The proteolysis of IGF binding proteins (IGFBP) releases IGFs. Free IGFs have direct access to their receptors and can develop their effects.

 

The proteolysis of IGFBPs controls IGF effects especially in certain diseases such as cancer or age-related diseases or even during pregnancy.

 

Advantage of the Western Ligand Blot

Commercially available test systems like ELISAs detect intact IGFBPs as well as their inactive fragments, which can result in false-positive data. In contrast, the quantitative Western Ligand Blot (qWLB) detects only the intact, biologically active IGFBPs. This significantly improves the quality of biomarker data.