Establishment of a novel specific ELISA system for rat N- and C-ERC/mesothelin. Rat ERC/mesothelin in the body fluids of mice bearing mesothelioma

Our plain-English summary of Establishment of a novel specific ELISA system for rat N- and C-ERC/mesothelin. Rat ERC/mesothelin in the body fluids of mice bearing mesothelioma, by Y. Hagiwara, Y. Hamada, M. Kuwahara, et al (Cancer Science, 2008).

The study

• Authors: Y. Hagiwara, Y. Hamada, M. Kuwahara, M. Maeda, T. Segawa, K. Ishikawa, O. Hino
• Journal: Cancer Science
• Published: 2008;99(4):666-70
• Cited by: 25 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

Mesothelioma is a type of malignant tumor that most commonly arises from the pleural or peritoneal membrane and is usually associated with previous exposure to asbestos. In humans, ERC/mesothelin is expressed on the normal mesothelium and in some cancers such as mesothelioma or ovarian carcinoma. Recently, several enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) systems for ERC/mesothelin have been developed, the reported usefulness of which has been assessed and demonstrated as a diagnostic tool. However, the basic roles or physiological functions of, and relationship between, ERC/mesothelin and asbestos exposure-mediated carcinogenesis remain to be resolved. In order to elucidate the precise mechanism, animal models of mesothelioma are desperately needed. In this study, we consider the development of a novel specific ELISA system for not only rat N-ERC/mesothelin but also C-ERC/mesothelin, and the first data on the presence of rat ERC/mesothelin in the body fluids of rat malignant mesothelioma-bearing nude mice. The transplanted mice have revealed the higher concentrations of rat N-ERC/mesothelin in the blood and ascites than C-ERC/mesothelin. We hope these novel ELISA systems are useful in the rat model system to clarify the mechanism of asbestos-induced carcinogenesis and to develop new effective drugs for mesothelioma.

In plain English

In this laboratory study, the authors developed two tests (ELISA systems) to measure two fragments of the rat protein ERC/mesothelin, N-ERC and C-ERC. The N-ERC test measured between 0.078 and 5.0 ng/mL and the C-ERC test between 0.1 and 7.0 ng/mL. They injected rat mesothelioma cells (cell line MeET-4) or Yoshida sarcoma cells into female nude mice. The number of mice was not reported, and no asbestos was used. In mice given MeET-4 cells into the abdomen, abdominal fluid (ascites) contained 727.5 to 2680.5 ng/mL of N-ERC and 108 to 251.5 ng/mL of C-ERC. Their serum contained 511.2 to 1075.8 ng/mL of N-ERC and 32.7 to 60.8 ng/mL of C-ERC. Serum from mice given MeET-4 cells under the skin had lower levels. Neither fragment was detected in ascites or serum of mice given Yoshida sarcoma cells. Where ERC/mesothelin was detected, N-ERC was higher than C-ERC in almost all cases. The authors concluded that N-ERC/mesothelin might be a better marker than C-ERC/mesothelin. They also concluded that the system should be useful for studying mesothelioma and screening drugs.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Laboratory study developing two sandwich ELISA tests for rat ERC/mesothelin, plus an animal experiment in which tumor cells were transplanted into mice (xenograft model)
• Who was studied: Female Balb/c nude mice aged 6 to 8 weeks, from Charles River Laboratories, Kanagawa, Japan. The number of mice was not reported. The tests were also applied to cultured cell lines.
• Exposure: Transplantation of a rat mesothelioma cell line (MeET-4) or Yoshida sarcoma (YS) cells, 1 × 10^7 cells in 0.5 mL. Body fluids were collected 8 and 12 days later. No asbestos exposure was part of this study.
• Main results:
  • The new N-ERC/mesothelin test measured between 0.078 and 5.0 ng/mL; the C-ERC/mesothelin test measured between 0.1 and 7.0 ng/mL
  • In cell culture, ERC/mesothelin levels rose as MeET-4 mesothelioma cells grew; neither fragment was detected from Yoshida sarcoma cells
  • Ascites of mice given MeET-4 cells into the abdomen: 727.5 to 2680.5 ng/mL of N-ERC/mesothelin and 108 to 251.5 ng/mL of C-ERC/mesothelin
  • Serum of mice given MeET-4 cells into the abdomen: 511.2 to 1075.8 ng/mL of N-ERC/mesothelin and 32.7 to 60.8 ng/mL of C-ERC/mesothelin
  • Serum of mice given MeET-4 cells under the skin (subcutaneously): 357.6 to 605.8 ng/mL of N-ERC/mesothelin and 6.3 to 10.4 ng/mL of C-ERC/mesothelin, which the authors described as low
  • Neither fragment was detected in ascites or serum of mice given Yoshida sarcoma cells
  • Where ERC/mesothelin was detected, N-ERC was higher than C-ERC in almost all cases
  • On the cell surface, C-ERC/mesothelin was detected but N-ERC/mesothelin was not
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that N-ERC/mesothelin might be a better marker than C-ERC/mesothelin. They also concluded that the system should be a useful tool for studying the role of ERC/mesothelin in mesothelioma and for screening and evaluating anti-mesothelioma drugs.

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Mesothelioma.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Mesothelin, Mesothelioma, Mesothelium, Carcinoma, Asbestos Exposure, Carcinogenesis, Malignant Mesothelioma, Ascites.

Related studies

• Sensitive and specific new enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for N-ERC/mesothelin increases its potential as a useful serum tumor marker for mesothelioma — K. Shiomi, Y. Hagiwara, et al. (2008)
• Antitumor activity of anti-C-ERC/mesothelin monoclonal antibody in vivo — K. Inami, M. Abe, et al. (2010)
• Newly established ELISA for N-ERC/mesothelin improves diagnostic accuracy in patients with suspected pleural mesothelioma — T. Sato, Y. Suzuki, et al. (2014)
• Megakaryocyte potentiating factor as a tumor marker of malignant pleural mesothelioma: evaluation in comparison with mesothelin — K. Iwahori, T. Osaki, et al. (2008)
• Soluble mesothelin related peptides (SMRP) and osteopontin as protein biomarkers for malignant mesothelioma: analytical validation of ELISA based assays and characterization at mRNA and protein levels — A.J. Rai, R.M. Flores, et al. (2010)
• Mesothelin family proteins and diagnosis of mesothelioma: analytical evaluation of an automated immunoassay and preliminary clinical results — F. Di Serio, A. Fontana, et al. (2007)

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