Oxygen free radicals produced by neutrophils are important in the pathogenesis of mucosal damage in ulcerative colitis. Vitamin A, vitamin E and cysteine in the plasma can scavenge free radicals. In the present study, plasma levels of vitamin A, vitamin E, cysteine, cystine and protein-bound cysteine were measured in active ulcerative colitis before and immediately after treatment of the active disease, and correlated with disease severity, extent and activity. Plasma vitamin A and cysteine were significantly reduced in active ulcerative colitis compared with controls. Levels of vitamin E, cystine and protein-bound cysteine were not significantly altered in active ulcerative colitis. Vitamin A and cysteine concentrations returned to normal levels (P < 0.05) within 2 weeks of treating active colitis. There were significant negative correlations between clinical severity and the plasma concentrations of vitamin A and cysteine. Plasma cysteine levels also correlated inversely to disease extent. Depletion of the circulating antioxidants, vitamin A and cysteine, in active ulcerative colitis is likely to be important in the pathophysiology of the disease.
γ-Glutamyl transpeptidase (γ-GT) from human fetal liver, normal adult liver and
primary hepatoma was separated into a hydrophobic form (detergent-solubilized, native
enzyme) and a hydrophilic form (papain-digested enzyme) using papain digestion and phenyl
Sepharose CL-4B hydrophobic chromatography. On polyacrylamide slab gel electrophoresis
the hydrophobic form of the enzyme from the above three sources did not enter the gel,
whereas the hydrophilic form entered the gel and moved as a single band with identical
mobility. Neuraminidase treatment decreased the mobilities of hydrophilic form of γ-GT
from all the three sources to a similar extent suggesting that the enzymes were sialylated
equally. The enzyme activities from all the three sources were inhibited and precipitated
equally by antibody to fetal liver γ-GT. In Ouchterlony double diffusion test the precipitin
lines formed between enzymes from the three sources and anti-fetal liver γ-GT showed a
reaction of complete identity. The activity of the hydrophilic form of the enzyme was more
inhibited and required less amount of antibody for precipitation compared to their hydrophobic
forms of the enzyme from all the three sources.
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