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EagleBio Spotlight: BNP

What
is BNP?

BNP stands for Brain natriuretic peptide or otherwise
known as B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and is produced from a preprohormone
precursor. BNP was named after it was originally identified in extracts of
porcine brain, hence brain natriuretic peptide.
Even though in humans, this peptide is produced mainly in the cardiac
ventricles its name remains the same. Following cardiac hemodynamic stress,
both atrial natriutetic peptide (ANP) and BNP are secreted from the heart (primarily produced by atrial and
ventricular cardiomyocytes). BNP is mainly expressed by ventricular myocardium
in response to volume overload and increased filling pressure. BNP
may be only activated after a prolonged period of volume overload and thus
acting like a backup hormone in response to heart stress.

The release of BNP into the blood stream causes
dilation of the blood vessels, and thereby dilation of the arteries. This begins the process of the body’s natural
response to reduce blood pressure in the body, followed by blockage of adrenalin,
and finally the release of sodium and water into the urine (natriuresis). Healthy individuals typically exhibit the
highest BNP concentrations in the atria but BNP is shifted to the ventricles in
heart failure (HF). A high concentration of BNP in the bloodstream is
indicative of heart failure. In fact, BNP
is predictive of cardiac dysfunction, in particular left ventricular
dysfunction, and is a useful marker of future outcomes in patients with acute
coronary syndromes and congestive heart failure.

Biochemical structure of BNP:

BNP is produced as a 108 amino acid precursor protein
which is cleaved into a biologically active 32 amino acid carboxyl-terminal
fragment and a 76 amino acid amino- terminal fragment.

Conserved residues are shaded and the line
within the ring represents the disulfide bond.

The N-terminal peptide comprising amino acids 1-76 is further degraded proteolytically and thus BNP fragments in the circulation are very heterogeneous. There are a few different circulating forms of BNP such as BNP-32 (77-108), a high molecular weight BNP and and the NT-proBNP (1-76).

The BNP fragment (Nt-proBNP 8-29) is the preferred analyte for representation of BNP status for a few reasons. BNP Fragment is a stable molecule, has a long half-life and it circulates in high concentrations.

Why Measure BNP?

BNP has a key role in cardiovascular homeostasis with biological actions including natriuresis, diuresis, vasorelaxation, and inhibition of renin and aldosterone secretion. Because of its broad range of functions in the body, measuring this analyte can be used for studying and/or monitoring the diseases/conditions below.

Diseases/conditions associated with elevated BNP levels:

Diabetes and
Obesity
Renal Disease/Renal
dysfunction
Hypertension
Pneumonia
Asthma
attacks
Recent
heart attack
Heart
failure/Cardiac impairment
Cardiomyopathy
Sepsis
Sleep
apnea

References

Related Resources Citing EagleBio Kits:

Stanek, B. et al. “Prognostic evaluation of neurohumoral plasma levels before and during beta-blocker therapy in advanced left ventricular dysfunction” Journal of American Cardiology 2001; 38: 436-442.

Related Kits:

BNP Fragment (Nt-proBNP 8-29) ELISA Assay Kit

proANP ELISA Assay Kit

NT-proCNP ELISA Assay Kit

EagleBio Spotlight: ANP

EagleBio Spotlight: CNP

Interesting Study Highlighting Eagle Biosciences’ BNP Fragment ELISA Assay Kit

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EagleBio’s Shikari Anti-Drug Antibody Kit Publications

by Eagle Biosciences

EagleBio is pleased to share a list below of publications referencing use of our Shikari Kits from Matriks Biotek. Our Shikari Kits are esoteric assays and are not only the gold standard of anti-drug antibody kits world worldwide but are also incredibly user friendly.

Click the links below for further details.

Publications:

Adisen E, et al, Anti-infliximab antibody status and its relation to clinical response in psoriatic patients: A pilot study, Journal of Dermatology (2010)

Aydın C, Ataoğlu H., Demonstration of β-1,2 Mannan Structures Expressed on the Cell Wall of Candida albicans Yeast Form But Not on the Hyphal Form by Using Monoclonal Antibodies(2015).

Bodini G, et
al, Clinical relevance of Adalimumab serum concentration and Anti-Adalimumab
antibodies in patients with Chrohn’s disease during long-term follow up, Italy
(2012)

Bortlik M, et al, Impact of Anti-Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha Antibodies Administered to Pregnant Women With Inflammatory Bowel Disease on Long-term Outcome of Exposed Children

Bortlik
M, et al, Infliximab trough levels may predict sustained response to infliximab
in patients with Crohn’s disease, Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis (2012) Bortlik
M, et al, Infliximab trough levels may predict sustained response to infliximab
in patients with Crohn’s disease, Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis (2012)

Bortlik M et al. Pregnancy and newborn outcome of mothers with inflammatory bowel diseases exposed to anti-TNF-α therapy during pregnancy: three-center study, by using Matriks Biotek®, SHIKARI® Q-INFLIXI and SHIKARI® Q-ADA (infliximab and adalimumab)) ELISA Kits IBD Clinical and Research Centre, ISCARE, Charles University , Prague , Czech Republic

Chio C, et al, Etanercept Attenuates Traumatic
Brain Injury in Rats by Reducing Brain TNF-α Contents and by Stimulating Newly
Formed Neurogenesis, Mediators of Inflammation, (2013)

Erdemli Ö., et al, In vitro evaluation of effects of sustained anti-TNF release from MPEG-PCL-MPEG and PCL microspheres on human rheumatoid arthritis synoviocytes.

Gabriela Romero, et al, Poly(Lactide-co-Glycolide) Nanoparticles, Layer by Layer Engineered for the Sustainable Delivery of AntiTNF-α.

Grosen A., et al, Infliximab concentrations in the milk of nursing mothers with inflammatory bowel disease (2013).

Gutierrez A, et al, Genetic susceptibility to increased
bacterial translocation influences the response to biological therapy in
patients with Crohn’s disease, Gut (2013)

Jung Y, et al, Temperature-modulated noncovalent interaction controllable complex for the long-term delivery of etanercept to treat rheumatoid arthritis, (2013).

Kato S, et al, Elevated Serum IgE Prior to Acute Severe Infusion Reaction During Infliximab Maintenance Therapy in a Crohn’s Disease Patient, Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America (2011)

K ato S, et al, Elevated Serum IgE Prior to Acute Severe Infusion Reaction During Infliximab Maintenance Therapy in a Crohn’s Disease Patient, Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America (2011)

Krajcovicova A. et al., Delayed hypersensitivity reaction after initial dose of infliximab: a case report (2014)

Malickova K, et al, Phosphatidylserine-dependent
anti-prothrombin antibodies (aPS/PT) in infliximab-treated patients with
inflammatory bowel diseases, Autoimmun Highlights (2012)

Molnar T, et al, Importance of trough levels and antibody titers on the efficacy and safety of Infliximab therapy in inflammatory bowel disease, Hungary (2012)

Pallagi-Kunstár Éva et al., Utility of serum TNF-a, infliximab trough level, and antibody titers in inflammatory bowel disease (2014) Pallagi-Kunstár Éva et al., Utility of serum TNF-a, infliximab trough level, and antibody titers in inflammatory bowel disease (2014)

Takahashi H, et al, Plasma trough levels of adalimumab and infliximab in terms of clinical efficacy during the treatment of psoriasis, Journal of Dermatology (2012)

Seok Lee Y, et al, Efficacy of Early Infliximab Treatment for Pediatric Crohn’s Disease: A Three-year Follow-up, Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition (2012)

New Publication Presented at UEG For Therapeutic Drug Monitoring Using EagleBio’s SHIKARI® ELISA Kits from Matriks

Related Kits:

Shikari ELISA Assay Kits

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EagleBio Spotlight: Endostatin

by Eagle Biosciences

What is Endostatin?

Angiogenesis is the formation of new capillaries from preexisting blood vessels. Endostatin is a 20-kDa C-terminal fragment of collagen XVIII that plays a key role as an angiogenesis inhibitor and consists of 183-184 amino acid residues (its molecular weight is 20 kD). As a potent inhibitor of angiogenesis, endostatin has been found in recent studies to activate a series of signaling pathways thereby inducing endothelial cell apoptosis. It binds to numerous membrane proteins including integrins and heparin sulfate and this binding is further evidence of this biomarker’s involvement with multiple signaling pathways in regards to angiogenesis. In addition, other functions of endostatin in relation to cell death processes include roles in reducing cell migration, adhesion, and proliferation.

Endostatin is generated by proteoltyic cleavage by proteases or matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) (MMPs have a variety of actions influencing fibrinolysis and angiogenesis). It is localized in the vascular basement membrane zones in various organs. Following the proteolysis, once endostatin is formed it can either stay attached to basement membranes (immobilized) or be released into circulation (soluble). Research has demonstrated that both forms of endostatin have unique biological activities. These activities at the molecular level are still being studied but thus far, it has been discovered that endostatin in combination with angiogenic factors, have an integral role in endothelial response to tissue damage such as renal injury.

Reasons to Measure Endostatin

Endostatin is a vital component for angiogenesis which is necessary for numerous pathological functions, therefore it has been indicated in a vast variety of diseases and other medical conditions. Measuring endostatin can provide remarkable value for detecting and monitoring diseases/conditions, predicting disease risk, and offering a new target for multiple therapies in related areas of research.

Endostatin has been associated with many diseases such as:

Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)
Renal Microvascular Disease
Atherosclerosis
Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF)
Cancer

References:

Related Kits:

Endostatin ELISA

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Eagle Biosciences Launches Multispecies IGF-1 ELISA Assay Kit

by Eagle Biosciences

February 2015- Eagle Biosciences, Inc. is pleased to introduce a new Multispecies ELISA Assay kit. This assay was developed at IBT (Immunological and Biochemical
Testsystems GmbH) in Germany. IBT’s core business surrounds the production of
high quality products in the field of Endocrinology and other related areas of
research.

This kit is designed for the simple and very
sensitive determination of Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1). IGF-1 is also
known as somatomedin C, and is a polypeptide of 70 amino acids and is a growth factor
for a wide range of cell types. IGF-1 is associated with cancer, neuropathy,
stroke, growth/development, aging, malnutrition/malabsorption, hypothyroidism, obesity, liver
disease, kidney disease, diabetes mellitus complications, and chronic
inflammatory disease.

“This
ELISA kit has excellent specificity for multiple species such as human, porcine, bovine and guinea pig with results in under 4 hours.”
said Dan Keefe, President of Eagle. He continued, “This product certainly
offers a lot in terms of versatility and is an exceptional addition to our
Endocrine Assay Kit line.”

These
products are currently for research use only. Check out the links below, visit
the Eagle website, www.EagleBio.com, or call 866-411-8023 for full details.

Multispecies IGF-1 ELISA

Endocrine Assay Kits

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EagleBio Spotlight: Vitamin D

by Eagle Biosciences

Vitamin D is
a steroid hormone made up of a group of fat-soluble secosteroids responsible
for enhancing intestinal absorption of calcium, iron, phosphate, magnesium, and
zinc and involved in the regulation of homeostasis. Vitamin D exists in two
forms, specifically ergocalciferol (vitamin D2), and cholecalciferol (vitamin
D3).

Vitamin
D3 is formed in the skin after exposure to sunlight or ultraviolet light, and vitamin
D2 is acquired by irradiation of plants or plant materials or foods. Both D2
and D3 forms are not yet biologically active
and are bound by a protein called VDBP (vitamin D binding protein)
in the bloodstream. Subsequently, the bound form is metabolized in the liver
where a conversion occurs into storage forms (with limited biological activity)
of the vitamin: 25-OH vitamin D2 (calcidiol) and 25-OH vitamin D3 (calcitriol).
This metabolite has been found to be the predominant circulating from of
Vitamin D and had been recognized as an accurate indicator of an individual’s
vitamin D status.

Figure 1:
D2 and D3 Structures (Norman, A. et. al)

Reasons to Measure Vitamin D

Vitamin
D is not only important for bone health but can also play a role in the
development of several non-bone related diseases. There has much debate over the past 6 decades
with regards to of which form of vitamin D to measure and which best reflects
vitamin D status. Since both D2 and D3
are used for therapy, it is necessary to measure both circulating forms. The
only way to assess a person’s vitamin D status (vitamin D deficient, sufficient,
or intoxicated) is to measure their circulating level of 25-OH Vitamin D.

Vitamin
D deficiency has been associated with many diseases such as:

Rickets
Osteomalacia
Osteoporosis
Hyperparathyroidism
Multiple
Sclerosis
Cancers
Cardiovascular
diseases
Depression

References:

1. Lips, P. et al. “Vitamin D deficiency and secondary hyperparathyroidism in the elderly: consequences for bone loss and fractures and therapeutic implications” Endocrine Rev. 22 2001; 477–501.

2. Lips P. Vitamin D physiology. Prog Biophys Mol Biol 2006; 92: 4-8.

3. Mavroeidi, A et al. “Seasonal 25-hydroxyvitamin D changes in British postmenopausal women at 57 degrees N and 51 degrees N: a longitudinal study. J Steroid.” Biochem Mol Biol 2010; 121:459-461.

4. Macdonald, HM et al. “Sunlight and dietary contributions to the seasonal vitamin D status of cohorts of healthy postmenopausal women living at northerly latitudes: a major cause for concern?” Osteoporos Int 2010.

5. Norman, et. al. “From vitamin D to hormone D: fundamentals of the vitamin D endocrine system essential for good health1,2,3,4.” Am J Clin Nutr 2008; 88: 2 491S-499S.

6. Tsur, A. et al. “Effect of different dress style on vitamin D level in healthy young Orthodox and ultra-Orthodox students in Israel”. Osteoporos Int 2010; 26: 6.

7. Holick MF, Chen TC. “Vitamin D deficiency: a worldwide problem with health consequences”. Am J Clin Nutr 2008; 87: 1080-1086.

8. BW J Hollis Editiorial: “The Determination of circulating 25-Hydroxyvitamin D: No Easy Task” Clin Endocrinol Metab 2004; 89: (7):3149–3151.

9. Snellman, G. et al. “Determining Vitamin D Status: A Comparison between Commercially Available Assays.” PLoS One 2010; 13:5(7):e11555.

Related Kits:

Vitamin Assay Kits

Bone Metabolism Assay Kits

Related News:

Vitamin D Publications

10 Reasons to Keep Up with Your Vitamin D Levels

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EagleBio’s 25-OH Vitamin D ELISA: Product Highlights

by Eagle Biosciences

Eagle Biosciences’ Vitamin Assay Kit line offers an array of interesting and sensitive assays for different vitamin analytes and research needs. Our 25-OH Vitamin D ELISA is a top seller at Eagle Biosciences and continues to be an outstanding tool for researchers in the fields of bone metabolism, endocrinology, immunology, nutrition, and cancer research. It offers a variety of advantages over other competing kits and has been a proven leader in the market, recognized for its robustness, simplicity, and excellent specificity to both D2 and D3.

Why Measure 25-OH Vitamin D with EagleBio’s Kit?

1. Excellent specificity: 100% specificity to both vitamin D2 and D3 due to utilization of a new monoclonal antibody.
2. Quick and simple test results: < 3 hours, room temperature incubations.
3. Fully automatable assay
4. Improved analyte release: only one step without the use of toxic substances.
5. Excellent correlation with LC/MS methods (see below):

Calibrated with NIST standards (National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA), DEQAS (Vitamin D External Quality Assessment Scheme, UK) quality assessment data and in-house quality control sera.

Eagle Biosciences’ 25-OH Vitamin D ELISA Assay Kit

This assay blends the usability and convenience of
clinical assays with the pricing and sensitivity of a research assay.

Related Kits:

Vitamin Assay Kits

Bone Metabolism Assay Kits

Related News:

Interesting Study Reveals Possible Link Between Vitamin D and Autism

New Publications for Select Vitamin Assays Kits

10 Reasons to Keep Up with Your Vitamin D Levels

Learn more about Vitamin D at Eagle Biosciences Biomarker Spotlight page dedicated to Vitamin D here:

Vitamin D Biomarker Spotlight

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Interesting Study Highlighting Eagle Biosciences’ BNP Fragment ELISA Assay Kit

by Eagle Biosciences

A recent study was published in Stroke has sited using our BNP Fragment (Nt-proBNP 8-29) ELISA Assay Kit from Biomedica to determine if BNP(Brain natriuretic peptide) levels were associated with functional outcome after ischemic stroke. Researchers concluded that there was in fact a strong, reliable association with cardioembolic stroke as well as a prediction of functional outcome and mortality.

Check out the links below, visit the Eagle website, www.EagleBio.com, or call 866-411-8023 for full details.

Brain Natriuretic Peptide Predicts Functional Outcome in Ischemic Stroke

Rost NS et al., Stroke, Feb 2012; 43:441-445

Related Kits:

BNP Fragment (Nt-proBNP 8-29) ELISA Assay Kit

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$13,000 for Donating your Poop: 4 Reasons You Should Consider It

by Eagle Biosciences

Did you know that your poop could be profitable? $13,000 profitable? Well, according to a recent article, one Medford-based company is willing to pay people $250.00 each week for their stool samples. The company’s name is OpenBiome and they are focused on helping more than 500,000 individuals each year who suffer from C. difficile infections which cause symptoms such as severe diarrhea, nausea, loss of appetite, and in a large number of cases even death. Since antibiotics do not work for 1 in 5 of the infected individuals another type of treatment was developed, fecal transplantation.

OpenBiome’s campaign: Give a Sh!t is reaching out to residents in the Medford area asking for help to build up their Stool Donor Registry. Here are 4 reasons you should consider:

1. Helping Save Lives: your donation is helping treat thousands of patients

2. Make up to $250 per week: $40 per sample plus added bonuses

3. Earn prizes: win various competitions for largest donations

4. Free drinks: when you drop off your stool you get to help yourself to a beverage

Related News:

Ingestion of Stool…A Promising Therapy for C. difficle Infection

mage above from: www.jezebel.com

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January 2015: Eagle Biosciences Announces Launch of SAM and SAH ELISA Assay Kits

by Eagle Biosciences

Nashua, NH:
Eagle Biosciences is now offering two new kits, S-Adenosyl-L-Methionine (SAM) ELISA Assay Kit and S-Adenosyl-L-homocysteine (SAH) ELISA Assay Kit to the North American research market. S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) is a critical metabolite in most living organisms and is formed by a conversion of Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) and methionine, an amino acid with a sulfur methyl group after transsulfuration occurs. S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH) is created by the transfer of a methyl group away from SAM, is then further metabolized with the removal of adenosine and is converted into homocysteine (Hcy). SAM and SAH play a large part in the methionine cycle and have been recognized for important roles in Parkinson’s Disease, depression, liver disease, arthritis/joint pain, fibromyalgia, AIDS-related myelopathy, and atherosclerosis respectively.

Dan Keefe, President of Eagle Biosciences, is very excited about both of these kits.“These assays are coming at a perfect time as we continue to grow our neurobiology product line and I feel that they will compliment this assay grouping well. He continues, “They are developed and manufactured in the USA, simple to run, have short incubation times, and provide valuable results for assessing the functionality of the methionine cycle and monitoring their metabolic pathways.”

These products are currently for research use only. Check out the links below, visit the Eagle website, www.EagleBio.com,
or call 866-411-8023 for full details.

S-Adenosyl-L-Methionine (SAM) ELISA Assay Kit

S-Adenosyl-L-homocysteine (SAH) ELISA Assay Kit

Neurobiology Assay Kits

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Superbowl and the Flu: Why Superbowl Team Cities See Increase in Flu Mortality

by Eagle Biosciences

February 2, 2015- A recent Tulane University Study focused on influenza statistics and mortality in cities that send their teams to the Super Bowl. It was discovered that there was an 18% increase in deaths of individuals over 65 from influenza. Studies involved in this research revealed that this rise in influenza related deaths was due to increased socialization during the peak of the influenza season or in cases where the dominant strain is more lethal. Historically, studies have demonstrated that over 65 is one of the most vulnerable population and although people in this group may not change their behavior as a result of their team’s success, their chances of contact with an infected individual increases as the infection rate of the population increases as a whole. Read More

Tips and Strategies to Help Avoid Exposure:

1. Remind people to wash their hands

2. Avoid sharing drinks or food at parties during the height of influenza season

Related News:

2014 -2015 Flu Shots: May have Reduced Effectiveness But Still Provides Protection

*image from: www.keithclinic.com