Abstract: A rapid and reliable method is proposed for the quantitative determination of the individual free and acetylated polyamines, i.e. spermine, spermidine, putrescine, acetylspermine, N.sup.1 - and N.sup.8 -acetylspermidines and acetylputrescine in the body fluid of a patient suffering cancer or other diseases to facilitate diagnosis and therapeutic treatment. The method comprises subjecting the aqueous fluid to several enzymatic oxidative decomposition reactions of the polyamines in sequence or in combination by use of the 4 enzymes, i.e. polyamine oxidase AT-1, polyamine oxidase PC-3, putrescine oxidase and acetylputrescine oxidase, and determining, preferably photometrically, the amount of hydrogen peroxide formed as a byproduct in each of the reaction steps followed by setting up a set of simultaneous equations to give the respective amounts of the individual polyamines as a function of the amounts of the hydrogen peroxide formed in the reaction steps and solving the simultaneous equations.

Abstract: A rapid and reliable method is proposed for the quantitative determination of the individual free and acetylated polyamines, i.e. spermine, spermidine, putrescine, acetylspermine, N.sup.1 - and N.sup.8 -acetylspermidines and acetylputrescine in the body fluid of a patient suffering cancer or other deseases to facilitate diagnosis and therapeutic treatment. The method comprises subjecting the aqueous fluid to several enzymatic oxidative decomposition reactions of the polyamines in sequence or in combination by use of the 4 enzymes, i.e. polyamine oxidase AT-1, polyamine oxidase PC-3, putrescine oxidase and acetylputrescine oxidase, and determining, preferably photometrically, the amount of hydrogen peroxide formed as a byproduct in each of the reaction steps followed by setting up a set of simultaneous equations to give the respective amounts of the individual polyamines as a function of the amounts of the hydrogen peroxide formed in the reaction steps and solving the simultaneous equations.