Determination of serum bone-specific alkaline phosphatase isoenzyme activity in captive Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) using an agarose gel electrophoresis method.

Abstract

The bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (ALP) isoenzyme activity was measured in 51 serum samples from four captive Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) using a conventional method with wheat germ lectin precipitation and a commercial agarose gel electrophoresis (AGE) kit; the isoenzymes were designated as bone-specific ALP (BAP) and ALP isoenzyme 3 (ALP3), respectively. This study examined the suitability of the AGE kit for analyzing blood biochemistry in Asian elephants. The serum ALP3 and BAP activities were strongly positively correlated and met the evaluation criteria for agreement using Bland-Altman analysis. The results indicate that the AGE kit can be used to examine the blood biochemistry in Asian elephants instead of the conventional method.