You have accessJournal of UrologyBladder and Urethra: Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology II1 Apr 2012499 URINARY STEM CELL FACTOR AS A NOVEL DIAGNOSTIC AND THERAPEUTIC BIOMARKER FOR OVERACTIVE BLADDER Yasue Kubota, Yoshiyuki Kojima, Takashi Hamakawa, Makoto Imura, Yasuhiro Shibata, Shoichi Sasaki, and Kenjiro Kohri Yasue KubotaYasue Kubota Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author , Yoshiyuki KojimaYoshiyuki Kojima Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author , Takashi HamakawaTakashi Hamakawa Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author , Makoto ImuraMakoto Imura Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author , Yasuhiro ShibataYasuhiro Shibata Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author , Shoichi SasakiShoichi Sasaki Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author , and Kenjiro KohriKenjiro Kohri Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.juro.2012.02.569AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES Recent reports have demonstrated that c-kit acts as not only a marker of interstitial cells of Cajal, but also plays a significant role in the control of bladder spontaneous activity, and could be a target for the clinical treatment of overactive bladder (OAB). We previously demonstrated that c-kit ligand, stem cell factor (SCF), was expressed in the urothelium of human bladder and secreted by the urothelium. The objective of this study was to investigate whether SCF could be a potential biomarker for diagnosis and therapeutic efficacy of OAB. METHODS One hundred ninety eight normal healthy volunteers (male:female=98:98) without OAB, lower urinary tract symptoms and other urinary tract-related diseases, were enrolled as a control to determine the reference range of urinary SCF level. In addition, 280 patients with untreated OAB were also enrolled. OAB was diagnosed on the basis of the overactive bladder symptom score (OABSS). Urinalysis was performed to rule out urinary tract infection and microscopic hematuria. Urinary SCF levels were measured by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). ELISA was performed by one laboratory assistant who was blind to the clinical classification of the patients. At the same time, 3 ml urine was taken to measure the urinary creatinine (Cre) level. All experiments were carried out in triplicate. The total urinary SCF levels were normalized to the concentration of urinary Cre. The study was approved by the ethics committee of our institution. RESULTS The reference range of SCF/Cre was obtained by measuring the values in healthy volunteers. The 95% reference range was calculated as (mean-1.96 standard deviations; SD) to (mean+1.96SD), and provided that the data were normally distributed. According to this calculation, the normal range of urinary SCF was determined under 3.6x10-4. There was no significant difference in urinary SCF/Cr level between male and female. The average urinary SCF level was significantly higher in OAB patients (12.7 ± 11.9 x10-4) than in the healthy volunteers group (1.7 ± 0.9 x10-4; p <0.00001). The urinary SCF level showed a significant positive correlation with OABSS (r=0.67, p=0.001). It was significantly decreased after 12-week administration of anticholinergic agents (p<0.05), and showed a significant positive correlation with improvement of OABSS (p<0.004). CONCLUSIONS The urinary SCF could be a novel diagnostic and therapeutic biomarker for overactive bladder, because it showed significant correlation with severity of OAB and efficacy of anti-cholinergic agents. © 2012 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 187Issue 4SApril 2012Page: e205 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2012 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.MetricsAuthor Information Yasue Kubota Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author Yoshiyuki Kojima Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author Takashi Hamakawa Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author Makoto Imura Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author Yasuhiro Shibata Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author Shoichi Sasaki Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author Kenjiro Kohri Nagoya, Japan More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement Advertisement PDF downloadLoading ...