Novel biomarkers for the early prediction of pediatric cystic echinococcosis post-surgical outcomes

Eya Ben Salah (1, 2) , Coralie Barrera (2, 3) , Wahiba Sakly (1) , Sana Mosbahi (4) , Thierry Balliau (5) , Nathalie Franche (3) , Bruno Gottstein (6) , Sabrine Ben Youssef (4) , Mongi Mekki (4) , Hamouda Babba (1) , Laurence Millon (2, 3)

1 LP3M-LR12ES08 - Laboratoire de Parasitologie-Mycologie Médicale et Moléculaire [Monastir, Tunisie]
2 CNR-E - Centre National de Référence Echinococcoses
3 LCE - Laboratoire Chrono-environnement (UMR 6249)
4 Department of Paediatric Surgery and LR12SP13
5 PAPPSO
6 Institute for Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, University of Berne, 3001 Berne, Switzerland

Objective: This study aims to search for reliable serological biomarkers allowing the early prediction of cystic echinococcosis (CE) post-operative outcomes. Methods: We applied immunoprecipitation (IP) of Echinococcus granulosus protoscolex antigens with pediatric CE patients' plasma collected at 1-month and 1-year post-surgery, followed by Liquid Chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). We compared IP proteomic content from relapsed patients within the first-year post-surgery (RCE) to cases with no relapses until 3 post-operative years (NRCE). Selected proteins were recombinantly synthesized and assessed for their prognostic performance by Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: A total of 305 immunoreactive parasitic proteins were identified, 59 of which were significantly more abundant in RCE than NRCE for both time-points. Four proteins showed the most promising characteristics for predicting CE outcomes: cytoplasmic malate dehydrogenase (Eg-cMDH), citrate synthase (Eg-CS), annexin A6 and severin. ELISA-IgG against the four markers were significantly lower at 1-year post-surgery than 1-month in NRCE, in contrast to RCE that displayed either stable or higher levels. The Eg-cMDH and Eg-CS showed the best prognostic performance, with respective probabilities of being "relapse-free" of 83% and 81%, if a decrease of IgG levels occurred between 1-month and 1-year post-surgery. Conclusion: The Eg-cMDH and Eg-CS are promising biomarkers to predict early CE post-surgical outcomes.

Mots clés: Cystic echinococcosis; ELISA; Pediatric patients; Post-surgical outcomes; Predictive biomarkers; Proteomics; Serological follow-up

Domaines: Santé

Eya Ben Salah, Coralie Barrera, Wahiba Sakly, Sana Mosbahi, Thierry Balliau, et al.. Novel biomarkers for the early prediction of pediatric cystic echinococcosis post-surgical outcomes. Journal of Infection, 2022, 84 (1), pp.87-93. ⟨10.1016/j.jinf.2021.09.023⟩. ⟨hal-03534391⟩