Titin N-Fragment ELISA

Titin: Molecule of the month

Key facts about Titin[2]

• Named after the giant god, Titan, from Greek mythology.
• Discovered in 1976 by Maruyama and colleagues.
• Largest protein with 3.0-3,7 MDa.
• Located in the muscle sarcomere and interconnects the contraction of actin-containing thin filaments and myosin-containing thick filaments.
• Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)[3] ALS is a neurodegenerative disorder, which results in rapid neuron loss and causes systemic atrophy of skeletal muscles and decline of motor function. The change of nerve cells and muscle cells is depicted in Figure 2 below.

  ALS in numbers

  • 1 in 50.000 people per year worldwide are diagnosed
  • 5760-6400 new cases per year
  • The onset of the disease is at the age of 60
  • Men to women ratio: 1.5 to 1. Here men are more likely to be affected
  [5]

  Research advances in ALS

  The study by Katsuno and colleagues investigated the validity of urinary N-terminal titin fragment and found it to be significantly increased in ALS patients. It correlated with scores of the Revised Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R) as well.[3]

  Conclusion: The authors conclude that urinary Titin N-fragment might be a marker to diagnose and estimate ALS progression.[3]

  Titin (connectin) is a protein that consists of 34,350 amino-acids and specifically expresses in cross-striated muscle. The molecular weight of human titin is 3,816 kDa and it is considered the largest protein among all known proteins in a living body. It is a sarcomere structured protein that is a minimum unit of myofibrillary protein and it has a role as an elastic protein for recovering the length of shortened sarcomeres by its contraction. It has been known that titin is cleaved by metabolic enzymes such as calpain and matrix metalloprotease if muscles are damaged. It has been researched in the field of sports medicine, cardiac diseases, Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, sarcopenia and frailty. The Titin N-fragment could be a good non-invasive biomarker for monitoring muscle status. This kit measures the Titin N-terminal fragment in urine. Separate control set available on request *distributed by TECAN-IBL International

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