ENZYMES IN CLINICAL DIAGNOSIS

The rationale for measuring plasma or serum enzyme levels is based on the premise that these  levels reflect changes  that  have  occurred  in  a  specific tissue or  organ. Enzymes present  in  the  blood  are of  two types  - one type  such  as  thrombin (associated  with blood  coagulation)  has  a functional  role  and  is  present  in  high concentration, the other type has no functional role in the blood and is present in very small amount. The latter  types of enzymes mainly originate from different tissues or organs. An  insult  in  the  form of any disease may  cause changes in  cell membrane permeability or increased cell death, resulting in the release of intracellular  enzymes into the blood.