ANALYSIS OF URINARY ALBUMIN, TRANSFERRIN, N-ACETYL-BETA-D-GLUCOSAMINIDASE AND BETA(2)-MICROGLOBULIN IN PATIENTS WITH IMPAIRED GLUCOSE-TOLERANCE

We investigated the changes in urinary albumin and urinary transferrin as glomerular proteins, and in urinary N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidas e and urinary beta(2)-microglobulin as tubular proteins, in patients w ith impaired glucose tolerance. We attempted to compare the proteins o f normal subjects to those of diabetics with pre-nephropathy. Transfer rin and N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase revels were significantly incr eased in patients with impaired glucose tolerance, while albumin and b eta(2)-microglobulin levels were only slightly increased. In addition, there was no significant difference in transferrin levels between pat ients with impaired glucose tolerance and type 2 diabetics with pre-ne phropathy. In our observation, although albumin levels were only sligh tly increased in patients with impaired glucose tolerance, a sharp inc rease in transferrin levels was reflected in patients with glomerular disorders. In addition, since N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase levels v aried markedly, tubular disorders were suspected. It should be stresse d that increased parameters for both glomerular and tubular disorders in group C- patients who showed abnormal revels in three proteins-had already been observed in some patients with impaired glucose tolerance . Therefore, the evaluation of the mutual relationships between variou s urinary protein components in patients with impaired glucose toleran ce will become a more important assessment tool than that of single ur inary protein components. J. Clin. Lab. Anal. 12:351-355, 1998. (C) 19 98 Wiley-Liss, Inc.