SPEP

Outside of the normal Clinical Chemistry and Hematology blood work Core Medical Laboratories also specializes in both Serum protein electrophoresis (SPEP) and Immunofixation electrophoresis (IFE).

SPEP tests measure specific proteins in the blood to help identify specific diseases. Because proteins can carry a positive or negative charge, SPEP uses an electrical field to separate proteins in the blood into groups. These two groups, albumin and globulin, carry various substances through the blood stream and can further be broken down into five smaller groups:

• Albumin: Albumin proteins keep the blood within blood vessels. It also aids in carrying some medicines through the blood and vital in growing and repairing tissue.
• Alpha-1 globulin: Alpha-1 globulin contains High-density lipoprotein (HDL), also known as the “good cholesterol.”
• Alpha-2 globulin: Alpha-2 globulin contains proteins that become elevated during infection or inflammation.
• Beta globulin: Beta globulin proteins help fight infection by carrying substances like iron, through the bloodstream.
• Gamma globulin: Gamma Globulin is also known as antibodies, and also fight infection in the body by binding substances like bacteria.

By separating the proteins in the blood SPEP is able to check the levels of specific types of proteins and use that as an indication for conditions such as problems with the liver or kidneys, immune system issues, or some forms of cancer.

IFE

In a similar vein to SPEP, Immunofixation Electrophoresis (IFE) is used to check the levels of certain proteins in blood. By using antibodies to “fix” certain proteins to an assay, IFE is able to create band patterns for certain protein groups that match the band patterns for specific diseases.

IFE is able to discern whether a patient’s body is having difficult absorbing protein from foods or is creating too much or too little of specific blood proteins.

Most commonly IFE tests are able to provide confirmation if a patient is showing symptoms of the blood cancer, multiple myeloma, multiple sclerosis, or other conditions that affect how the proteins function in the blood.