Aminotransferase activities in mouse, Mus domesticus, erythrocytes separated according to age

Erythrocyte aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activities are often used as indices of vitamin B-6 nutritional status; however, results using a mixed population of erythrocytes can be quite variable. Erythrocytes from two strains of mice (Mus domesticus), A/Ibg and DBA/Ibg, were separated according to age by centrifugation through discontinuous Percoll density gradients into three fractions: top (least dense, youngest), middle and bottom (most dense, oldest). A sufficient yield of age-fractionated erythrocytes was obtained from a single mouse for all of the enzyme measurements. The activities of AST, ALT and three age-marker enzymes, pyruvate kinase, acetylcholinesterase and hexokinase, were found to be significantly higher in the youngest cell fractions, and declined in the older, more dense fractions. A mice had significantly lower AST and ALT activities in the age separated fractions than did DBA mice. The measurement of enzyme activities in low density, young cells may be especially useful in studies involving conditions in which the proportion of young erythrocytes may be elevated with respect to the entire erythrocyte mass.