Amino Acid Remodeling Precedes Malignant Transformation in Oral Epithelial Cells

Potentially malignant oral epithelial cells show distinct Raman and proteomic signatures, including increased phenylalanine-associated features near 1001–1004 cm-1, before malignant transformation.

• Why it matters: Clinical and histopathological assessments cannot reliably predict which oral potentially malignant disorders will transform, limiting prevention efforts.
• What they did: Healthy, potentially malignant, and malignant oral epithelial cell models were profiled with Raman spectroscopy and LC-MS proteomics, comparing aromatic amino acid-associated Raman regions and integrating differential abundance and pathway analyses.
• The result: Proteomics revealed extensive stage-associated remodeling of amino acid metabolism, transport, and protein synthesis, with early changes in GOT1, GOT2, GPT2, IVD, HIBCH, DBT, DLD, ALDH6A1, ALDH4A1, SHMT1, and CTH, converging with aromatic Raman features.