[A study of superoxide dismutase in erythrocytes in Duchenne muscular dystrophy].

In orders to search for possible events in the pathogenesis of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), the activity of erythrocyte superoxide dismutase has been determined in thirty-seven patients and fifteen carriers of DMD, comparison to fourty-five age-matched normal controls, seventeen cases of infantile, Kugelberg-Welander type spinal muscle atrophy. The results showed that superoxide dismutase activity were elevated especially in early periods of disease in DMD but not in other groups of patients. These findings suggest that alterations of SOD do not constitute the primary mechanism of inducing membrane damage. A considerable increased SOD activity in DMD patients may be a compensatory phenomenon secondary to muscle degeneration.