Hyaluronidase inhibitor in blood serum of scorbutic guinea pigs.

The chemical nature of the non-specific hyaluronidase inhibitor normally present in blood serum has not been elucidated, but quinoid and hydroquinoid compounds have been found to be most effective inhibitors of the depolymerization of hyaluronic acid by hyaluronidase in vitro (1, 2). Other researches have suggested that intermediate metabolites of reduced or oxidized quinoid type may appear in blood and urine during intense salicylate therapy, alkaptonuria, and incomplete tyrosine metabolism associated with ascorbic acid deficiency (2-7). The latter condition in guinea pigs was also marked by increased serum methemoglobin and the excretion of bepzoquinone acetic acid in the urine (3). Since the presence of quinoid substances in serum and urine has not been correlated with the concentration of hyaluronidase inhibitor, these measurements have been undertaken.