Diagnostic Biomarker

About

Summary Dr. Lorraine Gudas, Chair of the Pharmacology Department at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University has developed a diagnostic for carcinomas, including bladder, colon, renal, prostate, oral cavity, lung, and breast cancers. These cancers, like others, are currently diagnosed by a pathologist using standard subjective staining and microscopy methods. The Cornell assay provides an objective measurement of a known marker - lecithin:retinol acyltransferase (LRAT) - and may supplement or replace the pathologists evaluation.   IHC and ICC on tissues or cells would be the preferred format for the assay, but RT-PCR may be used to measure mRNA levels. Development of monoclonal antibodies against LRAT is in process.   In studies to date, the presence and absence of LRAT has shown perfect correlation with noncancerous and cancerous conditions respectively. Loss of LRAT is an early event in carcinogenesis. Studies are underway to determine whether the assay may be used to stage the disease, as well as to identify the mechanisms by which LRAT production is reduced in cancerous cells.