Expanding the protein catalogue in the proteome reference map of human breast cancer cells

In this report we present a catalogue of 162 proteins (including isoforms and variants) identified in a prototype of proteomic map of breast cancer cells. This work represents the prosecution of previous studies describing the protein complement of breast cancer cells of the line 8701-BC, which has been well characterized for several parameters, providing to be a useful model for the study of breast cancer-associated candidate biomarkers. In particular, 110 spots were identified ex novo by PMF, or validated following previous gel matching identification method; 30 were identified by N-terminal microsequencing and the remaining by gel matching with maps available from our former work. As a consequence of the expanded number of proteins, we have updated our previous classification extending the number of protein groups from 4 to 13. In order to facilitate comparative proteome studies of different kinds of breast cancers, in this report we provide the whole complement of proteins so far identified and grouped into the new classification. A consistent number of them were not described before in other proteomic maps of breast cancer cells or tissues, and therefore they represent a valuable contribution for breast cancer protein databases and for future application in basic and clinical researches.