Cardiac isoform of alpha-2 macroglobulin as a novel diagnostic marker for cardiac diseases

BACKGROUND Earlier we showed cardiac isoform of alpha-2 macroglobulin (CA2M) to be an early marker of cardiac hypertrophy. DESIGN In this study, we tried to explore the possibility of using this protein as a marker for diagnosis of cardiac diseases. METHODS A total of 593 samples were analyzed for the presence of CA2M using sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS Samples include various cardiac diseases (230), non-cardiac ailments (263) and controls (100). CONCLUSION Levels of CA2M in cardiac diseases were significantly higher than other sample groups but moderately elevated in leprosy. This protein could be considered for diagnosis of cardiac diseases as a serum marker.