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Prostatic acid phosphatase

 

 
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Prostatic acid phosphatase
 
 
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Prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP), also prostatic specific acid phosphatase (PSAP), is an enzyme
Enzyme

Enzymes are biomolecules that catalysis chemical reactions. Almost all enzymes are proteins. In enzymatic reactions, the molecules at the beginning of the process are called Substrate , and the enzyme converts them into different molecules, the products....
 produced by the prostate
Prostate

The prostate is a compound tubuloalveolar exocrine gland of the male mammalian reproductive system. Females do not have a prostate gland, although females do have tiny paraurethral Skene's glands connected to the distal third of the urethra in the prevaginal space that are homologous to the prostate....
. It may be found in increased amounts in men who have prostate cancer
Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is a disease in which cancer develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. It occurs when cell s of the prostate Mutation and begin to multiply out of control....
 or other diseases.

The highest levels of acid phosphatase are found in metastasized prostate cancer. Diseases of the bone, such as Paget's disease
Paget's disease

Sir James Paget, a prolific surgeon and pathologist, described several diseases, including:* Paget's disease of bone * Paget's disease of the breast...
 or hyperparathyroidism
Hyperparathyroidism

Hyperparathyroidism is overactivity of the parathyroid glands resulting in excess production of parathyroid hormone . The parathyroid hormone regulates calcium and phosphate levels and helps to maintain these levels....
, diseases of blood cell
Blood cell

A blood cell is any cell of any type normally found in blood. In mammals, these fall into three general categories:*Red blood cells*White blood cells...
s, such as sickle-cell disease
Sickle-cell disease

Sickle-cell disease or sickle-cell anaemia is a life-long blood disorder characterized by red blood cells that assume an abnormal, rigid, sickle shape....
 or multiple myeloma
Multiple myeloma

Multiple myeloma is a cancer of plasma cells. These immune system cells are formed in bone marrow, are numerous in lymphatics and produce antibody....
 or lysosomal storage disease
Lysosomal storage disease

Lysosomal storage diseases are a group of approximately 40 rare inherited metabolic disorders that result from defects in lysosome function. Lysosomal storage diseases result when a specific organelle in the body's cells ? the lysosome ? malfunctions....
s, such as Gaucher's disease
Gaucher's disease

Gaucher's disease is the most common of the lysosomal storage diseases. It is caused by a deficiency of the enzyme glucocerebrosidase , leading to an accumulation of its substrate, the fatty substance cerebroside ....
, will show moderately increased levels.

Certain medication
Medication

A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine or medicament, can be loosely defined as any substance intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease....
s can cause temporary increases or decreases in acid phosphatase levels.






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Encyclopedia


Prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP), also prostatic specific acid phosphatase (PSAP), is an enzyme
Enzyme

Enzymes are biomolecules that catalysis chemical reactions. Almost all enzymes are proteins. In enzymatic reactions, the molecules at the beginning of the process are called Substrate , and the enzyme converts them into different molecules, the products....
 produced by the prostate
Prostate

The prostate is a compound tubuloalveolar exocrine gland of the male mammalian reproductive system. Females do not have a prostate gland, although females do have tiny paraurethral Skene's glands connected to the distal third of the urethra in the prevaginal space that are homologous to the prostate....
. It may be found in increased amounts in men who have prostate cancer
Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is a disease in which cancer develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. It occurs when cell s of the prostate Mutation and begin to multiply out of control....
 or other diseases.

The highest levels of acid phosphatase are found in metastasized prostate cancer. Diseases of the bone, such as Paget's disease
Paget's disease

Sir James Paget, a prolific surgeon and pathologist, described several diseases, including:* Paget's disease of bone * Paget's disease of the breast...
 or hyperparathyroidism
Hyperparathyroidism

Hyperparathyroidism is overactivity of the parathyroid glands resulting in excess production of parathyroid hormone . The parathyroid hormone regulates calcium and phosphate levels and helps to maintain these levels....
, diseases of blood cell
Blood cell

A blood cell is any cell of any type normally found in blood. In mammals, these fall into three general categories:*Red blood cells*White blood cells...
s, such as sickle-cell disease
Sickle-cell disease

Sickle-cell disease or sickle-cell anaemia is a life-long blood disorder characterized by red blood cells that assume an abnormal, rigid, sickle shape....
 or multiple myeloma
Multiple myeloma

Multiple myeloma is a cancer of plasma cells. These immune system cells are formed in bone marrow, are numerous in lymphatics and produce antibody....
 or lysosomal storage disease
Lysosomal storage disease

Lysosomal storage diseases are a group of approximately 40 rare inherited metabolic disorders that result from defects in lysosome function. Lysosomal storage diseases result when a specific organelle in the body's cells ? the lysosome ? malfunctions....
s, such as Gaucher's disease
Gaucher's disease

Gaucher's disease is the most common of the lysosomal storage diseases. It is caused by a deficiency of the enzyme glucocerebrosidase , leading to an accumulation of its substrate, the fatty substance cerebroside ....
, will show moderately increased levels.

Certain medication
Medication

A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine or medicament, can be loosely defined as any substance intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease....
s can cause temporary increases or decreases in acid phosphatase levels. Manipulation of the prostate gland through massage, biopsy
Biopsy

A biopsy is a medical test involving the removal of Cell_s or Biological tissues for examination. It is the removal of tissue from a living subject to determine the presence or extent of a disease....
 or rectal exam before a test may increase the level.

Utility in prostatic cancer


Serum marker

PSAP was used to monitor and assess progression of prostate cancer
Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is a disease in which cancer develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. It occurs when cell s of the prostate Mutation and begin to multiply out of control....
 until the introduction of prostate specific antigen
Prostate specific antigen

Prostate specific antigen is a protein produced by the cells of the prostate gland. PSA is present in small quantities in the Blood plasma of normal men, and is often elevated in the presence of prostate cancer and in other prostate disorders....
 (PSA), which has now largely displaced it. Recent work, suggesting it has a role in prognosticating
Prognosis

Prognosis is a medicine term denoting the Physician's prediction of how a patient will progress, and whether there is a chance of recovery. This word is often used in medical reports dictating a physician's view on a case....
 intermediate and high-risk prostate cancer, has lead to renewed interest in this marker.

Immunohistochemistry

PSAP immunohistochemical staining is often used with PSA (staining), by pathologists, to help distinguish poorly differentiated carcinoma
Carcinoma

A carcinoma is any malignant cancer that arises from Epithelium. Carcinomas invade surrounding tissues and organs and may Metastasis, or spread, to lymph nodes and other sites....
s. For example, poorly differentiated prostate adenocarcinoma (prostate cancer
Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is a disease in which cancer develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. It occurs when cell s of the prostate Mutation and begin to multiply out of control....
) and urothelial carcinoma (bladder cancer
Bladder cancer

Bladder cancer refers to any of several types of malignant growths of the urinary bladder. It is a disease in which abnormal cells multiply without control in the bladder....
) may appear similar under the microscope
Microscope

A microscope is an Laboratory equipment for viewing objects that are too small to be seen by the naked or unaided eye. The science of investigating small objects using such an instrument is called microscopy....
, but PSAP and PSA
Prostate specific antigen

Prostate specific antigen is a protein produced by the cells of the prostate gland. PSA is present in small quantities in the Blood plasma of normal men, and is often elevated in the presence of prostate cancer and in other prostate disorders....
 staining can help differentiate them; prostate adenocarcinoma often stains with PSA and/or PSAP, while urothelial carcinoma does not.

Presumptive test for semen

Prostatic acid phosphatase is present in semen
Semen

Semen is an organic fluid, also known as seminal fluid, that usually contains spermatozoon....
 and its presence can be used as a presumptive test
Presumptive test

In medicine and forensic science, a presumptive test is an analysis of a sample which establishes either:#The sample is definitely not a certain substance...
 for semen. Other acid phosphatase
Acid phosphatase

Acid phosphatase is a phosphatase, a type of enzyme, used to free attached phosphate groups from other molecules during digestion. It is basically a phosphomonoesterase....
s are present in other bodily fluids, but the high concentration of PAP in semen gives a strong indication that semen is present.

HIV

PAP may play an important role in the transmission of HIV
HIV

Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that can lead to AIDS , a condition in humans in which the immune system begins to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections....
. Researchers at the University of Ulm
University of Ulm

The University of Ulm is a public university in the city of Ulm, in the South Germany state of Baden-W?rttemberg. The university was founded in 1967 and focuses on natural sciences, medicine and the engineering sciences, mathematics/ economics and computer science....
 in Germany
Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
 found that PAP forms fibers made of amyloid
Amyloid

Amyloids are insoluble fibrous protein aggregates sharing specific structural traits. Abnormal accumulation of amyloid in organs may lead to amyloidosis, and may play a role in various other neurodegenerative diseases....
. They called the fibers Semen-derived Enhancer of Virus Infection (SEVI) and showed that they capture HIV virions promoting their attachment to target cells. The association of PAP with HIV may increase the ability of the virus to infect human cells "by several orders of magnitude." PAP may be a future target of efforts to combat the spread of HIV infection.

Pain suppression

A study at the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina

The University of North Carolina system includes all sixteen public four-year universities in North Carolina, United States and one North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics....
 and University of Helsinki
University of Helsinki

The University of Helsinki is a university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku 1640 as The Royal Academy of Turku....
 suggested that PAP could have potent antinociceptive, antihyperalgesic, and antiallodynic effects that last longer than morphine
Morphine

Morphine is a highly potent opiate analgesic Medication, is the principal active agent in opium, and is considered to be the prototypical opioid....
. One dose of PAP lasted for up to three days, much longer than the five hours gained with a single dose of morphine. When in distress, nerve cells release a chemical known as adenosine triphosphate
Adenosine triphosphate

This article is about the chemical used by cells as an energy carrier. For other uses, see ATP .Adenosine-5'-triphosphate is a multifunctional nucleotide, and plays an important role in cell biology as a coenzyme that is the "molecule unit of currency" of intracellular energy transfer....
 (ATP) which in turn invokes a painful sensation. ATP is broken down into AMP which PAP converts into adenosine
Adenosine

Adenosine is a nucleoside composed of a molecule of adenine attached to a ribose sugar molecule moiety via a ?-N9-glycosidic bond....
, a molecule known to suppress pain.

History

PSAP was the first useful serum
Serum

Serum may refer to:*Blood plasma, with clotting factors removed*Antiserum, for transfer of passive immunity*Serous fluid, any clear bodily fluid...
 tumour marker and emerged in the 1940s and 1950s.

See also

  • Adenocarcinoma not otherwise specified


Further reading


External links