Abstract
Activities and isoenzyme patterns of γ-glutamyl transferase (GGT) were studied in serum samples from fifteen Bantu males suffering from primary hepatoma; the results were compared with those obtained from normal samples. Enzyme activities were significantly higher in hepatoma patients than in controls. Results with Cellogel electrophoresis and the fluorescent substrate γ-l-glutamine-7-amido-4-methylcoumarin were reproducible; two major bands of activity were observed in normal serum and three bands in hepatoma serum. The additional band seen in hepatoma serum was also detected in serum from patients with certain other disorders. With polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis using either γ-l-glutamyl-α-naphthylamide or γ-l-glutamyl-p-nitroanilide as substrates, results were inconsistent and difficult to interpret since there was a lack of specificity for GGT.