A specific property of the plasmocytoma serum paraprotein lipids with respect to lipid precipitation by heparin

Abstract

Fifteen patients with β- and γ-plasmocytoma, one serum from a patient with macroglobulinaemia Waldenström and twelve control sera were examined in the native state and after treatment with the heparin method for precipitation of the “β-lipoproteins”. Contrary to the controls, all the pathologic sera investigated, even after removal of the “β-lipoproteins” with heparin, showed a sharp protein-lipid (PL) band on the electrophoretic lipidogram. This finding suggests that the PL fraction cannot form insoluble complexes with heparin. All sera were simultaneously examined with the Ouchterlony double diffusion immunoprecipitation. The results proved that the paraprotein lipid component possesses specific antigenic properties, and, although it has the same electrophoretic mobility as the “β-lipoproteins”, it does not precipitate with the specific anti-β-lipoprotein serum. These characteristic properties of the paraprotein lipid fraction, with regard to heparin precipitation allow for a good separation of the PL fraction from the β-lipoproteins. The results can be useful in diagnosis and in the analysis of paraprotein lipids.