Analytical performance of thrombospondin-1 and cathepsin D immunoassays part of a novel CE-IVD marked test as an aid in the diagnosis of prostate cancer

PLoS One. 2020 May 18;15(5):e0233442. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0233442. eCollection 2020.

Abstract

The Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test suffers from low specificity for the diagnosis of Prostate Cancer (PCa). We originally discovered two cancer-related proteins thrombospondin-1 (THBS1) and cathepsin D (CTSD) using a mass-spectrometry-based proteomics approach. The two serum proteins were shown to improve the diagnosis of high-grade PCa. Thus, we developed quantitative ELISAs for the determination of their concentration in human serum. Here we report their analytical performance in terms of limit of detection, specificity, precision, linearity and interferences, which were determined based on CLSI guidelines. Further, we investigated the influence of pre-analytical factors on concentration measurements. For this, blood from 4-6 donors was collected in different tubes and stored at room temperature for different times prior to centrifugation at different centrifugal forces and temperatures. Stability of THBS1 and CTSD under different storage temperatures was also evaluated. Our results show that the assays are specific, linear and sensitive enough to allow measurement of clinical samples. Precision in terms of repeatability and total within-laboratory coefficient of variation (CV) are 5.5% and 8.1% for THBS1 and 4.3% and 7.2% for CTSD, respectively. Relative laboratory-to-laboratory differences were -6.3% for THBS1 and -3% for CTSD. Both THBS1 and CTSD were stable in serum samples, with 80-120% recoveries of concentrations across donors, sample preparation and storage. In conclusion, the ELISAs as part of the novel commercial in vitro diagnostic test Proclarix are suitable for the use in clinical practice. THBS1 and CTSD can be accurately measured for their intended use independent of the lot and laboratory when conditions consistent with routine practice for PSA sampling and storage are used.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Blood Specimen Collection / methods
  • Cathepsin D / blood*
  • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Observer Variation
  • Prostate-Specific Antigen / blood
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / blood
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / diagnosis*
  • Protein Stability
  • Proteomics / methods
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Thrombospondin 1 / blood*

Substances

  • Thrombospondin 1
  • Prostate-Specific Antigen
  • Cathepsin D

Grants and funding

Funding for this work was provided by Proteomedix: https://www.proteomedix.com. Authors AM, AA, AW, RH, MR, BG, RS are employed by Proteomedix and hold stock options, while RS holds founder shares of Proteomedix. TK and SW are providing paid statistical consultancy to Proteomedix, and are employed by ACOMED Statistik (https://www.acomed-statistik.de/statistics/statistical-services.html). The funders provided support in the form of salaries for authors AM, AA, AW, RH, MR, BG, RS, consulting fees to TK and SW and research materials, but did not have any additional role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The specific roles of these authors are articulated in the ‘author contributions’ section.