title: A new approach for calcitonin determination based on target cell responsiveness.
abstract: We report the development and validation of three microbioassays for calcitonin based on calcitonin-induced inhibition of the activity of isolated osteoclasts. Having precisely quantified osteoclast motility, spreading and bone resorptive activity, we have applied stringent analytical procedures to define assay characteristics. We have found that the appropriately transformed responses significantly regress on log dose of the peptides. Furthermore, potency estimates obtained using calcitonins from three species (human, salmon and a synthetic analogue of eel calcitonin) have been found to be consistent with those obtained using conventional calcitonin bioassays. In addition, the assays are remarkably sensitive (detection limit 10(-15) M), highly specific and precise. We have determined plasma levels of bioactive calcitonin on samples from patients with medullary thyroid carcinoma; these are several-fold lower than those obtained using our routine calcitonin radioimmunoassay. Our study thus, forms the basis of an entirely new approach for the determination of 'biologically active' calcitonin, and we envisage that such target cell-specific assays could become useful microanalytical methods.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Pathology, Royal Postgraduate Medical School, London, U.K.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zaidi
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Chambers
authors.forename: B S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Moonga
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Oldoni
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Passarella
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Soncini
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: MacIntyre
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001681:Biological Assay; D001862:Bone Resorption; D002116:Calcitonin / Q000032:analysis* / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000097:blood; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000187:drug effects; D004524:Eels; D006801:Humans; D010010:Osteoclasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D011863:Radioimmunoassay; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013964:Thyroid Neoplasms / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: C028815:salmon calcitonin; D002116:Calcitonin