St. Jude's contributions to diagnostics and antibodies

PRO-PredictRx TPMT® is a genetic assay doctors can use to help determine the correct dosage of thiopurines for their patients. The Prometheus Laboratories assay uses a discovery by Drs. William Evans and Eugene Krynetski of three mutations in the thiopurine S-methyltransferase (TPMT) gene that leave patients with a decreased ability to metabolize standard doses of thiopurines such as the leukemia drug 6-mercaptopurine. Patients with decreased ability to metabolize thiopurines can be identified by this assay and receive substantially the same benefit from reduced dosages of these drugs while avoiding toxic side effects.

FastImmune Cytokine System® was developed by BD Biosciences to rapidly analyze human lymphocyte activation and detect intracellular cytokines by flow cytometry. It contains an anti-CD19 monoclonal antibody (SJ25C1) developed at St. Jude. Determining intracellular cytokine levels in response to antigen activation can be used in the study of autoimmune diseases, HIV, tumor vaccine development, allergies and infectious diseases.

Oncomark 3-Color Oncomark Combinations® is an antibody cocktail from BD Biosciences used to study leukemia. In addition to the anti-CD19 monoclonal antibody (SJ25C1) developed at St. Jude which recognizes CD19 expressed on human B lymphocytes at most stages of maturation, this cocktail contains anti-CD79b, which is expressed at high levels in most B-cell disorders and either anti-kappa or anti-lamba which is present on neoplastic cells.