ANALYSIS OF CARBOHYDRATE-DEFICIENT TRANSFERRIN BY CAPILLARY-ZONE-ELECTROPHORESIS

We report a capillary zone electrophoresis method to separate the vari ous sialylated isoforms of transferrin. The separation is carried out under nondenaturing conditions and at basic pH. Under these conditions , transferrin exhibits two major and three minor peaks. Plasma samples from a population consuming varying amounts of alcohol at different i ntervals were studied. A cut-off value of 3% carbohydrate deficient tr ansferrin (CDT: disialo, monosialo, and asialo transferrin), results i n a clinical sensitivity of 88% in a population consuming at least 70 g/day alcohol for a minimum of two weeks. The sensitivity dropped sign ificantly in a population consuming less than 70 g/day. This confirms previous reports of CDT as a specific marker for significant and chron ic use of alcohol. Capillary electrophoresis offers an alternative met hod with respect to analysis time and throughput in the clinical labor atory.