secretome
Definition
The secretome encompasses all proteins secreted by a cell, tissue, or organism into the extracellular space, including the extracellular matrix and biological fluids. This includes classically secreted proteins with signal peptides, non-classically secreted proteins released through unconventional pathways, and proteins shed from cell surfaces. The secretome plays critical roles in cell-cell communication, immune responses, tissue remodeling, and disease pathogenesis. Secretome analysis is particularly valuable in biomarker discovery, as secreted proteins are accessible in body fluids like blood, urine, and cerebrospinal fluid. Understanding the secretome is essential for identifying therapeutic targets, especially in cancer metastasis, inflammation, and wound healing, where intercellular signaling drives disease progression.
Visualize secretome in Nodes Bio
Researchers can map secretome networks to visualize protein-protein interactions between secreted factors and their receptors across different cell types. Nodes Bio enables integration of secretome data with pathway databases to identify signaling cascades triggered by secreted proteins. Users can overlay disease-associated secretome profiles onto cellular communication networks to discover dysregulated paracrine signaling mechanisms and potential therapeutic intervention points in complex biological systems.
Visualization Ideas:
- Secreted protein-receptor interaction networks across multiple cell types
- Temporal secretome dynamics showing protein release patterns during disease progression
- Comparative secretome networks between healthy and diseased tissues highlighting dysregulated signaling pathways
Example Use Case
A cancer research team investigating tumor-stroma interactions analyzes the secretome of cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) using mass spectrometry. They identify elevated secretion of matrix metalloproteinases, growth factors, and cytokines that promote tumor invasion. By mapping these secreted proteins to their receptors on cancer cells and visualizing the resulting signaling networks, researchers discover that CAF-secreted periostin activates integrin signaling in tumor cells, driving epithelial-mesenchymal transition. This network analysis reveals periostin-integrin interactions as potential therapeutic targets to disrupt tumor-stroma crosstalk.