Sugars and sugar degradation products react in vivo readily with proteins (glycation) resulting in the formation of a heterogeneous group of reaction products, which are called advanced glycation end products (AGEs). AGEs notably change the structure and function of proteins so that extended protein-AGE formation is linked to complications such as nephropathy, atherosclerosis, and cataract. DNA can be glycated in vitro in a similar way as proteins, and the two diastereomers of N(2)-carboxyethyl-2'-deoxyguanosine (CEdG(A,B)) were identified as major DNA AGEs. It was postulated that DNA AGEs play an important role in aging, diabetes, and uremia. However, at the moment, sensitive methods to measure the extent and impact of DNA AGEs in vivo do not exist. In this study, we developed a monoclonal antibody, which recognized CEdG(A,B) with high affinity and specificity (MAb M-5.1.6). The I(50) value for CEdG(A,B) was 2.1 ng/mL, whereas other modified nuclueobases and AGE proteins showed negligible cross-reactivity. Unmodified 2'-deoxyguanosine was only weakly recognized with an I(50) value > 600,000 ng/mL, which is the limit of solubility. MAb M-5.1.6 was then used to measure the urinary excretion of AGE-modified nucleobases in a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The recovery of CEdG(A,B) from human urine was between 87.4 and 99.7% with coefficients of variations between 8.0 and 22.2%. The detection limit was 0.06 ng/mL, and the determination limit was 0.15 ng/mL with a linear range between 0.3 and 100 ng/mL. CEdG equivalents were analyzed in urine samples from 121 healthy volunteers, and concentrations between 1.2 and 117 ng CEdG equiv/mg creatinine were detected.

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Elevated phospholipase A 2 activities in serum were measured in patients suffering from acute pancreatitis or various inflammatory diseases. The photometric phospholipase A assay of Hoffmann & Neumann (Klin. Wochenschr. 67 (1989) 106 -109) was combined with immunoabsorption by different monoclonal antibodies directed against pancreatic phospholipase A 2 . Pancreatic phospholipase A 2 was purified from human duodenal juice. Monoclonal antibodies were prepared by fusion of spleen cells from immunized mice with P3X63-Ag8-653 myeloma cells. Samples with phospholipase A 2 activity were incubated in monoclonal antibody-coated microtitre plates. Phospholipase A 2 activities were determined in the monoclonal antibody-treated samples as well as in control samples. The method allows the determination of the fraction of human phospholipase A 2 isoenzymes in various biological materials. For pancreatic phospholipase A 2 the specific binding capacity was about 60 -80%, the unspecific binding was 5 -30%. Practically no crossreactivity was seen with partially purified serum phospholipase A 2 , with recombinant platelet phospholipase A 2 , or with the sera of patients with non-pancreatic diseases. In conclusion, the present study confirmed the presence of pancreatic phospholipase A 2 in human duodenal juice and in the ascites of necrotizing pancreatitis. However, pancreatic isoenzyme was absent in non-pancreatic inflammatory diseases. Therefore, elevated phospholipase activities in non-pancreatic inflammatory diseases cannot be attributed to the pancreas.