Transferase-deficiency galactosemia: evidence for the lack of a transferase protein in galactosemic red cells.

Red blood cell lysates from normal individuals, a homozygous Duarte variant, and a patient with transferase-deficiency galactosemia were challenged with rabbit antibody to pure human placental galactose-1-phosphate uridylyltransferase. Although the antibody quantitatively precipitated the enzymatically active proteins in the normal and Duarte hemolysates, the Duarte sample absorbed only about one-half as much antibody as did the normal. In contrast, the antibody did not react with the galactosemic hemolysate.