Tamm-Horsfall Protein Research Confirmed

[icnmgrjill]

Dr. Parsons has long suspected that an abnormality in our body to produce the Tamm-Horsfall protein was part of the cause of IC. His research has now been confirmed through yet another critical study. Bravo Dr. Parsons!!! Wooh hoo - Jill O.

A multi-site study confirms abnormal glycosylation in the Tamm-Horsfall protein of patients with interstitial cystitis - Abstract
Wed, 25 May 2011

Division of Urology,, University of California-San Diego San Diego, California.

We confirm the single site observation of decreased sialylation and abnormal glycosylation of Tamm-Horsfall protein in patients with interstitial cystitis compared to control subjects.

Urine samples from 41 controls and 48 patients with interstitial cystitis from a total of 5 North American sites were obtained in blinded fashion as to participant status. Tamm-Horsfall protein was isolated from urine samples by salt precipitation. Protein content was determined by size exclusion chromatography and normalized to creatinine. Sialic acid was quantified by 1,2-diamino-4,5-methylene dioxybenzene (Sigma®) high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. Neutral and amino sugars were determined by high pH anion exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection. N-glycans were labeled with 2-aminobenzamide and profiled using high pH anion exchange chromatography with fluorescence detection. Samples were also analyzed by matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry. Permethylated N-glycans were analyzed in the mass-to-charge ratio range of 3,000 to 6,000.

There was no difference in the protein-to-creatinine ratio of Tamm-Horsfall protein from patients with interstitial cystitis vs controls (49.12 vs 46.4 mg/gm, p = 0.26). Sialic acid content (67 vs 77 nmol/mg Tamm-Horsfall protein, p = 0.025) and total monosaccharide content (590.9 vs 680.6 nmol/mg Tamm-Horsfall protein, p = 0.003) were significantly decreased in patients with interstitial cystitis vs controls. Results were supported by 2-aminobenzamide N-glycan profiling and mass spectrometry, which showed a 45% decrease in a major tetra-sialylated peak (mass-to-charge ratio 4,590) in Tamm-Horsfall protein from patients with interstitial cystitis compared to controls.

These multisite data validate that abnormal glycosylation of Tamm-Horsfall protein occurs in patients with interstitial cystitis and may have a role in interstitial cystitis causation.

Written by:
Parsons CL, Proctor J, Teichman JS, Nickel JC, Davis E, Evans R, Zupkas P, Phillips C, Shaw T, Naidu N, Argade S. Are you the author?
Reference: J Urol. 2011 May 13. Epub ahead of print.
doi: 10.1016/j.juro.2011.02.2699

[sshannon74074]

I think that the research shows that there is not an absence of Tamm-Horsfall protein but that the protein is abnormal and has a decreased amounts of some vital components like sialic acid. This is very interesting research and finally some legitimate answers to some of our questions. Doing some research on my own I found that Dr Parsons descovered these very significant findings and published them in 2008 about the decreased sialic acid content and we are waiting almost 4 yrs to say Hmmmm maybe he's on to something. By know I would have expected to see multiple confirmation studies in addition to a couple of years of extensive research on WHY the sialic acid content is lower and what possible ways are there to increase the levels of these vital components in the Tamm Horsfall protein.

Those are the answers I'm looking for now. What research has been conducted as to why there is deficient sialic acid??

How could this possibly tie in with Susan Keay research on APF antiproliferation factor?

[sshannon74074]

http://www.medscape.com/medline/abstract/17945284

exuse me, we've know this since 2007????

[sshannon74074]

Ok another confirmation....What now??

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19007360

[sshannon74074]

Note the importance of Mannose. Could there be a link to D-mannose concentration??

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sialic_acid

[sshannon74074]

If you can make heads or tails out of this very complicated research by Susan Keay back in 2004, it mentions sialic acid being a component of APF. I Don't know if its relevant or not, but it was interesting to see that commonality.

http://www.pnas.org/content/101/32/11803.full

I wonder if there has been any progress in the APF research in a while. I haven't heard much about it lately. It really seemed very promissing and it sounded like it would lead to a more definitive, non invasive test developed for IC.

[darlene]

The quickest results occur when researchers compare their data with that of other researchers and look for common elements.

[icnmgrjill]

Hi ss! Yes, you're right.I was just cutting and pasting research... and, yes, we did know some of this before but this is a larger study that confirmed the earlier data. I have no clue where it could lead.

FYI.. last I heard the IC research center at Univ. of Maryland was shut down due to lack of funding a few years ago. This was a great tragedy for the IC movement as it was the most productive in the country. I think that Susan is continuing her research though.