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Measurement of sialyl transferase activity and serum glycoproteins in malignant and benign (hyperparathyroid) hypercalcemia
Author(s) -
Licata Angelo A.,
Woll Judith,
Cave Lynn
Publication year - 1982
Publication title -
cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.052
H-Index - 304
eISSN - 1097-0142
pISSN - 0008-543X
DOI - 10.1002/1097-0142(19821115)50:10<2126::aid-cncr2820501026>3.0.co;2-#
Subject(s) - medicine , hyperparathyroidism , radial immunodiffusion , sialic acid , endocrinology , gastroenterology , cancer , biochemistry , immunology , chemistry , antibody
Serum sialyl transferase activity (STA) and protein bound carbohydrate were measured in hypercalcemic patients with surgically documented hyperparathyroidism (n = 15) or with cancer without skeletal metastases (n = 10). Precipitable protein‐bound sialic acid and hexosamine, but not neutral hexoses or fucose were significantly ( P < 0.025) increased 40% and 21% respectively, in the perchlorate treated sera of cancer patients. Measurements of some specific serum glycoproteins by radial immunodiffusion assay were also different ( P < 0.05). Mean seromucoid protein was almost twice as great in the group with cancer ( P < 0.005), but four of these values overlapped those from the patients with hyperparathyroidism. The mean STA was 21.1 (range, 9.0–46.8) activity units in the patients with the cancer and 9.2 (range 1.0–17.8) in the patients wth hyperparathyroidism ( P < 0.005). Six of the patients with cancer had values above the upper limit of the group with hyperparathyroidism. A discriminant function generated from these data correctly classified all the patients with hyperparathyroidism and 70% of those with cancer. Measurements of seromucoid and STA deserve further consideration as a way to discriminate some cases of hypercalcemia.