Cardiac myosin-binding protein C: a potential early biomarker of myocardial injury.

Cardiac troponins are released and cleared slowly after myocardial injury, complicating the diagnosis of early, and recurrent, acute myocardial infarction. Cardiac myosin-binding protein C (cMyC) is a similarly cardiac-restricted protein that may have different release/clearance kinetics. Using novel antibodies raised against the cardiac-specific N-terminus of cMyC, we used confocal microscopy, immunoblotting and immunoassay to document its location and release.

Troponins: redefining their limits.

The diagnosis of myocardial infarction (MI) depends on a rise and/or fall of cardiac biomarkers such as troponins in the appropriate clinical context. Conventional troponin assays lack sensitivity and precision at the low serum concentrations observed in the early hours after the onset of chest pain. New, highly sensitive troponin assays may offer improved certainty in these early hours.