Serum Gm system in liver cirrhosis and hepatoma

Summary Serum Gm polymorphism was studied in 69 patients with liver cirrhosis, in 64 with liver cirrhosis plus hepatoma, in 40 with hepatoma without evidence of cirrhosis, and in 256 controls. The distribution of Gm factors in liver patients differed from that in the control group, this difference apparently being due to the distribution in cirrhosis patients negative for HBsAg and anti-HBs. Furthermore, significantly more heterozygous Gm individuals were found in this group of patients than in the control group. Thus it appears that Gm heterozygous individuals are prone to develop cryptogenic cirrhosis under the influence of other, as yet undetermined factors.     

Serum neopterin levels in liver cirrhosis

Neopterin is a pyrazino-pyrimidine compound which is biosynthesized by macrophages. Increased concentrations of neopterin have been reported in conditions causing a stimulation of cellular immunity, such as viral and other infections, graft versus host disease, autoimmune disease and different malignancies. Recently, urinary neopterin levels have been found increased in patients with acute viral hepatitis and NANB chronic hepatitis. In the present study, neopterin serum levels have been measured in 23 cirrhotic patients (6 HBV related, and 17 cryptogenetic cirrhosis, 7 of them occurring in alcoholic subjects) and in 24 normal subjects. Mean values of serum neopterin were significantly increased in cirrhotics (3.92 +/- 3.28 ng/ml versus 1.24 +/- 0.51 ng/ml in controls, p less than 0.01). Serum neopterin values were not found to be significantly different in cirrhotics assessed in three different clinical classes according to Child's classification and in cirrhotics with and without serological findings of active disease. In fact, in cirrhotic patients, serum neopterin levels did not correlate with the values of serum AST, ALT, ALP, GGT and gamma-globulin. These data show that increased levels of serum neopterin occur in cirrhotic patients, but there is no relation between serum neopterin values and the activity or the clinical severity of the disease. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that activated macrophages are involved in all stages of liver cirrhosis irrespective of its aetiology.     

Serum haptoglobin type and liver cirrhosis.

Haptoglobin phenotypes were studied by a polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis on 200 blood donors and 105 patients with liver cirrhosis, of which 79% belonged to non-alcoholic etiology. Though no difference of haptoglobin types could be found between blood donors with positive and negative hepatitis B antigen, the cirrhois patients had an excess haptoglobin gene 1. The patients with haptoglobin gene 1 were associated with severe liver dysfunction. Since the family pedigrees of the patients with type 1--1 excluded individuals with type 2--2, the phenotypes seemed to be stable in the cirrhotic process. The possibility that the haptoglobin 2 gene offered resistence to the non-alcoholic cirrhosis was discussed.     

Serum and lymph lipids in rabbits with carbon tetrachloride-induced cirrhosis of the liver

Lymph flow and the composition of lymph lipids from the hepatic and thoracic ducts of rabbits with cirrhosis of the liver (induced by 46-51 intramuscular injections of a mixture of carbon tetrachloride and olive oil at 4-day intervals) have been compared with those of control animals injected with olive oil only. In cirrhotic animals, the concentration of lymph lipids was not greatly altered, but lymph flow, and consequently the hourly transport of lipids by lymph were greatly increased; the increase in transport of cholesteryl esters, free cholesterol, and phospholipids by way of the thoracic and hepatic duct lymph was particularly striking. The concentration of these lipid fractions in serum from the cirrhotic rabbits was also increased. The differences normally observed between lipid fatty acid compositions of serum and lymph disappeared in cirrhotic animals; this is interpreted as due to increased hepatic permeability to lipoproteins.     

Serum concentration of zinc, copper, manganese and magnesium in patients with liver cirrhosis

The role of trace elements in the pathogenesis of liver cirrhosis and its complications is still not clearly understood. Serum concentrations of zinc, copper, manganese and magnesium were determined in 105 patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis and 50 healthy subjects by means of plasma sequential spectrophotometer. Serum concentrations of zinc were significantly lower (median 0.82 vs. 11.22 micromol/L, p < 0.001) in patients with liver cirrhosis in comparison to controls. Serum concentrations of copper were significantly higher in patients with liver cirrhosis (median 21.56 vs. 13.09 micromol/L, p < 0.001) as well as manganese (2.50 vs. 0.02 micromol/L, p < 0.001). The concentration of magnesium was not significantly different between patients with liver cirrhosis and controls (0.94 vs. 0.88 mmol/L, p = 0.132). There were no differences in the concentrations of zinc, copper, manganese and magnesium between male and female patients with liver cirrhosis. Only manganese concentration was significantly different between Child-Pugh groups (p = 0.036). Zinc concentration was significantly lower in patients with hepatic encephalopathy in comparison to cirrhotic patients without encephalopathy (0.54 vs. 0.96 micromol/L, p = 0.002). The correction of trace elements concentrations might have a beneficial effect on complications and maybe progression of liver cirrhosis. It would be recommendable to provide analysis of trace elements as a routine.     

Functional restructurings of the mononuclear phagocyte system in experimental liver cirrhosis

In rats with CCl4-induced liver cirrhosis the clearance rate of colloid carbon particles was more than 2 times lower than in control animals. Simultaneously the uptake capacity of liver Kupffer calls falls. The number of phagocytizing liver macrophages decreased. Along with the diminished functional activity of liver macrophages in cirrhotic liver, the total number of lung and spleen macrophages increased 1.5-fold, with their uptake capacity increasing 10- and 3-fold, respectively. The nitroblue tetrazolium dye reduction and methacrylate particles uptake by alveolar macrophages in vitro rises. The liver, lung, spleen and peritoneal macrophages during liver fibrosis become less sensitive to zymosan stimulation. The incidence of zymosan-induced liver infiltrates decreases 50-fold, while in the lungs they do not develop at all. Such a decreased macrophage reactivity may be closely linked with progressing, poorly reversible liver fibrosis.     

Photosynthetic characteristics and antioxidant enzyme system in high-chlorophyll rice Gc mutant

The physiological photosynthetic characteristics and antioxidant enzyme system of the high-chlorophyll rice (Oryza sativa L.) mutant (Gc) and its wild type (Zhenshan 97B) were compared and analyzed. Resulting data showed that the total chlorophyll (Chl) and Chl b contents in the Gc mutant were significantly increased by 19.0 and 81.7%, respectively, while the increase in Chl a and thylakoid membrane protein contents was insignificant. The net photosynthetic rate (P _N) was significantly higher in the mutant; stomatal conductance, intercellular CO₂ concentration, and transpiration rate decreased significantly, and water-use efficiency increased significantly, indicating the higher photochemical efficiency of the mutant. The chlorophyll fluorescence parameters: electron transport rate and effective quantum yield of PSII photochemistry of the mutant were significantly higher than those of Zhenshan 97B. The nonphotochemical quenching of the mutant under light adaptation increased by 52.3%. The enzymatic activity of superoxide dismutase, peroxidas, and catalase in the mutant roots and leaves were all higher than those for the wild-type plants. It is believed that the higher activity of antioxidant enzymes in the mutant may be an important factor making difficult the photo-inactivation of Chl, and thus, increasing the content of Chl, especially Chl b.