Abstract
Thirty-nine samples of meningiomas were studied with respect to activities of N-acetyl-glucosaminidase, β-glucuronidase, acid phosphatase, and arylsulfatase. Meningiomas were classified as meningotheliomatous (4), transitional (12), fibroblastic (6), angioblastic (3), malignant (11), and unclassified types (3). Samples were obtained at surgery and homogenized in 0.32 M-sucrose. The total activities were measured using a Triton X-100 (0.1 %) activated sucrose suspension of tissue. Elevation in total activities of four enzymes in the tumor samples over the control grey and white matter values was highly significant except in samples of angioblastic meningiomas. This was particularly striking in glucosaminidase. Malignant meningiomas showed the greatest increase in total activities. A sevenfold increase of glucosaminidase and two to fourfold increase of β-glucuronidase, acid phosphatase and arylsulfatase were seen. Moderate increase of activities of four enzymes were seen in meningotheliomatous, transitional, and fibroblastic types. Activities of angioblastic meningiomas, three samples of hemangioblastic variant, did not show any increase compared with normal brain.
It appears, therefore, that the high activities of lysosomal enzymes are to be viewed as characteristic of malignant meningiomas and this can serve to distinguish them from other types of meningiomas.
