Serum Leucine Aminopeptidase Isozyme and Histological Findings of Liver Biopsy

Liver biopsy and examination of the serum LAP zymogram in 41 patients with hepatic diseases revealed that the appearance of pathological LAP isozyme α_2 and α_2β found in the sera of patients with hepatobiliary diseases is related with the simultaneous presence of biliary obstruction (bile plug and bile pigment granules in Kupffer's cells or hepatic cells) and hepatic cell injuries (irregularity of the size and staining of nucleus, disappearance of nucleus, decreased basophilism of cystoplasm, and formation of eosinophilic granules).