An automated enzymatic inulin assay, capable of full sinistrin hydrolysis.

Renal inulin clearance remains the standard by which other methods of measuring glomerular filtration rate are judged. A fully automated enzymatic assay capable of use with linear configuration inulin was recently published (Summerfield AL, et al. Clin Chem 1993; 39:2333-7). Sinistrin, a readily soluble preparation of polyfructan with side branching, is more suitable for clinical use and far more widely used in Europe. By modifying the incubation phase of samples with inulinase, incorporating a kinetic modification to the method of fructose analysis, and increasing the buffer strengths, we report a fully automated system, with minimal sample prehandling capable of complete sinistrin hydrolysis, and adapted for use on the Cobas Mira.