Peptide Biomarkers: Exploring the Diagnostic Aspect

Background: In the past few decades, with the upsurge of various deadly diseases, development of accurate diagnostic methods is inevitable for maintaining good health. There is an urgent requirement of specific and sensitive biomarkers in order to improve diagnosis, guide molecular targeted therapy, and predict and examine therapeutic response across a wide spectrum of disease. Method: We undertook a structured search of bibliographic databases for peer-reviewed research literature to evaluate the significance of peptides as valuable tools for diagnostic applications as well as the techniques used for discovery of peptide biomarkers. Result: On the basis of extensive literature survey, peptide biomarkers are classified according to their diagnosis approach. In addition, we summarize a few techniques used in peptide biomarker discovery such as peptidomics and peptide microarray. Conclusion: Small size, stability, easy and inexpensive production, capability to migrate throughout the body, fast clearance from body and low immunogenicity, as well as the remarkable quality of peptides to mirror the change in protease expression or activation associated with a pathological process, have established them as a promising biomarker.