Atrial natriuretic peptide stability

Objective: Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) is a key regulator in the homeostasis of water excretion and has emerged as an important prognostic marker for symptomatic chronic heart failure (CHF). The stability of ANP represents a crucial factor in assessing its use as a cardiac biomarker. Accordingly, we assessed the stability of ANP in blood samples collected from healthy controls and CHF subjects for a 12 month period. Methods: Blood samples from 10 healthy controls and 12 symptomatic CHF subjects with left ventricular systolic dysfunction were drawn. Determination of plasma ANP was performed by a standardized radioimmunoassay protocol. Results: The ANP levels of healthy subjects were 68.5 ± 11.6 pg/mL at baseline and 69.9 ± 17.2 pg/mL at 12 months (p = 0.71). The ANP concentrations of CHF subjects were 199.25 ± 44.8 pg/mL at baseline and 197.83 ± 47.4 pg/mL at 12 months (p = 0.70) respectively. Conclusion: ANP is a stable molecule with no evidence of degradation when stored at - 80 °C.