Biomarker (cell)

For other uses, see Biomarker (disambiguation).

A biomarker can be understood as a molecule that is present (or absent) from a particular cellular type. This facilitates the characterization of a cell type, their identification, and eventually their isolation. Cell sorting techniques are based on cellular biomarkers (for example, Fluorescent-activated cell sorting). A biomarker can be used to identify a cell population, make a diagnostic, measure the progress of disease or the effects of treatment.

One example of cellular biomarker is the protein Oct-4 that is found in embryonic stem cells, while the Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) is a tumoral marker used to follow up cancer treatment, and the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) is used for diagnostic.