Aptamer-Based Probe for the Direct Detection of MMP-9 in Urine for Ureteropelvic Junction Obstruction in Infants
Mentor 1
Shama Mirza
Location
Union Wisconsin Room
Start Date
27-4-2018 1:00 PM
Description
Ureteropelvic Junction Obstruction (UPJO) is a blockage of the kidneys and is the major cause of kidney failure in infants, affecting about 1 in 1,500 newborns. Early diagnosis and treatment of UJPO have been proven to increase prognosis and kidney function. The disease is currently diagnosed using various radiological methods including diuretic ultrasonography, radioisotope renography, and excretory urography. These methods may require the use of injection of dye or radioisotope material which carry the risk of exposing patients to high levels of radiation. In addition, the radiological methods are not cost effective and are severely time consuming. Other methods of diagnosis of the disease may require an excisional biopsy, which is invasive to the patient and therefore is often rejected, further hindering early diagnosis. For this reason, new studies surrounding simple, time and cost effective, noninvasive detection through the use of biomarkers are of great interest. Biomarkers provide a possibility for developing such an assay for the detection of a protein linked to a disease. One of the five important biomarkers associated with UPJO is metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9), a protein belonging to the MMP family that utilizes zinc-dependent hydrolases in the degradation of extracellular matrix. It is the elevated level of MMP-9 in patient’s urine samples that can indicate a positive diagnosis for UPJO. RNA molecules known as aptamers bind to MMP-9 in the protein’s presence, and are therefore used in this project for the detection of the active protein in urine. Aptamers provide a clinical advantage in the detection of MMP-9 because 1) they can be easily modified for practical use, 2) can be directly used in untreated urine, and 3) can be tagged for fluorescence measurements. The project is currently in the stage of optimization and uses Mass Spectrometry in parallel, which although is not cost-effective, is a sensitive analytical method that is used for the purpose of method validation. The ultimate aim of the project is to use aptamers in an assay for the detection of MMP-9 to provide a more sensitive, cost effective, operable, and noninvasive method of diagnosis of UPJO in a clinical setting.
Aptamer-Based Probe for the Direct Detection of MMP-9 in Urine for Ureteropelvic Junction Obstruction in Infants
Union Wisconsin Room
Ureteropelvic Junction Obstruction (UPJO) is a blockage of the kidneys and is the major cause of kidney failure in infants, affecting about 1 in 1,500 newborns. Early diagnosis and treatment of UJPO have been proven to increase prognosis and kidney function. The disease is currently diagnosed using various radiological methods including diuretic ultrasonography, radioisotope renography, and excretory urography. These methods may require the use of injection of dye or radioisotope material which carry the risk of exposing patients to high levels of radiation. In addition, the radiological methods are not cost effective and are severely time consuming. Other methods of diagnosis of the disease may require an excisional biopsy, which is invasive to the patient and therefore is often rejected, further hindering early diagnosis. For this reason, new studies surrounding simple, time and cost effective, noninvasive detection through the use of biomarkers are of great interest. Biomarkers provide a possibility for developing such an assay for the detection of a protein linked to a disease. One of the five important biomarkers associated with UPJO is metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9), a protein belonging to the MMP family that utilizes zinc-dependent hydrolases in the degradation of extracellular matrix. It is the elevated level of MMP-9 in patient’s urine samples that can indicate a positive diagnosis for UPJO. RNA molecules known as aptamers bind to MMP-9 in the protein’s presence, and are therefore used in this project for the detection of the active protein in urine. Aptamers provide a clinical advantage in the detection of MMP-9 because 1) they can be easily modified for practical use, 2) can be directly used in untreated urine, and 3) can be tagged for fluorescence measurements. The project is currently in the stage of optimization and uses Mass Spectrometry in parallel, which although is not cost-effective, is a sensitive analytical method that is used for the purpose of method validation. The ultimate aim of the project is to use aptamers in an assay for the detection of MMP-9 to provide a more sensitive, cost effective, operable, and noninvasive method of diagnosis of UPJO in a clinical setting.
