Blood, 1958, Vol. 13, No. 11, pp. 1043-1053.
© 1958 American Society of Hematology, Inc.
Selective Occurrence of Glutathione Instability in Red
Blood Corpuscles of the Various Jewish Tribes
A. SZEINBERG 1,
CH. SHEBA 1, and
A. ADAM 1
1 Government Hospital, Tel Hashomer, Israel.
1. Experience with GSH stability test performed on blood samples to which
glucose has been added is summarized and the procedure is recommended
for routine use for the detection of sensitive subjects.
2. Glutathione stability of erythrocytes has been studied in various population groups of Israel. No case with instable GSH has been found among Jewish
subjects originating from Eastern, Central or Western Europe. Instability
of GSH was however found in about 20 per cent of subjects originating from
Iraq and about 5 per cent of subjects originating from Yemen or North Africa.
Isolated cases of this abnormality were also discovered among a small number
of persons from other Oriental or Mediterranean countries as well as among
the Arab inhabitants of Israel.
3. The genetic analysis points to a transmission of glutathione instability
by a sex-linked, incompletely dominant gene with variable expressivity.
4. Variable expressivity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity has
also been detected in the defective erythrocytes.
Submitted on December 5, 1957
Accepted on April 12, 1958
