Cellular and Tissue Distribution of Intravenously Administered Agalsidase Alfa

Abstract α-Galactosidase A is the lysosomal hydrolase that is deficient in patients with Fabry disease. Intravenous infusion of agalsidase alfa, a preparation of α-Galactosidase A, is used for enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) in patients with Fabry disease. Although ERT appears to show some beneficial effects, most patients show only a modest response. We investigated using immunohistochemistry the relative tissue and cellular distribution of agalsidase alfa after a single intravenous injection in a mouse knockout model of Fabry disease. Specific immunostaining for agalsidase alfa was found only in liver, kidney, heart, testes, adrenal gland, spleen and bone marrow. There was no difference in distribution of the infused enzyme distribution among tissues sampled 4, 24, and 48 h post-injection. The intracellular localization of immunopositivity varied considerably between organs with vascular endothelium being the most commonly positive site. α-Galactosidase A specific activity in tissue homogenates matched the relative extent of agalsidase alfa immunostaining distribution in the same organs. We conclude that intravenously injected agalsidase alfa has a very heterogeneous systemic distribution using an immunostaining technique.