[Immunometric tests system for glycoprotein hormones and their free subunits]

Highly specific sensitive immunoenzymometric assays were established for human glycoprotein hormones, the common free alpha-subunit of glycoprotein hormones and the free beta-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin, using a large panel of monoclonal antibodies previously produced in our laboratory. The significance of serum levels of human chorionic gonadotropin and its free subunits under physiological conditions, as well as their prognostic value in human chorionic gonadotropin-producing tumours was determined in vitro and in vivo. These investigations revealed that all three analytes were present in the sera of the majority of normal individuals; moreover, the percentage of positive sera for these tumour markers in patients suffering from seminomatous and non-seminomatous testicular cancers was significantly elevated when two, or even better, all three parameters were determined.