ASSESSMENT OF UDP-GALACTOSYLTRANSFERASE ACTIVITY IN GASTRIC-MUCOSA OFPATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LIVER-DISEASE USING AN ENZYME-LINKED PEANUT AGGLUTININ BINDING ASSAY

Gastric mucin plays an important role in protecting mucosa from irrita nts such as acids and pepsin, and UDP-galactosyltransferase is a key e nzyme in mucin synthesis. In order to study the synthesis of gastric m ucin in patients with chronic liver disease, we developed a new assay using a peanut agglutinin lectin to measure this enzyme in human gastr ic mucosa obtained by endoscopic biopsy. Enzyme activity correlated we ll with that determined with a previous method using radiolabeled gala ctose. The enzyme activity in gastric mucosa of cirrhotic patients was significantly lower than in patients with chronic hepatitis or in nor mal controls and correlated with the amount of mucin in surface epithe lial cells. Our findings suggest that the synthesis of gastric mucin i s impaired in patients with liver cirrhosis.