An ideal marker for cardiac disease would have all of these characteristics:
- Specific to myocardial tissue
- Low concentrations in normal (healthy) peripheral blood
- Rapidly released after myocardial injury
- Detected in low quantities with little interference from other compounds
- Remains in circulation for a sufficient length of time for detection
- Plasma concentration of the marker directly related to the extent of injury
The test for the biomarker should be easily automated, relatively inexpensive to run, and results should be obtained rapidly.
