Biomarkers in inflammatory bowel diseases: Current status and proteomics identification strategies

Table 1 Known common inflammatory bowel disease biomarkers

Biomarker	Specificity	Usability
Serum biomarkers
ASCA	39%-79% of CD patients positive, 5%-15% UC patients[41-43]	14%-18% of controls tested positive, limiting the diagnostic value[44]
pANCA	20%-85% of UC patients positive, 2%-28% of the CD patients[41,42,45]	32% of controls tested positive, limiting the diagnostic value[44]
CRP	Marker for acute inflammation	Cannot differentiate CD from UC. However, usable for monitoring disease state[48-50]
Fecal biomarkers
Calprotectin	Sensitive marker for intestinal inflammation[8,17,40]	Cannot differentiate CD from UC. Used to monitor disease state[17]
Lactoferrin	Can distinguish active IBD from inactive IBD and irritable bowel syndrome[60]	Unspecific for CD and UC. However, usable for monitoring disease state[60]

ASCA: Anti-Saccharomyces cerevisiae antibodies; ANCA: Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody; IBD: Inflammatory bowel diseases; UC: Ulcerative colitis; CD: Crohn’s disease; CRP: C-reactive protein.