Evaluation of histochemical observations of activity of acid hydrolases obtained with semipermeable membrane techniques: a combined histochemical and biochemical investigation 2. The biochemical investigation and comparison with the histochemical observations.

The reliability of enzyme histochemical semipermeable membrane techniques for the demonstration of acid hydrolases was investigated with a combined histochemical and biochemical study. In part 1 the histochemical findings were presented. In this communication the biochemical findings are reported and compared with the histochemical findings. In m. soleus, m. plantaris, m. gastrocnemius and diaphragm of vitamin E deficient rabbits the activity of the lysosomal acid hydrolases, cathepsin D, acid maltase, acid phosphatase and beta-glucuronidase is significantly increased. This increase in activity of the investigated acid hydrolases was equal for muscles with an aerobic or an anaerobic metabolism. By means of statistical calculations the activity of the enzymes demonstrated with histochemical techniques was compared with the enzyme activity determined with biochemical techniques. From the results of this investigation it can be concluded that the histochemical semipermeable membrane techniques for the demonstration of activity of acid hydrolases are very reliable. Considering the fact that these techniques are also tissue-saving, they are therefore extremely suitable for the study of catabolic wasting processes in skeletal muscle tissues of patients with inherited or acquired muscular diseases.