Abstract
Two distinctive aminopeptidase isozymes have been identified in the serum of the vervet monkey. The l-methionine-sensitive cytosol aminopeptidase (AP; E.C. 3.4.11.1) is present in all samples, while the cystyl aminopeptidase (CAP; E.C. 3.4.11.3) isozyme, which is resistant to inhibition by 0.1 m l-methionine, is found only in the serum of pregnant females. The pregnancy-specific CAP isozyme appears in the serum between the fifth and the eleventh weeks of a nearly 22-week pregnancy. The overall aminopeptidase activity and the activity of the l-methionine-insensitive isozymes alone are both significantly greater in the serum of pregnant females than in nonpregnant females. Consequently, the presence of the cystyl aminopeptidase isozyme in the serum is a useful diagnostic indicator of pregnancy in the vervet monkey.
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This study was partially funded by NSF Grant BNS 77-03322 to Drs. C. J. Jolly and T. R. Turner and by a Medical Research Council Quota Award to NCD.
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Dracopoli, N.C., Brett, F.L. Serum aminopeptidases in pregnant vervet monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops). Biochem Genet 20, 825–831 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00484060
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00484060