Editors: Juan Antonio Vílchez, María Dolores Albaladejo-Otón

New Trends in Biomarkers and Diseases Research: An Overview

eBook: US $39 Special Offer (PDF + Printed Copy): US $221
Printed Copy: US $201
Library License: US $156
ISBN: 978-1-68108-496-1 (Print)
ISBN: 978-1-68108-495-4 (Online)
Year of Publication: 2017
DOI: 10.2174/97816810849541170101

Introduction

Biomarkers are any measurable biochemical characteristics of an organism that reflect a particular physiological state. Biomarkers can take many different forms including particular proteins or peptides, antibodies, cell types, metabolites, hormones, enzyme levels, compounds related to genomics, etc. A biomarker can also be a substance introduced into a patient to assess the internal organ systems role.

In medicine, biomarkers considered as compounds isolated from serum, urine, or other fluids, can be used as an indicator of the presence or severity of a particular disease state., improving our knowledge of the pathophysiology of many diseases. The use of biomarkers is becoming a fundamental practice in medicine. Biomarker research involves a significantly greater scope of laboratory medicine.

This monograph presents information on several types of biomarkers for general pathologies. (preeclampsia, metabolic syndrome, iron metabolism, bone disease, liver function, renal function), cardiovascular pathology (including atrial fibrillation, peripheral artery disease, thrombotic disorders) and sepsis. Additional information on endocrine and salivary biomarkers is also presented.

New Trends in Biomarkers and Diseases Research: An Overview is an update of the present and future of clinical contribution and the correct interpretation of biomarkers. In addition to clinicians, this book is aimed to professionals of own laboratory medicine, university researchers and clinicians in general.

Indexed in: BIOSIS Previews, Book Citation Index.

Foreword

The concept of biomarker applies to any biological characteristic that can be objectively measured and evaluated to improve the clinical ability to evaluate different aspects of health or disease status.

Referring to a disease, a biomarker can help to evaluate the susceptibility of developing a disease in which case the biomarker is a risk factor; to recognize its existence both in the subclinical (screening biomarker) or clinical (diagnostic biomarker) stage, to control the progression or regression (staging biomarker), to prognoses the disease (prognostic biomarker) or its response to therapy (monitoring biomarker). Furthermore, a biomarker could be the measure of a biological variable, such as blood pressure, the result of a scanning technique as an X-ray or a biological variable measured in the clinical laboratory. And it is in this latter type of variables where the term of biomarker is more widely applied.

The literature is full of new biomarkers which are claimed to add value to clinical practice and, hence to be a part of the clinical laboratory portfolio. The aim of the current book is to summarize the existing evidence on the role that classical and some novel biomarkers can play in the most prevalent diseases.

Jordi Ordoñez-Llanos, MD, Ph.D.
Senior Consultant, Hospital de Sant Pau. Professor Clinical Biochemistry
IIB-Sant Pau Biomedical Research Institute, Hospital Santa Creu i Sant Pau and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Universitat Autònoma, Barcelona,
Spain


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