A recently published scientific paper by researchers associated with Alertix researchers Liya Wang, Sara Sällström, and Hanan Sharif displays TK1 in cat serum to be significantly higher compared to healthy cats and compared to cats with inflammatory diseases. These results suggest that serum TK1 may be a promising biomarker for the diagnosis and monitoring of malignant diseases and for the differential diagnosis of certain inflammatory diseases.

Feline TK1 has high specific activity and a broader substrate specificity in comparison with TK1 from other species. Serum TK1 activity in felines with malignant diseases is significantly higher than that in normal felines and in felines with inflammatory diseases. These results suggest that serum TK1 may be a promising biomarker for the diagnosis and monitoring of malignant diseases and for the differential diagnosis of certain inflammatory diseases.

Wang, L., Sharif, H., Saellström, S. et al. Feline thymidine kinase 1: molecular characterization and evaluation of its serum form as a diagnostic biomarker.BMC Vet Res 17, 316 (2021).

https://bmcvetres.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12917-021-03030-5