Determination of glycosylation signature

1. A method of determining the level of a target biological molecule in a sample obtained from a patient, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) contacting the sample with an immobilized capture antibody that binds specifically to the target, said immobilized antibody being present at a plurality of discrete areas on a substrate or on separate substrates;

(b) at least one of said discrete areas or substrates contacting the target bound to the immobilized capture antibody with a detection antibody that specifically binds the target;

(c) at a discrete area or substrate different to that of (b), contacting the target bound to the immobilized capture antibody with a glycan-binding agent;

(d) measuring the level of the target bound by the detection antibody in (b);

(e) measuring the level of the target bound by the glycan-binding agent in (c);

(f) at a discrete area or substrate different to that of (b) or (c), contacting the sample with a capture protein immobilized on the substrate, wherein the capture protein is of the same type as the target;

(g) measuring the level of autoantibodies in the sample that bind to the capture protein via a detectable label;

(h) at a discrete area or substrate different to that of (b), (c) or (f), contacting the sample with one or more capture glycans immobilized on the substrate; and

(i) measuring the level of autoantibodies in the sample that bind to the capture glycan(s) via a detectable label,

wherein results from (b) and (c) are compared to a deglycosylated sample to thereby determine whether there is an under detection of the target due to an interfering presence of glycosylation and results from (d) and (e) are further compared to results from (f)) and (h) to assess the extent to which the under-detection of the target is compromised by the presence of autoantibodies in the sample to obtain an interfering result,

wherein the interfering result is used to recalibrate the level of (d),

wherein the target is a protein and wherein steps (a), (f) and (h), or steps (b), (c), (g) and (i), are carried out at the same time.

2. A method according to claim 1 , wherein steps (b) and (c) are carried out on a single discrete test region of an assay substrate, or are carried out on physically separate reaction areas.

3. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the antibody that specifically binds the target in (b) and one or more of the glycan-binding agents in (c) are detected using the same reporter molecule, and wherein the reactions (b) and (c) are carried out in physically separated reaction sites.

4. A method according to claim 1 , further comprising the steps of (h) contacting the sample with one or more capture glycans immobilized on the substrate and (i) measuring the level of autoantibodies in the sample that bind to the capture glycan (s).

5. A method according to claim 4 , wherein steps (a) and (h), and optionally also (f), are carried out at the same time, or wherein steps (b), (c) and (i), and optionally also (g), are carried out at the same time.

6. A method according to claim 5 , wherein steps (h) and (i), are carried out in a physically separate reaction site compared to that for step (b).

7. A method according to claim 1 , wherein either or both the capture antibody and detection antibody is specific for an unglycosylated site on the target.

8. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the target biological molecule being measured is selected from the group consisting of monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B), tropomyosin, coagulation factor XIII, Apolipoprotein E (APOE), Glutathione S-transferase Omega-1 (GSTO-1), P-Selectin, L-selectin, E-selectin, Monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1), Interleukin-1α (IL-1α), Interleukin-1β (IL-1β), Interleukin-8 (IL-8), Interferon-α (IFN-α), Vascular Endothelial growth factor (VEGF), Endothelial growth factor (EGF), afamin, alpha-1-antichymotrypsin, alpha-2-macroglobulin, Apolipoprotein B100 (APOB100), complement C3, complement C5, TANK binding kinase 1 (TBK-1), vitamin D binding protein, alpha-1-B glycoprotein, hemopexin, serum albumin, ceruloplasmin, alpha 2 antiplasmin, apolipoprotein A1, complement factor H, Immunoglobulin G (IgG), Immunoglobulin G Fc binding protein, hornerin, fibrinogen, Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), Neuron specific enolase (NSE), Interleukin-2 (IL-2), Thrombomodulin (TM), D-dimer, Matrix Metallopeptidase 9 (MMP9), MMP9/NGAL complex, Fas ligand, C-reactive protein (CRP), Nuclear Matrix Protein 22 (NMP22), Bladder Tumour Antigen (BTA), Cytokeratin 18 (CK-18), Interleukin-1 (IL-1), Tumour Necrosis Factor α (TNFα), Soluble tumour necrosis factor receptor 1 (sTNFr1), Soluble tumour necrosis factor receptor 2 (sTNFr1), Free Prostate-Specific Antigen (FPSA), Total Prostate-Specific Antigen (TPSA), Hyaluronidase (HA), Interleukin-10 (IL-10), von Willebrand Factor (vWF), Factor VII, Nicotinamide Phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT), Intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1), Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule 1 (VCAM-1), Fatty acid-binding protein 1 (FABP1), Fatty acid-binding protein 2 (FABP2), Fatty acid-binding protein 3 (FABP3), Fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4), Fatty acid-binding protein 5 (FABP5), Fatty acid-binding protein 6 (FABP6), Fatty acid-binding protein 7 (FABP7), Fatty acid-binding protein 8 (FABP8), Fatty acid-binding protein 9 (FABP9), Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP), S100 calcium binding protein A10 (S100A10), S100 calcium binding protein A11 (S100A11), Interleukin-18 (IL-18), Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL1-ra), α-Glutamyl transpeptidase (α-GT), Aspartate transaminase (AST), Cystatin C (CysC), C3aDesArg, troponin T (TnT), troponin I (TnI), Macrophage Inflammatory Protein 1α (MIP-1α), Adiponectin, Cluster of Differentiation 26 (CD26), GMCSF, Interleukin-15 (IL-15), Interleukin-5 (IL-5), soluble interleukin 2α (sIL-2α), soluble interleukin 6 receptor (sIL-6r), pyruvate kinase isozyme type M2 (M2-PK), secretory leukocyte proteinase inhibitor (SLPI), Prostate-specific antigen (PSA), BRCA1, BRCA2, Cluster of Differentiation 15 (CD15), Cluster of Differentiation 20 (CD20), Cluster of Differentiation 30 (CD30), Cluster of Differentiation 45 (CD45), Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER-2), brain natriuretic peptide (Pro-BNP), glycogen phosphorylase BB (GPBB), myoglobin, aspartate transaminase (AST), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and creatine kinase (CK).

9. A method according to claim 1 , wherein the target biological molecule is selected from the list consisting of CEA, and A1AG.

10. A method according to claim 9 , wherein CEA, and A1AG measurements are utilised in any combination or wherein the CEA and A1AG glycosylation measurements are used in any combination.

11. A method according to claim 10 , wherein the glycosylation measurement is fucosylation.

12. A method according to claim 1 , wherein glycosylated and total target measurements are compared to identity differential glycosylation states.

13. A method according to claim 12 , wherein aberrant glycosylation is detected, thereby indicating the risk or presence of a disease.

14. A method according to claim 13 , wherein the disease is a metastatic disease.