Abstract
Early detection of cancer development is crucial for successful therapy and for monitoring patient outcome. Various immunodiagnostic methods are able to detect pathological changes in the human body ahead of symptomatic manifestation of the disease. Most immunological examinations are based on the detection of specific tumor markers in body fluids. Of the various cancer-specific proteins used for breast cancer diagnostics, one of the most commonly applied is the cancer antigen 15-3 (CA 15-3). An elevation in its serum level (>25-40 U/ml) usually correlates with tumor malignancy. The CA 15-3 antigen is also used for monitoring patients after surgical treatment and for measuring therapeutic efficacy. Herein, we present the generation of polyclonal IgY antibodies isolated from egg yolks of immunized hens and their application for CA 15-3 detection. The developed sandwich ELISA assay showed a detection limit of 0.028 U/ml, thus demonstrating its potential for clinical applications.
Highlights
Due to the popularization of breast cancer screening and the development of novel diagnostic methods and therapeutic approaches, the death rate caused by breast cancer has been reduced over the last two decades in the US and a few other developed countries
Post-operative surveillance and the monitoring of disease metastasis rely on the detection of specific serum markers, such as cancer antigen 15-3 (CA 15-3), carcinoembrionic antigen (CEA), or tissue polypeptide antigen (TPA); these markers should be combined with imaging methods
We focused our attention on the generation of a specific IgY antibody against the native CA 15-3 protein and against two selected CA 15-3 peptidyl epitopes; these epitopes were conjugated to carrier proteins (KLH and bovine serum albumin (BSA)) and were used for immunization
Summary
Due to the popularization of breast cancer screening and the development of novel diagnostic methods and therapeutic approaches, the death rate caused by breast cancer has been reduced over the last two decades in the US and a few other developed countries. Breast cancer originates in breast tissue (lobules and ducts) and usually remains asymptomatic at early stages of development. A small, localized breast tumor can be diagnosed early by mammography, physical examination, or magnetic resonance imaging. Only a small percentage of diagnosed tumors are non-invasive, whereas the majority is capable of spreading into the surrounding tissues (Nothacker et al, 2009). Post-operative surveillance and the monitoring of disease metastasis rely on the detection of specific serum markers, such as CA 15-3, CEA, or TPA; these markers should be combined with imaging methods. In spite of the moderate sensitivity and the limited applicability to advanced breast cancer, monitoring serum marker levels can indicate metastatic disease several months before clinical symptoms (Cheung et al, 2009; Duffy, 2006)
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