Deficiency of beta-glucuronidase in neutrophils from patients with precancerous states of the larynx.

Activity of beta-glucuronidase (GR) and acid phosphatase (AP) has been determined in peripheral blood neutrophils from 24 men with precancerous states of the larynx that is leukoplakia papillomas and pachydermia by means cytochemical methods described by Hayashi et al., and Barka and Anderson, respectively. The results obtained were expressed in terms of absolute counts of enzyme-positive and enzyme-negative cells with regard to enzyme activity variation within the enzyme-positive neutrophil population; the enzyme activity index score has been calculated. The control group consisted of 20 healthy subjects of the same sex. No significant alterations were found so far as AP activity is concerned between the group studied. In contrast, activity of GR in patients with precancerous states exhibited significant lowering. The most striking feature was in almost complete absence from the blood of GR-positive neutrophils with high activity of the enzyme. Majority of these cells showed only traces of the GR activity. According to authors opinion the deficiency of GR in neutrophils of patients with precancerous lesions pertains to problem of neutrophil-mediated cytotoxic effect against mammalian tumour cells.