Receptor-influenced protein studied in breast cancer using affinity chromatography

Scientists at the Czech Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry have used affinity chromatography to assess levels of glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) in breast cancer patients, proteins known to inversely correlate with the oestrogen receptor.

Their studies focused on changes in expression of GSTs, which may be brought about by modified oestrogen receptor levels through the two substances' negative correlation with one another.

Affinity chromatography was used to separate glutathione-binding proteins from cell lines obtained in samples of breast tissue.

Meanwhile, two-dimensional electrophoresis was also used to compare the phenotypes of the cell lines.

"Our results confirmed the applicability of targeted affinity chromatography to proteome profiling and allowed us to characterise the phenotypes of four breast cancer cell lines," the researchers write in BMC Cancer 2010.

The electrophoresis revealed low correlation coefficients between cells of different types, indicating dissimilarity between the lines being examined, they add.