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1. The permeability of the synovial membrane for proteins is larger in rheumatoid arthritis than in osteoarthrosis, in rheumatoid arthritis with high CRP activity larger than in rheumatoid arthritis with low CRP activity. 2. The diffusion by the synovial membrane in most plasma proteins takes place depending on their molecular weight. Of the 14 proteins tested only haptoglobin and fibrinogen did not follow this regularity. 3. While the non-immune proteins proved in the synovial fluid only come from the blood plasma, the immune globulins IgG, IgA, and IgM as well as lysozyme are partly also locally synthetized and enriched in rheumatoid arthritis. In rheumatoid arthritis lysozyme is present in the synovia not only in free, but in most cases also in cell-bound form.

The behaviour of the C-reactive protein--an acute phase reactant=-in sera from pregnant women and women with different applications of hormonal contraceptives was analysed. A significant increase of the CRP as a consequence of the effect of the sexualsteroids in 627 single measurements could be shown.

The serum concentration of 3 acute phase reactants (APR) (Caeruloplasmin, Alpha-1-antitrypsin and C-reactive protein) was measured by Mancini-technique praetherapeutically in a group of 214 patients with different sites of gynecological tumors. A group of 27 healthy women was used for comparison. In benign tumors Caeruloplasmin had in cases of myoma significantly (5%-standard) more elevated levels than normal group. In all cases with malignancies all 3 APR had significantly more elevated levels than in benign tumors. In cases of carcinoma of ovary all 3 APR had significant more elevated levels than benign ovarian tumors. The percentage of praetherapeutically elevated Alpha-1-antitrypsin levels was higher, while the percentage of elevated CRP-levels in cases with benign ovarian tumors ("false positive") was lower in comparison to accepted markers for ovarian cancer. Thus it appears to be indicated to prove the value of measurement of APR for monitoring in gynecological oncology.