Effect of radiation on serum glycoproteins and glycosidases in patients with cervical carcinoma

Objective: The serum glycan moieties of glycoproteins and the activities of glycosidases were analyzed in order to elucidate the metabolism of glycoprotein in uterine cervical cancer. Methods: Serum was collected from patients at different stages of cervical cancer before and after treatment. The results were analyzed using Student's t-test. Results: The glycan moieties such as sialic acid and fucose were significantly elevated even in the early stages of carcinoma, whereas a significant elevation in hexose and hexosamine levels was observed only in the advanced stages. Among the investigated lysosomal glycohydrolases, β- d-galactosidase, N-acetyl-β- d-glucosaminidase and α- l-fucosidase activities were elevated significantly at all stages except for stage I. The altered levels of glycoproteins and glycosidases were reduced to near-normal levels after radiotherapy. Conclusion: The levels of glycan moieties and the activities of glycosidases can be used as diagnostic markers to asses the stage of cancer and can be used as prognostic markers during therapy.