTs-treated human serum samples showed a significant enrichment of proteins by MWCNTs. Preliminary results indicated a good level of reproducibility in serum profiles with coefficients of variation (CVs) on signal intensity ranging from 8.9% to 25.2%. The developed method holds promise for improving the discovery of low-abundance serum biomarkers.