Acid hydrolases in brain, spinal cord and sciatic nerves of acrylamide-intoxicated rats.

Activity of beta-glucuronidase and cathepsin-D were studied in brain, spinal cord and sciatic nerves of rats at 24 h or 10 days after daily i.p. administration of 50 mg/kg acrylamide. The activities of beta-glucuronidase and cathepsin-D in brain, spinal cord and sciatic nerves remained unaffected on single exposure but increased significantly in these tissues on administration of the neurotoxin for 9 consecutive days. The increase in the activity of beta-glucuronidase and cathepsin-D was more marked in sciatic nerves, than brain or spinal cord. These results suggest that cathepsin-D and beta-glucuronidase may be involved in the acrylamide-induced degeneration of nervous tissues and can serve as useful markers for the detection of chemical-induced neuropathies.