Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 25, 2026
13:21
Chemically-blocked Antibody Microarray for Multiplexed High-throughput Profiling of Specific Protein Glycosylation in Complex Samples
Published on: May 4, 2012
Detection of hepatocellular carcinoma using glycomic analysis
Radoslav Goldman1, Habtom W Ressom, Rency S Varghese
1Department of Oncology, Georgetown University, Washington, District of Columbia 20057-1469, USA. rg26@georgetown.edu
Summary
New research identifies three N-glycans in serum as promising biomarkers for detecting hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This discovery could significantly improve early diagnosis of this growing cancer.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Oncology
- Biomarker Discovery
Background:
- Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a significant and growing health concern in the US.
- Current diagnostic marker alpha-fetoprotein lacks sensitivity, detected in only ~60% of HCC cases.
- Need for improved diagnostic markers for HCC is critical for public health impact.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively assess serum N-glycans as potential alternative biomarkers for HCC detection.
- To identify specific N-glycans with diagnostic potential for hepatocellular carcinoma.
Main Methods:
- Utilized matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS).
- Analyzed serum samples from 202 participants: 73 HCC cases, 77 cancer-free controls, 52 chronic liver disease patients.
- N-glycans were enzymatically released, permethylated, and quantified.
Main Results:
- Abundance of 57 N-glycans significantly differed between HCC patients and controls.
- Six individual N-glycans showed 73%-90% sensitivity and 36%-91% specificity for HCC detection.
- A panel of three N-glycans achieved 90% sensitivity and 89% specificity in an independent validation set.
Conclusions:
- A specific set of three N-glycans demonstrates high prediction accuracy (90%) for HCC detection.
- These N-glycans are effective even in populations with high hepatitis C viral infection rates.
- Further clinical utility evaluation of these novel HCC biomarkers is recommended.
