ABSTRACT
There are increasing data on novel tumor markers such as gelatinase A, which play a key role in tissue invasion and metastasis. Since prostate cancer is one of the common malignancies, we designed a simple and applicable Indirect Hemagglutination (IHA) test for determination of total gelatinase A in serum samples. In this study, we have analyzed the circulating form of gelatinase A (MMP-2) in patients suffering from either benign prostate hyperplasia (n= 54) or prostate cancer (n= 26) and normal individuals as control (n= 26). The gelatinolytic activity was determined by zymography followed by densitometric analysis. PSA was quantified by using a standard ELISA technique. Correlation of densitometric analysis of gelatinase A activity and IHA titer was significant at 0.01 level (p< 0.01, r = 0.916). Correlation of PSA and IHA titer was significant at 0.01 level (p< 0.01, r = 0.746). Border line IHA titer in patients with prostate cancer was 512 +/- 1 tube titer, in benign prostate hyperplasia patients was 128 +/- 1 tube titer, and the titer in normal individuals was 8 +/- 1 tube titer. These results demonstrate that IHA compared to zymography may be a better and simpler procedure in monitoring and screening patients with prostate cancer.
