The effect of TEPC-183 plasmacytoma growth on β-glucuronidase activity in serum and tissues of tumor-bearing mice

Abstract

β-Glucuronidase activity increased in the serum of BALB c mice during the growth of the IgM-secreting plasmacytoma, TEPC-183. The increase appeared to correlate with tumor burden. The β-glucuronidase activity in tissue homogenates of spleen, liver, and kidney from tumor-bearing mice also increased significantly compared to the levels found in corresponding tissues from normal control mice. Assays of lysosomal and microsomal fractions from livers of TEPC-bearing mice indicated that approximately 70% of the enzyme activity was associated with the lysosomal fraction and the remainder with the microsomal fraction. A similar distribution was found in homogenates prepared from the plasmacytoma itself. In contrast to this the β-glucuronidase activity in livers from normal BALB c mice is nearly equally distributed between lysosomal and microsomal fractions.