Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0002895 (sickle cell disease)
 11,747 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The activities of five lysosomal hydrolases--namely beta-glucuronidase, beta-hexosaminidase, beta-galactosidase, alpha-galactosidase, and alpha-mannosidase--were measured in the plasma and urine of children (ages, 7 to 15 years) with sickle cell anemia (n = 11) and controls (n = 11) from Jos, Nigeria. The presence of SS hemoglobin was confirmed by electrophoresis of red cell hemolysates. Albuminuria was absent in all of the patients with sickle cell anemia. The creatinine-indexed urinary activity level (units of enzyme activity/milligrams creatinine) and the fractional enzyme excretion (FEE) value, which is defined as the ratio of enzyme clearance to creatinine clearance, were determined for each of the five lysosomal enzymes and compared between the two groups. The mean FEE values for beta-glucuronidase and alpha-galactosidase in the sickle cell patients were 10- and 3.5-fold lower, respectively, than the corresponding control values, and these differences were statistically significant (p < .03) for both enzymes; however, beta-hexosaminidase, beta-galactosidase, and alpha-mannosidase levels in urine were not different between the two groups. When indexed to creatinine, a comparison of the urinary enzyme levels of control and sickle cell patients showed significant differences for beta-glucuronidase (p < .01) and alpha-galactosidase (p < .05) but not for the other three enzymes. Differences in level of plasma enzyme activity between control and sickle cell patients were not significant, except for alpha-galactosidase (p < .05), which was increased slightly (25%) in the sickle cell group. These data indicate that there may be abnormalities in the metabolism of lysosomal enzymes in the kidneys of patients with sickle cell anemia.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Decreased urinary excretion of beta-glucuronidase in sickle cell anemia in Nigeria. 777 Jun 45

Protein energy malnutrition (PEM) is common in underprivileged populations in many parts of the world and results from diets deficient in protein (kwashiorkor) or protein and calories (marasmus). The literature documents renal tubular abnormalities in children with PEM. In PEM the reabsorption of amino acids and phosphate is defective. In many kidney disorders in which renal tubular function is impaired (e.g., diabetes, preeclampsia, nephrotic syndrome, sickle cell anemia), lysosomal enzymuria ensues. We compared the urinary excretion of the following five lysosomal enzymes in 31 Nigerian children with marasmus, kwashiorkor, or marasmic-kwashiorkor: beta-hexosaminidase, alpha-galactosidase, beta-galactosidase, beta-glucuronidase, and alpha-mannosidase. All of the protein energy malnourished children and the 18 age- and gender-matched controls were from the city of Jos, located in central Nigeria. In the severely malnourished children, the urine levels of all five lysosomal enzymes (expressed as units of enzyme activity per mg creatinine) were markedly increased. The greatest increases were seen with beta-hexosaminidase (16-fold) and beta-glucuronidase (14-fold). Routine clinical analyses also revealed that, relative to the control population, the sera of the 14 most severely malnourished patients contained 2- to 5-fold more vitamin B12 and markedly reduced levels (15%, p < 0.00001) of calcium. These data are significant in that they document lysosomal enzymuria in Nigerian children with severe PEM and point to the potential diagnostic utility of the urinary beta-galactosidase determination for assessing renal function in children with this disorder.
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PMID:Lysosomal enzymuria in protein energy malnutrition. 948 33