Schistosomiasis: proline production and release by ova.

The production and release of proline was measured in cleaned ova of Schistosoma mansoni. Proline was found to be released at approximately 76 mumoles/100 cc of ova water/hr. This high rate of proline production was found to correlate with extremely active proline synthetic enzymes in the ova. Ornithine-delta-transaminase, which converts ornithine to delta 1-pyrroline-5-carboxylic acid, was found to be twice that of adult schistosomes and over seven times that of rat liver. delta 1-pyrroline-5-carboxylic acid reductase, which converts delta 1-pyrroline-5-carboxylic acid to proline, is also more active than the adult isoenzyme and 35 times more active than the rat liver isoenzyme. These data suggest that proline emanating from the ova may play a role in stimulating fibrosis in the granulomata of schistosomiasis.