Quantitative Proteomics of the Endothelial Secretome Identifies RC0497 as Diagnostic of Acute Rickettsial Spotted Fever Infections

Quantitative Proteomics of the Endothelial Secretome Identifies RC0497 as Diagnostic of Acute Rickettsial Spotted Fever Infections: Mediterranean spotted fever is a reemerging acute tick-borne infection produced by the α-proteobacterium, Rickettsia conorii. Rickettsia conorii infects vascular endothelial cells producing disseminated plasma leakage, manifesting as nonspecific fever, headache, and maculopapular rash. Because there are no available tests of early infection, Mediterranean spotted fever is often undiagnosed and untreated, resulting in significant mortality. To address this critical need, we have applied a quantitative proteomics pipeline for analyzing the secretome of primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells.