A team of researchers from
Intrinsic Bioprobes Inc. has reported on a novel
quantitative mass spectrometry immunoassay for the detection
of bioactive B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), in an article
published online on Oct. 14 in the journal of Circulation:
Heart Failure. In collaboration with colleagues from Scios
Inc. in Fremont, Christ Hospital in Cincinnati, and
Medivation Inc. in San Francisco, the team discovered very
low concentration of bioactive BNP in plasma obtained from
patients with heart failure, and presented direct structural
evidence for several proteolytically degraded forms of BNP
in these patients.
"Commercially available assays for immunoreactive BNP do not
reflect the bioactivity of the natriuretic peptide system,
since they measure both unprocessed, inactive proBNP and
mature BNP 1-32," says Eric Niederkofler, PhD, the principal
investigator from Intrinsic Bioprobes. BNP is synthesized as
a 108 amino acid propeptide and proteolytically processed to
release an inactive 76 amino acid N-terminal fragment and
bioactive mature BNP 1-32 into the bloodstream. "This is the
first assay capable of detecting and quantifying BNP 1-32
alone. Furthermore, the assay allowed us to study the
molecular complexity of BNP degradation, revealing rapid in
vitro degradation of BNP 1-32, and necessitating certain
preservation protocol during blood collection and subsequent
sample handling," adds Niederkofler.
"This work is going to add greater clarity to how clinicians
and researchers approach natriuretic peptides and heart
failure," says Dr. Roger Mills, from Ortho McNeil Jannsen
Scientific Affairs. "The results may provide an explanation
for the 'natriuretic paradox' of increased natriuretic
hormone levels with blunted effects in heart failure
patients."
Intrinsic Bioprobes Inc. is a privately held Biotechnology
Company focused on developing mass spectrometry-based assays
and platforms for rapid and sensitive protein biomarker
analysis. The company's proprietary technologies consist of
Mass Spectrometric Immunoassay (MSIA), a high-performance
immunoassay combining micro-scale immunoaffinity capture and
mass spectrometry for high throughput analysis of proteins
from complex biological matrices, and Bioreactive Mass
Spectrometer Probes (BRP), devices for rapid, sensitive and
accurate protein characterization. These root technologies
are incorporated into the MASSAY System, a high throughput
mass spectrometry platform for rapid proteome analysis. For
more information about Intrinsic Bioprobes Inc., please
visit intrinsicbio.
Source:
Monte Cain,
Intrinsic Bioprobes Inc.