Carcinoembryonic antigen activity in human seminal plasma.

Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) immunoreactivity in the seminal plasma of 101 men was studied by enzyme immunoassay (EIA). It was found that (1) mean CEA (or CEA-like activity) in seminal plasma is about 8.5 times higher than the upper CEA limit in normal serum; (2) there is no statistically significant difference between the antigen levels of normal controls and various groups of men with fertility problems, as well as between men with normal and those with abnormal spermiogram; (3) the prostate seems to be the main site of origin of CEA or CEA-like activity in the seminal plasma.

Semen parameters in 114 fertile men.

We studied the quality of semen in 114 fertile men (their wives were in the first trimester of pregnancy), aged 31.9 +/- 5.7 yr. The results (mean +/- S.D.) were as follows: number of spermatozoa, (72 +/- 61.6) X 10(6)/ml; motile spermatozoa, 56.6% +/- 13.5; spermatozoal velocity, 34.2 +/- 4.3 microns/s; motility index, 19.5 +/- 5.6 microns/s; normal forms, 51.7% +/- 13. It was found that the percentage of motile spermatozoa and the index of motility decrease progressively, at a rate of about 5-10% per hour. In contrast, in the majority of cases, sperm velocity increases during the first 4 h. Low significant correlations was found between percentage of motility and spermatozoal velocity the first hour after ejaculation. Furthermore, moderate significant correlations were found between number of spermatozoa/ml, percentage of motility and normal forms. Finally, low significant negative correlation was found between number of spermatozoa/ml and spermatozoal velocity.

Lysozyme (muramidase) in pleural effusions and serum.

The authors evaluated the usefulness of paired pleural fluid and serum lysozyme determination in the differential diagnosis of pleurisies in 118 patients. Lysozyme activity of tuberculous effusions was found significantly higher (P less than 0.001) than that of effusions due to malignancy or heart failure, but considerable overlap of the individual values was observed. All patients with tuberculous pleurisy or tuberculous empyema, as well as a group of patients with suspected tuberculous effusion, had pleural fluid to serum lysozyme ratio of 1.0 or greater. In the remaining groups, only three patients, one with malignancy, one with lupus erythematosus, and one with sarcoidosis, exceeded this value. Their results suggest that pleural fluid to serum lysozyme ratio can be applied effectively in the differential diagnosis of tuberculous pleurisy.

Simultaneous enzyme immunoassay of carcinoembryonic antigen in pleural effusion and serum.

A carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) enzyme immunoassay test was used to estimate its value in the differential diagnosis of malignant and non-malignant pleural effusions. Paired pleural fluid and serum CEA determinations were performed in 107 patients, 53 with malignant and 54 with non-malignant pleural disease. CEA values uniformly lower than a cut-off level of 5.0 ng/ml were found in the pleural fluid and the serum in the non-malignant group, whereas in the malignant group, values higher than the cut-off level were present in the pleural fluid in 37 (69.8%), and in the serum in 30 (56.6%) of the examined patients. All 30 patients with elevated serum CEA levels also had pleural fluid CEA above 5.0 ng/ml. The results of this study demonstrate that although pleural fluid CEA values below 5.0 ng/ml do not exclude malignancy, increased values strongly suggest that the fluid is of malignant origin. Pleural fluid CEA determination had a 13.2% higher sensitivity, compared with that of the serum, in detecting malignant pleural involvement, yet with no statistical significance.

Orosomucoid, alpha 2-macroglobulin and immunoglobulins in serum and pleural effusions.

Serum and pleural fluid levels of orosomucoid, alpha 2-macroglobulin, IgG, IgA, and IgM were measured in 36, 29, and nine patients suffering from malignant, tuberculous, and non-malignant, non-inflammatory pleural disease, respectively. Pleural fluid concentrations of the studied proteins were higher in tuberculous effusions, but due to wide overlapping of the values, correlation with diagnosis could not be established. The ratio of the pleural fluid to the serum concentration of the studied proteins was below unity with the exception of three tuberculous and one cancer patient who showed higher values of orosomucoid in the pleural fluid. The rate of diffusion of the various proteins in the pleural fluid was inversely proportional to their molecular weight.

Creatine kinase in seminal plasma of infertile men: activity and isoenzymes.

Creatine kinase (CK) activity was determined in the seminal plasma of 169 men divided in a) 11 groups according to etiological diagnosis of infertility and b) 2 groups on the basis of the normal or abnormal spermiogram. Electrophoretic separation of CK isoenzymes on agarose gel was also performed. We found that: 1) in seminal plasma enzyme activity is 4.2 times higher than the upper limit in normal serum, 2) CK activity in seminal plasma is exclusively due to the isoenzyme BB (CK1). 3) there is a statistically significant difference of the enzyme levels between men with normal spermiogram and oligo-asthenozoo-spermics, yet with wide overlapping of the individual values, 4) there is no correlation between CK activity and the variables of the spermiogram, as well as between enzyme activity and fructose or acid phosphatase in seminal plasma.