Detection of autoantibodies to survivin and livin in sera from patients with breast cancer.
BACKGROUND
Survivin and livin are highly expressed in cancer cells and transformed cells, but show little or no expression in normal differentiated tissues. Human antibody responses to tumor-associated antigens have been detected, but little is known about the response to survivin and livin in breast cancer patients.


METHODS
We examined the prevalence of anti-survivin and livin antibodies in breast cancer patients with a specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using recombinant protein.


RESULTS
Using a cutoff value for positivity determined as the mean absorbance +2SD for healthy control samples, sera from 11 of 46 breast cancer patients (23.9%) were positive by the ELISA using recombinant survivin protein. Of 46 samples from the same breast cancer patients, 15 (32.6%) were positive for anti-livin antibodies. In addition, 24 (52.2%) were positive for 1 or both ELISAs using the respective proteins. Intensity of anti-livin antibody responses did not correlate with intensity of anti-survivin responses.


CONCLUSIONS
Anti-livin antibodies were detected in sera from breast cancer patients by an anti-livin ELISA using full-length recombinant livin protein. Like survivin, livin may act as a major cancer antigen in breast cancer patients.
Yagihashi
Atsuhito
A
Department of Clinical Laboratory Medicine, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Chuo-ku, Japan. yagihasi@sapmed.ac.jp
Ohmura
Tohsei
T
Asanuma
Koichi
K
Kobayashi
Daisuke
D
Tsuji
Naoki
N
Torigoe
Toshihiko
T
Sato
Noriyuki
N
Hirata
Koichi
K
Watanabe
Naoki
N
D000042:Absorption; D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology*; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000276:immunology; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D051034:Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology*; D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology*; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology*; D000077022:Survivin
D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D001323:Autoantibodies; C107489:BIRC5 protein, human; C419866:BIRC7 protein, human; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D051034:Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins; D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; D000077022:Survivin