An increased level of the Concanavalin A – positive IgG in the serum of patients with gastric cancer as evaluated by a lectin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (LELISA)
Abstract:
All human immunoglobulins are glycosylated. The changes in IgG glycosylation are associated with autoimmune disorders and pregnancy. Little is known about IgG glycosylation in patients with cancer. A lectin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (LELISA) based method was developed for measuring the Concanavalin A – positive IgG in the serum. Its rationale is as follows: PtA was used as a capture agent for binding IgG via the Fc fragment. Then IgG and the ConA-positive glycans on the IgG were detected using an anti-human IgG-F(ab)2 alkaline phosphatase conjugate or biotinylated ConA, respectively. The index ConA binding/total IgG was calculated. Serum samples from patients with gastric carcinoma (n=53) and healthy blood transfusion donors (n=24) were analysed. The protein A-agarose and ConA-sepharose affinity chromatography was applied to the purification of IgG, ConA-positive IgG, and Fab fragments. The LELISA, SDS-PAGE and Western blot methods were used to analyse the purified IgG and Fab fragments. A significantly higher ConA binding to IgG was found in patients with cancer compared to that of blood donors (ConA index = 1.07±0.08 (95% CI) and 0.81±0.08, respectively; P=0.0002). In donors, a significant correlation between the level of IgG bound to PtA and the ConA binding (r=0.85; p