Collagen biosynthesis enzymes in serum and hepatic tissue in liver disease. II. Galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase.

Abstract

Abstract. Serum galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase activity exceeded the 95% confidence limit of the controls in eleven out of thirteen patients with primary biliary cirrhosis, four out of seven with portal cirrhosis, all four with acute hepatitis and all seven with cancer having liver metastases, whereas it was below this limit in most patients with fatty liver, extrahepatic cholestasis and cholangitis, and in seven out of fourteen cases with cancer without liver metastases or with other malignant diseases. Liver galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase activity was elevated in the same diseases, and there was a high correlation between these two measures (P < 0.005). Serum galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase activity also correlated with serum immunoreactive prolyl hydroxylase protein (P < 0.001), and liver galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase activity with liver prolyl hydroxylase activity (P < 0.001), but not with liver immunoreactive prolyl hydroxylase protein. Serum galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase activity did not correlate with liver hydroxyproline, and liver galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase activity only weakly. Serum galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase activity correlated with serum alkaline phosphatase in primary biliary cirrhosis (P < 0.001) but not in any other disease, and with serumaspartate aminotransferase (P < 0.05) and total bilirubin (P < 0.05) in the pooled group of all patients with non‐malignant liver disease. The results suggest that assays of serum galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase activity and liver galactosylhydroxylysyl glucosyltransferase activity in liver disease may give useful information on the actual hepatic collagen synthesis.