Tumor-Specific Urinary MMP Fingerprinting: Identification of High Molecular Weight Urinary MMP Species

摘要

PurposeWe have previously reported that MMP-2, MMP-9 and the complex MMP-9/NGAL can be detected in urine of patients with a variety of cancers including prostate and bladder carcinoma. In addition, we also detected several unidentified urinary gelatinase activities with molecular weights >125kDa. The objective of the current study was to identify these high molecular weight (HMW) species, determine their potential as predictors of disease status and ask whether a tumor-specific pattern existed based on urinary MMP (uMMP) analysis.