SERUM PSEUDOURIDINE AS A BIOCHEMICAL MARKER IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF AKR MOUSE LYMPHOMA

  • 1 January 1984
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 44  (6) , 2567-2570
Abstract
Pseudouridine is a modified nucleoside derived from the degradation of some species of RNA, primarily tRNA, the level of which is elevated in biological fluids of tumor-bearing subjects. In order to study the relationship between pseudouridine levels and the development and progression of neoplasia, pseudouridine levels were measured in the serum of inbred mice with high (AKR) and low (BALB/c) incidence of spontaneous lymphoma and in mice carrying transplantable lymphoid tumors. The serum level of pseudouridine in healthy mice, is higher in females than in males; increases significantly in female AKR mice in the period preceding the development of lymphoma (preneoplastic period occurring at about 6 mo. of age); and is highest in AKR mice with lymphoma, the most elevated levels being found in mice with widely disseminated disease. The latter observation was confirmed by experiments with a transplantable AKR lymphoma (T2), where a positive correlation between tumor burden and serum pseudouridine levels was found. In BALB/c mice carrying a transplantable myeloma tumor (MOPC-460), no increase was seen despite the presence of a considerable tumor burden. The increase of pseudouridine in the preneoplastic period, in the absence of overt disease, is viewed as an early sign of the development of the disease. [Clinical therapeutic aspects are discussed.].