In this review the role of TFF1, TFF2 and TFF3 as potential treatment option and/or biomarker in the upper GI tract is discussed with particular focus on GERD and BE.
In this review, we present various novel techniques for screening of Barrett's esophagus such as unsedated transnasal endoscopy, cytosponge with trefoil factor-3, balloon cytology, esophageal capsule endoscopy, liquid biopsy, electronic nose, and oral microbiome.
Blood samples from 56 patients with Barrett's oesophagus and 202 non-Barrett controls who previously took part in a trial assessing the accuracy of the Cytosponge for Barrett's oesophagus were assessed for serum pepsinogen (PG) 1 and 2, gastrin-17, trefoil factor 3 (TFF3) and <i>Helicobacter pylori</i> infection.
Patients with a positive TFF3 test will receive an invitation for an upper gastro-intestinal endoscopy at their local hospital-based endoscopy clinic to test for BE.
In each model, we simulated the effect of a 1-time screen for BE in male patients with GERD, 60 years of age, using endoscopy alone or Cytosponge collection of tissue, and analysis for the level of trefoil factor 3 with endoscopic confirmation of positive results.
TFF3 protein was expressed to high levels at the luminal surface of Barrett's oesophagus compared to absent expression in normal oesophagus and gastric mucosa (p<0.001).
To study such patterns in Barrett's metaplasia and squamous cell carcinoma of the oesophagus (SCC), the distribution of MUC1, MUC2, MUC5AC and the three TFF peptides (TFF1, TFF2 and TFF3) was investigated.