Urea cycle and protein content in leucocytes from normal persons and uraemics.

It was found experimentally that the activity of the urea-cycle enzymes in the leucocytes of uraemic rats was parallel to that in their liver. Conclusions as to the activity of the urea-cycle enzymes in the liver can thus be drawn from the urea-cycle enzyme activity in the leucocytes. Investigation of the urea-cycle enzyme in the leucocytes of patients with renal insufficiency, in the pre-dialytic and dialytic states, showed that in both groups the ornithine carbamoyl transferase and the argininosuccinate lyase activity was lower in both groups of patients than in normal persons. The dialysis patients show higher argininosuccinate synthetase activity. In both groups of patients the protein content of the leucocytes is markedly lowered.