Abstract
Cognitive frailty in elders has become very common in Thailand society and is extremely difficult to manage in clinical practice due to poor detection and diagnosis. Plasma proteomic studies may be able to provide promising protein markers specific to this condition in order to improve the quality of life in the elderly. The purpose of this study was to differentiate and identify a potential protein marker of cognitive frailty in plasma samples by proteomic approaches. Nine plasma samples from elders with cognitive frailty or non-frailty were pooled and subjected to 2D gel separation. Conventional analysis was performed with the stained gel, and the selected protein spot was identified by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry coupled to a SCIEX TripleTOF 6600+. It was found that fibrinogen gamma (FGG) chain protein was suggested. FGG was further validated with a commercial ELISA kit using both pooled and individual plasma samples. It was found that both pooled and individual samples showed a significant reduction in FGG levels in elders with cognitive frailty. The results from this study suggest that FGG chain may be a potentially useful plasma biomarker for early detection, diagnosis, and therapeutic applications of cognitive frailty in elders in order to achieve sustainable health in an aging society.