Is prehypertension really different from normotension and hypertension? A case-control pilot proteomic study in Chinese.

This study was designed to investigate the differences in the plasma proteome of healthy normotensive, prehypertensive, and hypertensive subjects. A case-control pilot study was conducted among well-matched subjects. Plasma protein was analyzed by two-dimensional electrophoresis combined with MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. The results showed that there were 22 differentially expressed spots among the three groups, which corresponded to 18 proteins involved in inflammation and immunity, lipid metabolism, transport, coagulation and fibrinolysis, cell proliferation and apoptosis, and anti-oxidation. With an increase in blood pressure, these proteins were differentially expressed which indicated that prehypertension probably was an early stage of hypertension.