Facts:
The project is led by researcher and senior lecturer Liya Wang
There is currently no external funding for this project
Serum TK1 as a biomarker for veterinary cancer management
Last changed: 14 October 2024
Cancer is the primary cause of death in older animals such as dogs. The prevalence of cancer is high particularly in bitches. To develop a blood test, which can aid cancer diagnosis and prognosis in veterinary medicine, we have studied TK1 from dog, cat and horse with the aim to evaluate if serum TK1 is a useful biomarker for cancer diagnosis.
Background and purpose
Cancer is the primary cause of death in older animals such as dogs. The prevalence of cancer is high particularly in bitches with an annual incidence of 272 per 100,000 female dogs and 99 in male dogs. To develop a blood test, which can aid cancer diagnosis and prognosis in veterinary medicine, we have studied TK1 from dog, cat and horse with the aim to evaluate if serum TK1 is a useful biomarker for cancer diagnosis.
The expression of Thymidine kinase 1 (TK1) is tightly regulated during the cell cycle. In cancer cells the expression of TK1 is up-regulated and cell-cycle dependent regulation of TK1 is lost, and therefore excess TK1 is excreted to the blood. Therefore, TK1 can be detected in serum from cancer patients.
Progress in the project
We have shown that serum TK1 activity/protein is significantly elevated in dog, cat and horse with malignant diseases, and measurement of serum TK activity or protein levels in patients with suspected cancerous disease could aid in diagnosis and treatment monitoring.
Development of an ELISA assay for serum TK1 measurement that could be used in veterinary clinics is ongoing using poly- or monoclonal anti-TK1 antibodies. We are collaborating with Professor Henrik Rönnberg, and VMD Sara Saellström, at the Department of Clinical Science, SLU, a research group in Switzerland, and Alertix Veterinary diagnostic AB on this project.