Dimethylmethylene blue-based spectrophotometry of glycosaminoglycans in untreated urine: a rapid screening procedure for mucopolysaccharidoses

Abstract

Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) are measured in urine to screen for mucopolysaccharidoses. Other assay procedures are only qualitative (spot tests), can give false-negative results (spot tests, turbidity tests), or are relatively laborious (uronic acid-carbazole test). The present spectrophotometric procedure, based on the color reaction with dimethylmethylene blue (DMB), can be performed directly on untimed urine samples without prior precipitation. Reference values were age dependent. We tested urines of 27 patients with various mucopolysaccharidoses and compared results by three other procedures (cetylpyridinium chloride turbidity tests at pH 4.8 and at pH 7.0, and the uronic acid-carbazole test). In the DMB assay, GAGs were increased in 26 of the 27 patients. The exception was a Morquio A patient, whose activity of the defective enzyme was higher than in classical Morquio patients. Uronic acid, measured in precipitated GAG by the carbazole test, was increased in 23 of the 25 patients so tested. In the turbidity test at pH 7.0, values were increased in 24 of the 27 patients. In contrast, with the citrate-buffered (pH 4.8) turbidity measurement, GAG content was increased in only 19 of the 27 patients. This rapid and easy DMB method is a reliable screening procedure for mucopolysaccharidoses and compares well with procedures used hitherto.