Abstract
We have developed and validated a robust antigen capture assay for the measurement of serum clusterin. Increased clusterin expression, and alterations in serum clusterin levels have been associated with a number of disease states. In particular, clusterin has been shown to be associated with tissue regression and apoptosis in the rat ventral prostate in response to androgen ablation or administration of anti-androgens. The object of this study was to determine if changes in human serum clusterin can be used as a diagnostic or prognostic marker to monitor the response to hormonal therapy in patients with prostate cancer, and to determine if clusterin concentrations increase with the progression towards androgen independence. The antigen capture assay was used for an extensive analysis of human serum clusterin concentration in fasting males, and to determine if there is any relationship between clusterin and age or cholesterol levels. The average clusterin level in serum is 101±42 μg/ml (n = 96). There is no correlation to age or serum cholesterol levels. Analysis of serum clusterin levels in patients with newly diagnosed prostate cancer (n = 5), hormone responsive tumors (n = 5), and hormone refractory disease (n = 5), demonstrates that no significant changes in serum clusterin levels accompany the progression of prostatic disease, or response to hormone therapy.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 13-21 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Journal of biochemical and biophysical methods |
| Volume | 48 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Mar 28 2001 |
Funding
This research is supported in part by USPHS grant CA692331 to M. Tenniswood. The authors would like to thank Jacintha O’Sullivan, and Sandra Biggar for technical assistance and useful discussions.
Keywords
- Age dependent
- Cholesterol
- Clusterin
- Prostate cancer
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biophysics
- Biochemistry
