Anti-FIGF monoclonal antibody, clone FQS9568

A method to measure free form of insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) in human plasma using octadecylsilyl silica (Sep-Pak C-18) cartridge has been developed. IGF-I was adsorbed by Sep-Pak C18 cartridge and eluted with 75% ethanol-0.01 M HCl. Labeled and non-labeled IGF-I were recovered in yields 92.5 +/- 2.1% (Mean +/- SEM) and 94.4 +/- 6.3% after adsorption to and elution from the Sep-Pak, respectively. When EDTA plasma was applied to the Sep-Pak, less than 5% of total IGF-I was recovered in the eluate. However, when acid-ethanol extracted plasma was applied to the Sep-Pak, IGF-I was recovered in yields greater than 75% of total IGF-I. When the Sep-Pak eluate was gel filtered, 88.4 +/- 4.0% of immunoreactive IGF-I eluted in the same fraction as synthetic IGF-I did, but the fraction passed through the Sep-Pak was observed as a high molecular weight form (bound form) of IGF-I. These data indicate that this Sep-Pak method does not extract all of the IGF-I in plasma, but extracts mainly the free form IGF-I. Using this method, IGF-I values of free form (fIGF-I) in EDTA plasma were measured. The fIGF-I values in normal adults, patients with acromegaly, and patients with growth hormone (GH)-deficiency were 2.4 +/- 0.1, 13.8 +/- 1.6, and 1.1 +/- 0.1 ng/ml, respectively. Plasma fIGF-I and fIGF-I% of pregnant women were elevated during the second and the third trimester of pregnancy, and total IGF-I levels in cord blood were low, but flGF-I% was elevated in comparison with normal adults. These data suggest that measurement of free form of IGF-I in plasma would be useful in order to study the pathophysiological role of IGF-I in various clinical conditions.

Background Invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) comprises approximately similar to 10-20% of breast cancers. In general, multifocal/multicentric (MF/MC) breast cancer has been associated with an increased rate of regional lymph node metastases. Tumor heterogeneity between foci represents a largely unstudied source of genomic variation in those rare patients with MF/MC ILC. Methods We characterized gene expression and copy number in 2 or more foci from 11 patients with MF/MC ILC (all ER+, HER2-) and adjacent normal tissue. RNA and DNA were extracted from 3x1.5mm cores from all foci. Gene expression (730 genes) and copy number (80 genes) were measured using Nanostring PanCancer and Cancer CNV panels. Linear mixed models were employed to compare expression in tumor versus normal samples from the same patient, and to assess heterogeneity (variability) in expression among multiple ILC within an individual. Results 35 and 34 genes were upregulated (FC>2) and down-regulated (FC<0.5) respectively in ILC tumor relative to adjacent normal tissue, q<0.05. 9/34 down-regulated genes (FIGF, RELN, PROM1, SFRP1, MMP7, NTRK2, LAMB3, SPRY2, KIT) had changes larger than CDH1, a hallmark of ILC. Copy number changes in these patients were relatively few but consistent across foci within each patient. Amplification of three genes (CCND1, FADD, ORAOV1) at 11q13.3 was present in 2/11 patients in both foci. We observed significant evidence of within-patient between-foci variability (heterogeneity) in gene expression for 466 genes (p<0.05 with FDR 8%), including CDH1, FIGF, RELN, SFRP1, MMP7, NTRK2, LAMB3, SPRY2 and KIT. Conclusions There was substantial variation in gene expression between ILC foci within patients, including known markers of ILC, suggesting an additional level of complexity that should be addressed.