A comprehensive approach toward novel serum biomarkers for benign prostatic hyperplasia: the MPSA Consortium.
OBJECTIVE
Clinical benign prostatic hyperplasia is primarily diagnosed based on a diverse array of progressive lower urinary tract symptoms and is likely distinct from histological benign prostatic hyperplasia, which is detected by the presence of nonmalignant proliferation of prostate cells but may or may not be associated with symptoms. Pharmacological management of lower urinary tract symptoms has emerged as an effective initial treatment for clinical benign prostatic hyperplasia due to the introduction of new drug therapies shown to be effective in recent large clinical trials. Despite advances in symptom management and research into disease pathology, diagnostic strategies for the prediction of benign prostatic hyperplasia progression and response to drug modalities are lacking, and questions remain as to the molecular differences underlying clinical (symptomatic) vs histological (nonsymptomatic) benign prostatic hyperplasia.


METHODS
As part of the Medical Therapy of Prostatic Symptoms (MTOPS) clinical trial, which demonstrated the effectiveness of combination drug therapy in slowing benign prostatic hyperplasia progression, an archive of biological specimens linked to clinical data was collected for future profiling of disease pathology and changes associated with response to drug therapy. The MTOPS Prostatic Samples Analysis (MPSA) Consortium was established to identify and validate molecular markers that may better define benign prostatic hyperplasia related pathologies, identify risk of progression of lower urinary tract symptoms, and predict response to drug therapy using the MTOPS archive. The cooperating MPSA Biomarker Discovery Sites and Pathology Coordinating Center use diverse methodologies and scientific approaches as well as unique expertise to address the goals of the Consortium.


RESULTS
To date the MPSA has identified a number of promising biomarkers as well as other molecular and cellular changes associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings and ongoing Consortium discovery efforts have the potential to provide a greater understanding of the defects underlying disease pathology, and may lead to the development of early and more effective pharmacological treatment strategies for benign prostatic hyperplasia.
Mullins
Chris
C
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
Lucia
M Scott
MS
Hayward
Simon W
SW
Lee
Jeannette Y
JY
Levitt
Jonathan M
JM
Lin
Victor K
VK
Liu
Brian C-S
BC
Chinnaiyan
Arul M
AM
Rubin
Mark A
MA
Slawin
Kevin
K
Star
Robert A
RA
Getzenberg
Robert H
RH
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011470:Prostatic Hyperplasia / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000235:genetics
D015415:Biomarkers