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. 1996 Feb;174(2):609-11.
doi: 10.1016/s0002-9378(96)70435-0.

Nicked free beta-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin: a potential new marker for Down syndrome screening

S Rotmensch  1 , M Liberati, A Kardana, J A Copel, Z Ben-Rafael, L A Cole
Affiliations

Nicked free beta-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin: a potential new marker for Down syndrome screening

S Rotmensch et al. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1996 Feb.

Abstract

Objective: Our purpose was to investigate maternal serum levels of nicked free beta-subunit in normal and Down syndrome pregnancies.

Study design: Serum specimens were obtained from 64 karyotypically normal and 6 Down syndrome pregnancies before amniocentesis. Two immunoenzymometric assays for the beta- subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin were used to determine the level of free beta-subunits with peptide linkage breaks ("nicks") between residues 43 to 48.

Results: The mean level of nicked free beta-subunit in Down syndrome was 4.76 multiples of the median, which was significantly elevated compared with normal controls (1.07 multiples of the median, p<0.05). In 5 of 6 cases levels were > or = 2 multiples of the median, with a range of 1.96 to 15.43 multiples of the median, which was 2- to 3-fold higher than the regular free beta-subunit assay (mean level 1.53 multiples of the median, range 0.70 to 3.10 multiples of the median). In one case no nicked free-beta subunits were detectable.

Conclusion: Our preliminary data indicate that nicked free beta-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin might be a sensitive marker for Down syndrome screening.

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