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. 2023 Sep;32(9):1498-1508.
doi: 10.1111/exd.14854. Epub 2023 Jun 15.

Differential proteomic expression profiles in vulvar lichen planus as compared to normal vulvar tissue, vulvar lichen sclerosus, or oral lichen planus: An exploratory study

Fangyi Xie  1 , Surendra Dasari  2 , Maria Deschaine  3 , Casey A Gleue  4 , Julio C Sartori-Valinotti  1 , Rochelle R Torgerson  1   5 , Mark D P Davis  1 , M Cristine Charlesworth  6 , Alexander Meves  1   7 , Julia S Lehman  1   4
Affiliations

Differential proteomic expression profiles in vulvar lichen planus as compared to normal vulvar tissue, vulvar lichen sclerosus, or oral lichen planus: An exploratory study

Fangyi Xie et al. Exp Dermatol. 2023 Sep.

Abstract

Vulvar lichen planus (VLP) is a chronic inflammatory disease which adversely affects patients' quality of life. The pathogenesis of VLP is unknown although Th1 immune response has been implicated. We aimed to discover specific tissue-based protein biomarkers in VLP compared to normal vulvar tissue (NVT), vulvar lichen sclerosus (VLS) and oral lichen planus (OLP). We used laser capture microdissection-liquid chromatography- tandem mass spectrometry to assess protein expression in fixed lesional mucosal specimens from patients with VLP (n = 5). We then compared proteomic profiles against those of NVT (n = 4), VLS (n = 5), OLP (n = 6) and normal oral mucosa (n = 5), previously published by our group. IL16, PTPRC, PTPRCAP, TAP1 and ITGB2 and were significantly overexpressed in VLP compared to NVT. Ingenuity pathway analysis identified antigen presentation and integrin signalling pathways. Proteins overexpressed in both VLP versus NVT and OLP versus NOM included IL16, PTPRC, PTPRCAP, TAP1, HLA-DPB1, HLA-B and HLA-DRA. This proteomic analysis revealed several overexpressed proteins in VLP that relate to Th1 autoimmunity, including IL16. Overlapping pathways, including those involving IFNγ and Th1 signalling, were observed between VLP, VLS, and OLP.

Keywords: lichen planus; proteomics; vulvar lichen planus; vulvar lichen sclerosus.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: The authors state no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1a)
Figure 1a)
Volcano plot showing proteins overexpressed (red) and underexpressed (blue) in vulvar lichen planus (VLP) compared to normal vulvar tissue (NVT), which have a 1-fold change (FC) and FDR ≤0.5.
Figure 1b)
Figure 1b)
Volcano plot showing proteins overexpressed (red) and underexpressed (blue) in vulvar lichen planus (VLP) compared to vulvar lichen sclerosus (VLS), which have a 1-fold change (FC) and false discovery rate (FDR) ≤0.5.
Figure 2a)
Figure 2a)
Most significant canonical pathways for differentially expressed proteins in vulvar lichen planus (VLP) compared to normal vulvar tissue (NVT), which have a fold change (FC) ≥1 or ≤−1 and false discovery rate (FDR) ≤0.5. Analyzed using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (Qiagen 2000–2022).
Figure 2b)
Figure 2b)
Canonical pathways for differentially expressed proteins in vulvar lichen planus (VLP) compared to vulvar lichen sclerosus (VLS), which have a fold change (FC) ≥1 or ≤−1 and false discovery rate (FDR) ≤0.5. Analyzed using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (Qiagen 2000–2022).
Figure 3)
Figure 3)
Common and exclusive proteins expressed in vulvar lichen planus (VLP) versus normal vulvar tissue (NVT), compared with oral lichen planus (OLP) versus normal oral mucosa (NOM). Fold change (FC) ≥1 or ≤−1 and false discovery rate (FDR) ≤0.5. Analyzed using Venny.
Figure 4)
Figure 4)
Enriched pathways in a) overexpressed proteins common to vulvar lichen planus (VLP) versus (vs) normal vulvar tissue (NVT) and oral lichen planus (OLP) vs normal oral mucosa (NOM); b) overexpressed proteins in VLP vs NVT but not OLP vs NOM; and c) overexpressed proteins in OLP vs NOM but not VLP vs NVT. Fold change (FC) ≥1 or ≤−1 and false discovery rate (FDR) ≤0.5. Analyzed using Webgestalt.,
Figure 4)
Figure 4)
Enriched pathways in a) overexpressed proteins common to vulvar lichen planus (VLP) versus (vs) normal vulvar tissue (NVT) and oral lichen planus (OLP) vs normal oral mucosa (NOM); b) overexpressed proteins in VLP vs NVT but not OLP vs NOM; and c) overexpressed proteins in OLP vs NOM but not VLP vs NVT. Fold change (FC) ≥1 or ≤−1 and false discovery rate (FDR) ≤0.5. Analyzed using Webgestalt.,
Figure 4)
Figure 4)
Enriched pathways in a) overexpressed proteins common to vulvar lichen planus (VLP) versus (vs) normal vulvar tissue (NVT) and oral lichen planus (OLP) vs normal oral mucosa (NOM); b) overexpressed proteins in VLP vs NVT but not OLP vs NOM; and c) overexpressed proteins in OLP vs NOM but not VLP vs NVT. Fold change (FC) ≥1 or ≤−1 and false discovery rate (FDR) ≤0.5. Analyzed using Webgestalt.,
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