Department of Paediatrics, 6th Floor, Clinical Sciences Building, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, N.T., Hong Kong.
Semin Fetal Neonatal Med. 2014 Feb;19(1):33-8. doi: 10.1016/j.siny.2013.09.002. Epub 2013 Sep 27.
Different categories of biomarkers of necrotising enterocolitis (NEC), including (i) non-specific mediators of the inflammatory cascade, e.g. acute phase reactants, chemokines, cytokines, and cell surface antigens, (ii) enhanced non-specific biomarkers, and (iii) specific gut-associated proteins, have distinctive biochemical characteristics and properties. The appropriateness of using these mediators in specific clinical situations, and the pros and cons of their applications as indicators or predictors of intestinal injury and NEC are highlighted. Many potentially new biomarkers such as micro-RNA, volatile organic compounds and gut microbiomes are currently under investigation. A stringent protocol for biomarker discovery is revealed so that investigators can consider this methodology as a reference for future discovery of organ-specific and/or disease-specific biomarkers for preterm infants.
坏死性小肠结肠炎（NEC）的不同类别的生物标志物，包括（i）炎症级联的非特异性介质，例如急性期反应物、趋化因子、细胞因子和细胞表面抗原，（ii）增强的非特异性生物标志物，和（iii）特定的肠道相关蛋白，具有独特的生化特征和特性。强调了在特定临床情况下使用这些介质的适当性，以及它们作为肠道损伤和 NEC 的指标或预测因子的应用的优缺点。许多潜在的新生物标志物，如 micro-RNA、挥发性有机化合物和肠道微生物组，目前正在研究中。揭示了严格的生物标志物发现方案，以便研究人员可以将这种方法作为未来早产儿器官特异性和/或疾病特异性生物标志物发现的参考。
