Lysosomal hydrolases in blood-derived macrophages of patients with I-cell disease

Three lysosomal hydrolases, beta-galactosidase, beta-glucuronidase, and beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase, were examined in blood-derived macrophages and media of two patients with I-cell disease. The activities of the three enzymes were lower in I-cell macrophages than in normal controls. However, the media collected from these cells possessed higher activities than control media. beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase derived from media of I-cell macrophages was not endocytosed by fibroblasts from patients with Sandhoff's disease and was only partially endocytosed by I-cell macrophages. These findings indicate that blood-derived macrophages of patients with I-cell disease are affected. In addition, the data presented suggest the presence of two types of receptors in human blood-derived macrophages: mannose and mannose-6-phosphate.