ABSTRACT
The application of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in the screening and diagnosis of prostate cancer (PCa) has improved the clinical management of PCa patients.However,the PSA assay has been faced with criticism due to its potential association with over-diagnosis and subsequent overtreatment of indolent patients.Matrix metalloproteinase-26 (MMP26) is a member of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and has been reported to be highly expressed in many cancers.This investigation evaluated the potential of serum MMP26 as a biomarker for PCa.The level of serum MMP26 was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in 160 subjects including PCa group (n=80),benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) group (n=40) and control group (n=40).Furthermore,we evaluated the expression of MMP26 in tissues by immunohistochemistry.The results showed the serum MMP26 levels were significantly higher in PCa group than in BPH group and control group.Similarly,the MMP26 protein was positive in PCa tissues and negative in BPH tissues and control tissues.In conclusion,these results suggested MMP26 could be used as a potential serum biomarker in the diagnosis of PCa.
ABSTRACT
BmPLV-Z is the abbreviation for Bombyx mori parvo-like virus (China isolate). This is a novel virus with two single-stranded linear DNA molecules, viz., VD1 (6543 bp) and VD2 (6022 bp), which are encapsidated respectively into separate virions. Analysis of the deduced amino acid sequence of VD1-ORF4 indicated the existence of a putative DNA-polymerase with exonuclease activity, possibly involved in the replication of BmPLV-Z. In the present study, a recombinant baculovirus was constructed to express the full length of the protein encoded by the VD1-ORF4 gene (3318 bp). In addition, a 2163-bp fragment amplified from the very same gene was cloned into prokaryotic expression vector pET-30a and expressed in E.coli Rosetta 2 (DE3) pLysS. The expressed fusion protein was employed to immunize New Zealand white rabbits for the production of an antiserum, afterwards used for examining the expression of the protein encoded by VD1-ORF4 gene in Sf-9 cells infected with recombinant baculovirus. Western blot analysis of extracts from thus cells infected revealed a specific band of about 120 kDa, thereby indicating that the full length protein encoded by the VD1-ORF4 gene had been successfully and stably expressed in Sf-9 cells.