An improved sensitive assay method for the heterogeneity of alpha-foetoprotein: possible application for early differential diagnosis.
A combination of lectin-affinity electrophoresis and antibody-affinity blotting was used for the qualitative determination of molecular species of alpha-foetoprotein. Concanavalin A and erythrophytohaemagglutinin were used as lectins. This method was able to quickly discriminate between the molecular species of alpha-foetoprotein of recurrent ovarian yolk sac tumour and those of non-malignant liver diseases and cord sera at term, using only 3 microliters of sera containing 200 micrograms/l of alpha-foetoprotein. The results indicate that this assay method might be useful for the differential diagnosis of recurrent yolk sac tumour from drug- or blood transfusion-induced liver diseases and for the monitoring of the serum alpha-foetoprotein level of patients with yolk sac tumour producing less than 200 micrograms/l of alpha-foetoprotein.
Ohkawa
K
K
Department of Biochemistry, Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
Abe
T
T
Tsukada
Y
Y
Taketa
K
K
Kimura
E
E
Terashima
Y
Y
D000906:Antibodies / Q000032:analysis; D000915:Antibody Affinity; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004586:Electrophoresis / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D008649:Mesonephroma / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology
D000906:Antibodies; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins