Development and maturation of aldehyde oxidase levels in fetal hepatic tissue of C57BL/6J mice.

Abstract

The initial expression of hepatic aldehyde oxidase (EC 1.2.3.1, oxidoreductase) and the pattern of changes in enzyme activity throughout development and maturation were measured in C57BL/6J male and female mice. The developmental formation of enzyme activity during the latter part of fetal life was correlated with developmental changes in the hepatocyte population. Aldehyde oxidase was usually detectable in measurable quantities in both sexes at 16 days gestation. Although there was a significant difference in enzyme activity between sexes at this gestational age, there was no significant difference between sexes at any other stage of fetal development. The accumulation of enzyme during gestation appeared to be due to an increase in synthesis per hepatocyte and not to an increase in the numbers of hepatocytes alone.