The present studies were carried out to evaluate the possible association between the presence of the fetuin-mineral complex in serum and vitamin D-induced artery calcification. The first experiment shows that there is a fetuin-mineral complex in the blood of rats in which extensive calcification of the artery media has been induced by treatment with vitamin D for 96 h, and that there is no det...

High maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) levels during pregnancy may be instrumental in reducing the subsequent risk of breast cancer. This hypothesis was tested in a nested case-control study using stored frozen sera accrued between 1959 and 1966 by the University of California at Berkeley Child Health and Development Studies (CHDS) group from a cohort of pregnant women. Cases with histolog...

There are several types of immunological approaches to the diagnosis of cancer. The search for circulating tumor associated antigens has been used most extensively. Carcinoembryonic antigen (C EA ) and alpha-fetoprotein are the best studied examples. In addition, several hormones and other proteins have shown some association with the neoplastic state. Other immunodiagnostic approaches include ...

Possible differences in the mechanisms of increased alpha1-fetoprotein (AFP) production following carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) intoxication and partial hepatectomy were studied with 5-week-old rats at the time of sacrifice. The maximum level of serum AFP reached in 4 days after a single dose of CCl4 was much higher than that after partial hepatectomy, although the incorporation of [3H]thymidine ...

Purpose Increasing chronological age is a risk factor for many types of cancer including colorectal. An understanding of the biology of ageing and factors which regulate it may provide insight into cancer pathogenesis. The role of telomere biology in both the cancer and ageing process could prove useful in this regard.

AFP-producing (hepatoid differentiation) gastric cancer (GC) initially reported in 1970 plays an important role in the field of gastrology, which should be distinguished from other solid-type GCs owing to their different biological behavior. This review article aims to summarize the literature related to the role of AFP in gastric cancer and to unveil the underlying mechanism by which AFP-produ...

INTRODUCTION The ageing population raises concerns about the adequacy of aggressive surgical procedures and their outcomes. The treatment of the elderly with hepatocellular carcinoma is one of the diseases that involve complicated management decisions. We set out to compare the results between an older and younger patient cohort with this disease are compared. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of ...

Fetuins are serum proteins with diverse functions including the regulation of osteogenesis and inhibition of unwanted mineralization. Besides the alpha2-Heremans and Schmid glycoprotein/fetuin-A, the recently identified fetuin-B is a second member of the fetuin family [Olivier, Soury, Risler, Smih, Schneider, Lochner, Jouzeau, Fey and Salier (1999) Genomics 57, 352-364; Olivier, Soury, Ruminy, ...

Sensitive measurement of biomarkers is of great importance in biomedical research, disease monitoring, and clinical diagnosis. In particular, much attention has been recently directed to rapid and sensitive diagnostics in the point-of-care (POC) settings. For instance, cardiac biomarkers and diabetes biomarkers have been detected with POC devices that allow onthe-spot diagnosis, thereby facilit...