IMMUNOASSAYS FOR ALPHAFETOPROTEIN: FETAL DVMT & TUMOR GROWTH

甲胎蛋白（AFP）是一种胎儿糖蛋白， 与人类胎儿的正常生长有关，就像癌性肿瘤一样。 三十多年来，AFP一直被用作肿瘤标志物， 和作为出生缺陷筛查剂。 最近，Mizeenski和 同事们已经鉴定出一种AFP， 生长抑制位点（GIS）暴露。 这部分变性， AFP的熔融球形式可能在以下方面发挥重要作用： 调节胎儿发育和肿瘤生长。 一种可以 快速定量地测量这种改变的AFP形式可能是一种 有价值的诊断工具 该项目的目标是开发一个 灵敏和定量测定两种形式的AFT使用 基于微球的流式细胞术。

Alphafetoprotein (AFP) is a fetal glycoprotein that is associated with the normal growth of the human fetus as with cancerous tumors. For more than three decades, AFP has been used as both a tumor marker and as a birth defect screening agent. More recently, Mizejewski and colleagues have identified a form of AFP in which a normally hidden, growth inhibitory site (GIS) is exposed. This partially denatured, molten glubule form of AFP is likely to play an important role in regulating fetal development and tumor growth. An assay that could rapidly and quantitatively measure this altered form of AFP could be a valuable diagnostic tool. The goal of this project is to develop a sensitive and quantitative assay for the two forms of AFT using microsphere-based flow cytometry.