The molecular defect in a case of (cystathionine beta-synthase)-deficient homocystinuria.

1. Cystathionine beta-synthase activity isolated from fibroblast cultures obtained from the skin of a normal and a homocystinuric individual were both cross-reactive with normal human liver cystathionine beta-synthase antibody. 2. Isoelectric focusing revealed a substantial difference in the isoelectric points of the normal and abnormal fibroblast enzymes. 3. Treatment of purified samples of normal and abnormal fibroblast enzymes with sodium dodecylsulphate followed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis indicated that both normal and abnormal enzymes were composed of two sub-units of molecular weights 53000 and 70000. 4. A combination of urea and sodium dodecylsulphate treatment revealed that the respective 53000 molecular weight sub-units were different. 5. It has been concluded that the molecular defect in the case of pyridoxine non-responsive homocystinuria examined in the present investigation arises as a result of an alteration in the structural gene which codes for the lower molecular weight sub-unit of cystathionine beta-synthase.