Viscosity and Origin of Meconium in Meconium Ileus. ∗

Abstract

Summary

1) Meconium from a patient with meconium ileus has been studied electrophoretically, revealing presence of albumin and of smaller amounts of other proteins with mobilities corresponding to α and β globulin. The identity of albumin was established by immunochemical and physical methods. Semi-micro Kjeldahl analyses of the abnormal meconium indicate 50.2% of dry weight of meconium to be water soluble, TCA-precipitable protein. Addition of human serum albumin to lyophilized pooled samples of meconium from normal infants results in meconium grossly indistinguishable from abnormal meconium. 2) The electrophoretic pattern of human amniotic fluid is identical with that of meconium ileus meconium and it is suggested that amniotic fluid is the source of protein present in meconium from patients with meconium ileus.