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Quantitation of the extracellular domain of epidermal growth factor receptor in the plasma of dioxin‐exposed individuals
Author(s) -
Smith Steven,
Schecter Arnold,
Papke Olaf,
Do Tamara,
Coulibaly Drissa,
BrandtRauf Paul
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-0274(199807)34:1<1::aid-ajim1>3.0.co;2-1
Subject(s) - medicine , extracellular , epidermal growth factor receptor , epidermal growth factor , receptor , endocrinology , microbiology and biotechnology , toxicology , biology
Animal models suggest that dioxins have a negative effect on the level of expression of the epidermal growth factor receptor in cells. In vivo the level of expression in tissue of the epidermal growth factor receptor can be monitored by assaying for the extracellular domain in blood using an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. We have determined the levels of the extracellular domain of the epidermal growth factor receptor in the plasma of 30 individuals: 10 with high blood dioxin levels (TEQ range = 318–673 ppt), 10 with medium blood dioxin levels (TEQ range = 16–60 ppt), and 10 with low background blood dioxin levels (TEQ range = 3–10 ppt). The levels of the epidermal growth factor receptor extracellular domain were lower in the high blood dioxin group (mean ± SD = 45 ± 26 fmol/ml) and the medium blood dioxin group (mean ± SD = 41 ± 23 fmol/ml) compared with the low blood dioxin group (mean ± SD = 73 ± 43 fmol/ml). These results suggest that the extracellular domain of the epidermal growth factor receptor may be a marker of the biological effect of dioxin exposure. Am. J. Ind. Med. 34:1–5, 1998. © 1998 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.