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Characterization of Thymus-dependent and Thymus-independent Immunoglobulin Isotype Responses in Mice Using Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay
Published on: September 7, 2018
[Immunoenzymatic method for determining thyroglobulin levels in human blood serum]
1Zakład Biochemii, Centrum Medyczne Kształcenia Podyplomowego w warszawie.
Insights
A new, inexpensive enzyme immunoassay accurately measures thyroglobulin (Tg) in human serum. This method is valuable for monitoring differentiated thyroid cancer patients post-surgery, aiding early metastasis detection.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Immunology
- Clinical Chemistry
Context:
- Thyroglobulin (Tg) is a key biomarker in differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) management.
- Accurate and accessible Tg measurement is crucial for post-surgical monitoring.
- Existing methods may have limitations in cost or accessibility.
Purpose:
- To develop and validate an inexpensive enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for human serum thyroglobulin determination.
- To assess the performance characteristics of the developed EIA method.
- To evaluate its potential utility in clinical settings, particularly for DTC patient monitoring.
Summary:
- An economical EIA was developed for serum Tg, measuring concentrations from 6-800 ng/ml with sensitivity comparable to commercial kits.
- The method demonstrated strong correlation (r=0.946) with a reference IRMA method, showing acceptable intra-assay (5.5-10.2%) and inter-assay (9.5-13.2%) variability.
- The upper limit for healthy subjects was determined as 70 ng/ml, with a note on potential interference from antithyroglobulin antibodies.
Impact:
- Provides a cost-effective alternative for routine thyroglobulin testing.
- Facilitates early detection of recurrence or metastasis in differentiated thyroid cancer patients.
- Highlights the necessity of simultaneous antithyroglobulin antibody testing to avoid falsely lowered Tg results.
Abstract:
An inexpensive enzyme immunoassay method was designed for the determination of thyroglobulin concentration in human blood serum. The range of concentrations of thyroglobulin which can be measured by the method is between 6 and 800 ng/ml. The sensitivity of the method is comparable to that of the commercial test kits. The values of thyroglobulin concentration obtained with the use of the described method are strongly correlated (r = 0.946) with those obtained by using the reference method (IRMA kit of Byk, Sweden). The intraassay coefficient of variation ranged from 5.5 to 10.2% and interassay coefficient of variation from 9.5 to 13.2% depending on the thyroglobulin concentration. The upper limit of blood serum thyroglobulin concentration in healthy subjects was 70 ng/ml. The results of thyroglobulin determination obtained with the described method are falsely lowered in the presence of antithyroglobulin antibodies; simultaneous determination of these antibodies is thus necessary in such a case. It seems that the described method may be used for monitoring the patients after surgical treatment of differentiated thyroid cancer aimed at early detection of metastases.
