Effect of Environmental Factors on Starch Gel Electrophoretic Patterns of Human Erythrocyte Acid Phosphatase

Abstract

Human erythrocyte acid phosphatase (EAP) polymorphism was first described by Hopkinson, Spencer and Harris (1). EAP can be classified by electrophoresis into six different phenotypes, A, AB, B, CB, AC and C. From numerous distribution and family studies it has been determined that the six phenotypes are directed by three common alleles pa, pb, and pc(2,3,4). Using crude hemolysates (5) and 1,000 fold pure homogeneous type AA and BB enzymes (6) some properties of EAP, such as thermostability, pH and substrate specificity and molecular size, have been examined. From the time EAP polymorphism was first described, the use of the enzyme as a means of typing human blood has been of interest to the forensic scientist. Investigators have described successes in typing dried bloodstains stored at 20 - 25°C for 5-8 weeks and stored whole blood kept at 5 C was typed for as long as 15 months (7).