Lithium and nickel present low toxicity, but are able to cause alterations in different tissues. The toxic effects of lithium and nickel at different cellular levels were assessed using two inorganic chemical species: lithium chloride and nickel(II) chloride. Mouse neuroblastoma cell cultures (Neuro-2a) were exposed to both compounds for 24 h. The cytotoxic effects evaluated were cell prolifera...

A method for the preparation of highly purified @-hexosaminidase isozymes A and B from human placenta is presented. The purified enzymes possess identical molecular weight and exhibit similar kinetic parameters with artificial fluorogenic substrates. Both enzymes catalyze the hydrolysis of Tay-Sachs ganglioside (Cer-Glc-Gal(NeuAc)-GalNAc) and the corresponding asialo-derivative (Cer-Glc-GalGalN...

This study was designed to evaluate the effect of different conditions of collection, transport and storage on the quality of blood samples from normal individuals in terms of the activity of the enzymes ss-glucuronidase, total hexosaminidase, hexosaminidase A, arylsulfatase A and ss-galactosidase. The enzyme activities were not affected by the different materials used for collection (plastic s...

The lysosomal enzyme, beta-hexosaminidase, exists as two major isoforms; HexA and HexB. HexA is an alpha beta-subunit heterodimer and HexB a beta-subunit homodimer. Both isoforms can remove nonreducing beta-N-acetyl-D-glucosamine residues, whereas HexA hydrolyzes charged substrates as G(M2) gangliosides as well. beta-Hexosaminidase is present in both human and rabbit tear fluid and is secreted ...

Appreciable beta hexosaminidase A (hex A) activity has been detected in cultured skin fibroblasts and melanoma tissue from healthy individuals previously reported as having deficiency of hex A activity indistinguishable from that of patients with Tay-Sachs disease (TSD). Identification and quantitation of hex A, amounting to 3.5%-6.9% of total beta hexosaminidase activity, has been obtained by ...

The deficiency of the A isoenzyme of beta-hexosaminidase (Hex) produced by different mutations of the gene that codes for the alpha subunit (Tay-Sachs disease) has two variants with enzymological differences: the B variant consists of the absence of Hex A isoenzyme and the B1 variant produces an inactive Hex A isoenzyme for the hydrolysis of the GM2 ganglioside and synthetic substrates with neg...

Human kidney extracts heated to 60 degrees and devoid of hexosaminidase activity (2-acetamido-2-deoxy-beta-D-glucoside acetamidodeoxyglucohydrolase EC 3.2.1.30) stimulate more than 20-fold the hexosaminidase A-catalyzed degradation of ganglioside GM2 and of glycolipid GA2, the neuronal storage compounds of GM2 gangliosidosis. The stimulating factor of this extract, which is labile at temperatur...

The two major isozymes of N-acetylhexosaminidase, namely hexosaminidases A and B were quantitatively determined in tissues and biological fluids of both normal individuals and Tay-Sachs patients. The determination was carried out by two sensitive immunoassays:radial immunodiffusion, using chromogenic substrate, and radioimmunoassay, which were developed in this study. For this purpose [correcte...