PHOSPHORUS METABOLISM IN THE LEBROUS LESIONS

2. THE HISTOCHEMICAL STUDY OF PHOSPHATASES IN THE LEPROUS LESIONS

Abstract

1. Phosphatase activity is observed in lepromatous skin lesions, lepromatous nerve lesions, tuberculoid skin lesions, tuberculoid nerve lesions and murine lepromas, using α-glycerop-hosphate, DNA, RNA, ATP and ADP as substrates.
2. Both epithelioid tubercles in tubercloid lesions and lepromasin lepromatous lesions show the various phosphatases activities similary. Especially infiltrating round cells and heavily stained in the lesions for phosphatases. Infering from these results, the various significance of phosphatases activities in lepromatous and tuberculoid lesions is discussed.
3. In tuberculoid and lepromatous nerve lesions, phosphatases are distributed more heavily than in skin lesions and this suggests the phosphatases are related to the splitting of nerves.
4. Murine lepromas show the similar distribution of phosphatases as that of lepromatous skin lesions in human leprosy.