Serum immunoreactive beta-glucuronidase determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in patients with hepatic diseases.
An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for human beta-glucuronidase, using a specific polyclonal antibody raised against the purified enzyme. beta-Glucuronidase from human liver consisted of three subunits with molecular mass of 76, 64 and 18 kDa. The assay offered a specific, sensitive and convenient means of measuring immunoreactive beta-glucuronidase in human sera. beta-Glucuronidase activity determined by the conventional method appeared to be extremely low, indicating that in human sera beta-glucuronidase exists in an enzymatically inactive form. The sensitivity of the assay permitted the detection of 1-100 ng of purified beta-glucuronidase. A mean serum level in normal subjects was 108 +/- 25 ng/ml (mean +/- S.D.). A high level of beta-glucuronidase was found in sera of patients with severe hepatocellular necrosis, including liver cirrhosis (152 +/- 130 ng/ml) and chronic active hepatitis (220 +/- 99 ng/ml), whereas no significant increase of the enzyme protein was observed in chronic persistent hepatitis (102 +/- 42 ng/ml). beta-Glucuronidase was also increased in sera of patients with primary hepatoma (156 +/- 125 ng/ml). The immunoreactive beta-glucuronidase determined in this assay was thought to be a supplementary serological indicator for hepatocellular necrosis.
Ohta
H
H
Department of Internal Medicine (III), Asahikawa Medical College, Japan.
Ono
M
M
Sekiya
C
C
Namiki
M
M
D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases / Q000097:blood; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000379:methods*; D005966:Glucuronidase / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000097:blood*
D001219:Aspartate Aminotransferases; D000410:Alanine Transaminase; D005966:Glucuronidase