Evening star., 1955-11-06
Aging Sickness Held
Hereditary in Clon


ANN ARBoR,. Mich, Nov. 6
R.-An "aging" sickness. har-
bored in the blood Of one farm
family for generations. has given
two University Of Michigan doc
tors an inside look at hereditary
disease.
Their study has found the
disease In the blood streams of
even the youngest members Of
the family. Children. aged 8 and
4, have the blood Of much older
persons. even though they don't
show the outward signs.
Drs. Walter D. Block and John
Rukavina, who first made their
report last May. said the meth
ods they used allow medical SCI
enee for the first time to 60
beneath the surface in finding
hereditary disease.
The Search Begins
In 1858, a man from a rural
community somewhere In the
northern hemisphere was ad-
mitted to University Hospital.
He died a year later. but his story
and his death led the doctors
on q long. continuing search.
DR.. Rukayina said the man,
about SO. complained Of loss Of
vision, weakness and pains in
his chest. He also had a numb
ness. a tingling and burning SEN
sation in his hands. especially
when it was cold.
Doctors told him he had neu-
ritis, which covers a multitude
of medical troubles. No one made
a clear diagnosis. however. and
University, doctors themselves
were stumped.
Then one day Or. Howard
Falls, an ophthalmologist, saw
deposits in the eye Of the man,
which he said looked like collec-
tions Of q starch like material
he had read of before.
To doctors. this meant pos
sibly primary systemic amyloi-
dosis. To laymen, it means
starch-like deposits through the
mans entire system and doctors
didn't know the cause. It also
indicates that the body is fail-
ing to produce correct blood pro-
teins, leading to hardened art
cries and heart failure.
Others In Area Affected
DR.. Rukavina said the man
told them that many people In
his community had the same
trouble. Most Of them, he said,
were farming people. but they
were forced to give up their work
and sit In rocking chairs on their
front porches. The weakness and
the painful hands made carpen-
try and milking impossible.
The man asked his cousin, a
250-pound 58-year-oid man, 70
come to the hospital. too. The
cousin looked healthy and ro-
bust, DR.. Rukavina said. but
tests showed he too had primary
systemic amyloidosis. He also
had marked cardio-vascular diff
ficuIties. trouble In his heart,
veins and arteries.
The doctors became suspicious.
A flve-man team went 70 the
community to make tests. Then
DR.. Rukayina went to live among
them.
He took the problem to the
people. In their own church,
assisted by their local ministers.
he explained the disease TO the
assembled citizens and asked
their co-operati0fi
They co-operated to the
fullest extent, giving their blood
and bone samples for analysis.
Local doctors also turned their
offices over to the work of the
medical researchers.
Use Latest Devices
With the use Of electrophoresis
and an ultra -centfifuge, Doctors
Block and Rukavina began To
find new mysteries Youngsters
from 8 to l8 turned out 70 have
elevated bloodsfat fractions
which seemed TO resemble the
vascular systems Of older
people. =
They were, In effect, young
on the outside hut old on the
inside "
Electrophoresis Is d method Of
separating the fat-pruteiu
groups Of the blood by electricity
for biochernical examination
since all groups Of fat-proteins
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