Comparative study on the sensitivity of several serum enzymes in detecting hepatic damage in rats

In a short-term study the response of ornithine carbamyl transferase (OCT) was compared to that of glutamic oxalacetic transaminase (GOT) and glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT) in the serum of rats after treatment with single doses of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4). Furthermore, the sensitivity of gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (gamma-GT) was studied in comparison to alkaline phosphatase (AP) and bilirubin. After dosing 100 microliter CCl4/kg, the response of OCT activity was 10- and 20-times higher than that of GOT and GPT, respectively. At 300 microliter/kg we observed an increase of up to 17- and 34-times of GOT and GPT activities. Maximal elevation of gamma-GT activity was about twice that of AP and of the bilirubin content. Moreover, the variability of the gamma-GT activities was found to be considerably higher, than that of AP and bilirubin levels. These results indicate, that OCT is a useful parameter to detect hepatic parenchymal injury, whereas gamma-GT cannot be proposed as an alternative to AP and bilirubin.