Serum transaminase activity in lepromatous leprosy.

The semm transaminases COT (glutamate-oxalacetate-transaminase) and CPT ( glutamate-pyruvate-transaminase ), which have a determining share in intermediate metabolism, are present in the body ubiquitously and in an especially high concentration in heart muscle, liver or other parenchymatous organs and in skeletal muscle. The same is true for the serum dehydrogenase LDH (lactate-dehydrogenase) ' which is found ubiquitously in the body, and in maximum concentrations in parenchymatous organs. Determination of their activity, therefore, is an important diagnostic tool in various diseases, i.e. , SCOT and SCPT for the assessment of liver disease, and LDH for myocardial infarction. By determination of HBDH (hydroxybutyrate-dehydrogenase) the ratio of LDH/HBDH can be calculated in raised serum activity of LDH. The standard value amounts to 1.38-1.62e). Increase of the ratio points to a prevailing origin of LDH from the liver, the so-called liver-type of LDH. Other enzymes, such as lipase, leucineaminopeptidase or cholinesterase, are of diagnostic value in pancreatic or renal diseases. On the infectious diseases ward of the Bernhard Nocht-Institute for Maritime and Tropical Diseases we are mainly engaged on behavior of serum transaminases in infective hepatitis, because most of the patients treated on this ward are suffering from this disease. Recently, though, we have had to attend and to treat some patients with lepromatous leprosy. So it was obvious that we engaged in research on the behavior of serum transaminases in that infectious <;lisease, too. Studies on behavior of serum transaminases were published by Reali (4) in 1961, Ramnathan et al. (3) in 1963, Mitra (2) in 1968, and Shivde and J unnarkar (~ . 6) in