Multiple Molecular Forms of Lactatedehydrogenase (LDH) of Normal and Leukemic Cells of the Myeloid Line

Abstract

Electrophoretic and chromatographic characterization of isoenzymes of LDH of immature and mature myeloid cells from normal and leukemic subjects was performed. Normal myeloblastes and myelocytes, free from erythroblastes, erythrocytes, granulocytes and platelets were obtained from bone marrow : they are characterized by a cathodic pattern, however the predominance of the most cathodic isoenzyme is not detectable in relation to the immaturity of these cells. Granulocytes from both normal and leukemic subjects have the pattern typical of the mature cells, with clear predominance of the most cathodic isoenzymes. Immature cells of peripheral blood from subjects affected by myeloid leukemia show an undifferentiated LDH pattern when myeloblasts are predominant: promyelocytes and myelocytes are characterized by an anodic development of LDH pattern. These results suggest that LDH proteins of immature normal and leukemic cells are characterized by different maturation lines. LDH isoenzymes of mature granulocytes from myeloid leukemia show a normal line of maturation of these proteins.