Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts: Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound   Target Concepts: Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound

---

Query: EC:2.6.1.2 (alanine aminotransferase)
26,722 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a complex of macromolecules that includes collagens, proteoglycans, and complex glycoproteins. In fibrotic liver tissue there is an increase in all of these matrix components, and they increase in serum in the patients with alcoholic hepatitis or liver cirrhosis. These ECM components have been used as a serum marker of hepatic fibrosis. Prolonged obstruction of bile flow results in morphologic and biochemical changes and the development of secondary biliary cirrhosis. In congenital biliary atresia (CBA) there is a close correlation between the degree of the hepatic fibrosis and bile flow after the operation. We estimated that, in CBA, ECM increased in serum, and it would reflect the degree of the hepatic fibrosis. To clarify this we examined the serum procollagen-III-peptide (P-III-P) and laminin in CBA patients. P-III-P was elevated in all preoperative patients but in two of the three postoperative patients whose jaundice disappeared P-III-P was in the normal range. In the all 3 patients whose jaundice continued, P-III-P was in normal range. Serum laminin was elevated in 12 preoperative patients with CBA, but there is no correlation between day of diagnosis and level of laminin. Mean concentration in CBA without jaundice after operation was 3.18 U/mL, 3.226 U/mL in CBA with jaundice and 3.3 U/mL in infantile hepatitis. There were no significant differences among three groups. With the elevation of serum alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and total bilirubin, serum laminin level was also increased.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
...
PMID:Laminin and procollagen-III-peptide as a serum marker for hepatic fibrosis in congenital biliary atresia. 150 Oct 26

In an attempt to study the diagnostic value of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), serum AFP concentrations were measured by radioimmunoassay in 34 neonates and infants with obstructive hepatobiliary diseases and the results were compared with the normal ranges of AFP at this age. Eighteen of 24 infants with biliary atresia and four of six infants with neonatal hepatitis had raised AFP values. In only one of four infants with choledochal cyst, did the AFP value exceed the normal range. In 10 older children with this lesion, AFP was normal. Serum AFP concentrations in biliary atresia did not correlate with the serum bilirubin, s-GOT, s-GPT, anatomic type of the lesion or postoperative bile flow. From these observations, it would appear that the elevation of AFP in infantile cholestasis is unrelated to underlying diseases except in case of alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency. Serum AFP concentrations in neonates with physiological jaundice, were seldom elevated, and showed a good correlation with serum levels of total bilirubin. Possible mechanisms causing this elevation of AFP may be different from those involved in infantile cholestasis.
...
PMID:Alpha-fetoprotein in infantile obstructive jaundice in comparison with the normal ranges. 616 59

The gamma-GT/ASAT (aspartate aminotransferase) and gamma-GT/ALAT (alanine aminotransferase) ratios were examined in 6 children with neonatal hepatitis (NH), 14 children with extrahepatic biliary atresia (EHBA), and 8 children with intrahepatic cholestasis (IHC) (of which 3 with the Aagenaes syndrome). A ratio above 1 is suggestive of EHBA. Both ratios differentiate very well between NH and EHBA, but there is considerable overlap in the enzyme ratios between the EHBA and the IHC groups. Gamma-GT/transaminase ratios may prove to be a useful indicator in the diagnostic work-up of children with liver and biliary tract disease, allowing for early surgery in patients with EHBA, and with a low risk of subjecting NH patients to unnecessary surgery. In our cases the gamma-GT/ALAT ratio separated better between EHBA and IHC than the gamma-GT/ASAT ratio. Furthermore, the case histories made EHBA seem unlikely in two out of three IHC patients with a gamma-GT/ALAT ratio above 1.
...
PMID:Liver enzyme ratios in neonatal liver disease. 652 89

Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids are important for the growth and early development of the central nervous system. Cholestatic infants suffer from fat malabsorption and disturbed lipid metabolism and therefore may be at risk of developing polyunsaturated fatty acid depletion. The aims of this study were to determine essential fatty acid status in cholestatic infants and to study the relationship to disease severity, degree of undernutrition, antioxidant status and mode of feeding. Twenty-four-hour dietary records were obtained in 34 cholestatic infants, and measurements were taken of skin fold thicknesses, bilirubin levels, activities of serum alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, prothrombin time, serum concentrations of albumin, bile acids, total lipids, phospholipids, cholesterol, vitamins A and E, the fatty acid composition of plasma phospholipids and plasma lipid peroxides expressed as thiobarbiturate reactive substance (TBARS). Plasma phospholipid fatty acids and TBARS were also determined in 12 age-matched healthy control infants. The cholestatic patients had very low percentage values of phospholipid essential fatty acids, particularly linoleic acid ( 18:2omega-6, median 14.74% vs 20.76% in controls, p < 0.001) and its major metabolite arachidonic acid (20:4omega-6, 6.80 vs 7.87%, p=0.04). The patients' essential fatty acid depletion was reflected by increased levels of the non-essential fatty acids, Mead acid (20:3omega-9, 0.74 vs 0.21%, p < 0.001) and palmitoleic acid (16:1omega-7, 2.20 vs 0.43%, p < 0.001). Polyunsaturated fatty acid profiles did not differ between infants with biliary atresia (n=13) and those with intrahepatic cholestasis (n=21), or between 17 infants with severe malnutrition (all skin folds < 10th percentile) and mild malnutrition (at least two skin folds > 10th percentile). TBARS were significantly higher in cholestatic patients than in controls (2.74 vs 0.85 nmol ml(-1), p < 0.001) and correlated with direct (r=0.41, p=0.02) and total bilirubin. The daily dietary intake of linoleic acid (per 100 kcal) correlated with plasma phospholipid linoleic acid (r=0.38,p=0.037) and total omega-6 fatty acids (r=0.38,p=0.036). Breastfed cholestatic infants (n=6) had higher values of the omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids docosapentanoic acid (22:5omega-3, 0.47 vs 0.28%, p=0.0006) and docosahexanoic acid (22:6omega-3, 2.39 vs 1.73%, p=0.01) than formula-fed infants, while disease severity was similar in the two groups. In conclusion, cholestatic infants are at high risk of essential fatty acid depletion, which appears to be related to fat malabsorption, hepatic essential fatty metabolism, enhanced lipid peroxidation and dietary intake.
...
PMID:Essential fatty acid metabolism in infants with cholestasis. 956 34

Patients with severe liver diseases, such as liver cirrhosis and biliary atresia, have low natural killer (NK) cell activity. The relations between NK activity and measures of liver function, including serum levels of total bilirubin, total bile acids, bile acid components, aspartate aminotransferase, and alanine aminotransferase, and platelet count were examined in patients with biliary atresia (6 boys and 6 girls; mean age, 4.8+/-5.7 years) and patients with liver cirrhosis due to hepatitis C virus infection (10 men and 2 women; mean age, 54.3+/-13.8 years). Univariate analysis showed that platelet count was positively correlated with NK activity in patients with biliary atresia (r = 0.611, P < 0.05). Serum levels of free chenodeoxycholic acid were negatively correlated with NK activity both in patients with biliary atresia (r = -0.647, P < 0.05) and in patients with hepatitis C virus-related liver cirrhosis (r = -0.876, P < 0.01). None of the other free bile acids or conjugated bile acids or other indicators of liver function were correlated with NK activity. Multiple stepwise regression analysis showed that only levels of free chenodeoxycholic acid were independently correlated with NK activity. All patients with biliary atresia underwent liver transplantation from living related donors. NK activity had increased significantly two months after transplantation (from 24.1+/-20.2% to 49.2+/-12.5%, P < 0.01). In contrast, levels of free chenodeoxycholic acid in transplant recipients had decreased significantly two months after transplantation (from 1.22+/-1.16 to 0.26+/-0.21 micromol/l, P < 0.05). In conclusion, in patients with biliary atresia or liver cirrhosis, NK activity in peripheral blood decreases, mostly because of free chenodeoxycholic acid.
...
PMID:Immunosuppressive effect of chenodeoxycholic acid on natural killer cell activity in patients with biliary atresia and hepatitis C virus-related liver cirrhosis. 1201 7

Serum samples from healthy and diseased children were studied for the presence of TTV DNA by nested PCR using primer sets generated from N-22 region and from the untranslated region (UTR) of the viral genome. N-22 positive TTV DNA was detectable in 33 (27%) of 122 healthy children, 47 (73.4%) of 64 polytransfused thalassemic children, 37 (46.3%) of 80 children who received transfusion during cardiac surgery, 8 (42.1%) of 19 non-A to E hepatitis, 10 (33.3%) of 30 HBV carrier children, and 5 (15.6%) of 32 infants with biliary atresia. A much higher prevalence of TTV DNA with rates varying from 78-100% in the above study groups was observed using the UTR primers. For children with N-22 positive TTV DNA, biochemical assessment of isolated TTV viremia in thalassemic children or children transfused during surgery showed no convincing association between raised ALT levels and TTV viremia. Coinfection with TTV in chronic HCV-infected or HBV-infected children did not result in higher peak ALT levels during follow-up, suggesting that TTV has no synergistic pathogenic effect. The phylogenetic analysis of the N-22 positive TTV DNA isolates revealed that most isolates from healthy children, children transfused during surgery, and non-A to E fulminant hepatitis children were type 1 TTV. These results indicate that TTV infection in children was significantly associated with transfusion. TTV infection is highly prevalent in early childhood in Taiwan but plays a minimal role in the induction of hepatitis in children.
...
PMID:TT virus infection in healthy children, children after blood transfusion, and children with non-A to E hepatitis or other liver diseases in Taiwan. 1243 79

Biliary atresia (BA) is a neonatal obliterative cholangiopathy of unknown etiology. Despite the Kasai procedure, hepatic fibrosis and portal hypertension (PH) still occur. Interleukin-8 (IL-8) is an important mediator of inflammation and immune response in human disease. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential role of IL-8 in the pathogenesis of the progressive, sclerosing, inflammatory process and fibrosis in BA. A total of 60 pediatric patients with BA and 15 healthy children were evaluated. The mean ages of BA patients and controls were 6.3 +/- 0.6 and 6.7 +/- 1.1 years, respectively. The patients were classified into two groups according to their clinical outcomes: patients with jaundice (total bilirubin +/- 25.5 micromol/l) and patients without jaundice (total bilirubin < 25.5 micromol/l). The IL-8 levels in serum samples were determined by commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Serum IL-8 levels were higher in the BA patients than in healthy children (236.2 +/- 60.1 vs. 34.5 +/- 12.1 pg/ml, P < 0.001). Patients with jaundice had lower levels of albumin but had greater levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, and gamma glutamyl transpeptidase compared with patients without jaundice. Serum IL-8 levels in the jaundice group were significantly higher than in those without jaundice (516.5 +/- 130.0 vs. 49.3 +/- 10.4 pg/ml, P < 0.0005). Furthermore, patients with PH had higher IL-8 levels than those without PH (378.1 +/- 102.2 vs. 106.6 +/- 48.4 pg/ml, P < 0.005). In the jaundice-free group, IL-8 levels were elevated in patients with PH compared with those without PH (79.0 +/- 17.4 vs. 19.7 +/- 5.8 pg/ml, P < 0.005). The present study demonstrated elevation of serum IL-8 levels in children with BA. Serum IL-8 levels were also higher in patients with jaundice compared with patients without jaundice. These findings suggest that IL-8 may play a significant role in the pathogenesis of BA.
...
PMID:Serum interleukin-8 in children with biliary atresia: relationship with disease stage and biochemical parameters. 1561 91

Since 1975, our experience in the treatment of biliary atresia with Kasai's technique has improved little by little, achieving 65% favourable outcome in the last five years. We define "good results" as the complete restoration of biliary flow and normalization of bilirrubin levels. The long-term evolution of these good results can be diverse. The objective of the present work is to analyze the outcome of patients in our series in whom a favourable initial response was achieved, as well as evaluating their present situation and future perspectives. The authors present a total of 17 patients operated by Kasai's technique since 1985, that constitutes the group with good results in our series. The controls were based on general analysis, liver function and periodic ultrasound explorations. All received a standardized medical treatment consisting of vitamin supplements (A, D3, E, K) minerals (zinc, calcium, phosphate, iron) ursodexoxicolic acid, luminal,as well as close control of calorie intake. In two patients the levels of bilirrubine were progressively increased with time, stabilizing at between 5/6 mgs/100 ml, with progressive hepatic hardening, appearance of splenomegalia, indirect signs of portal hypertension and a slight deterioration of hepatic function. One received a transplant at age 12 with Quick levels below 50%. The other, aged 16, continues with an acceptable hepatic function and good quality of life under recommendation of transplant. Eleven patients with ages ranging from fourteen months to seventeen years presented slight and firm hepatomegalia, moderate portal hypertension, GOT 71 +/- 8 mg/100 ml, GPT 97 +/- 11 mg/100 ml and normal bilirrubine levels. From this group, 3 patients, all under five years of age, experienced bleeding from esophageal varices which were controlled by sclerosis and medical treatment (propanolol and isosorbide dinitrate). Recently, one three year-old patient developed a hepatocarcinoma of rapid, mortal evolution. Since then, the determination of alfa-feto protein in follow-up controls has been introduced. Four other patients of 5, 6, 14, 16, years of age are completely assymptomatic with an excellent clinical evolution. In our experience,the patients that overcome the third year after surgery without serious complications seem destined to reach puberty with a good quality of life. However, some cases show signs of hepatic fibrosis and portal hypertension, 77% in our series. Only 23% of patients with a favorable initial evolution appear to present a complete normalization of their hepatic lesion in the long term.
...
PMID:[Biliary atresias operated with favourable results: predictable outcome]. 1590 Nov 4

Biliary atresia (BA) remains one of the most intractable liver diseases in children. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible roles of nitric oxide (NO) in BA. Serum levels of nitrite and nitrate (NO production) were determined using a colorimetric method from 65 post-operative BA patients and 12 healthy children. The patients were categorized into two groups according to their jaundice status, and serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT, a marker for liver injury). Unpaired t tests were used. Data are expressed as mean and SD in terms of mumol/l. Age and gender between BA patients and controls were comparable. Serum NO metabolites of BA patients was higher than the controls (79.77+/-21.22 vs. 65.75+/-9.44, P=0.001). Subgroup analysis revealed that there was no difference in serum nitrate/nitrite levels of BA patients without jaundice compared to those with jaundice (78.85+/-23.23 vs. 80.90+/-18.76, P=0.70). However, patients with serum ALT> or =100 IU/l had higher levels of serum NO metabolites compared to those with serum ALT<100 IU/l. In conclusion, NO production was elevated in BA patients compared to normal controls. Serum NO was associated with serum ALT levels, but not with jaundice status, in BA patients. These suggest that NO plays a role in the pathophysiology of liver injury in post-operative BA.
...
PMID:Elevated serum nitric oxide metabolites in biliary atresia. 1628 36

The purpose of this study was to determine the possible role of serum levels of tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1) in the pathogenesis of the progressive inflammation and fibrosis in biliary atresia (BA). Serum concentrations of TIMP-1 were measured in 57 BA patients and 15 healthy controls using commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. The mean ages of the BA patients and the controls were 6.1 +/- 0.6 and 6.7 +/- 1.1 years, respectively. The patients were categorized into two groups according to their clinical outcomes: patients with jaundice (total bilirubin > or = 2 mg/dl) and patients without jaundice (total bilirubin < 2 mg/dl). In our study, serum levels of TIMP-1 were significantly higher in the BA patients than in healthy subjects (4.8 +/- 0.4 vs. 3.5 +/- 0.3 ng/ml, respectively; p < 0.05). Additionally, serum levels of TIMP-1 significantly increased in the BA patients with jaundice in comparison to those without jaundice (6.3 +/- 0.7 vs. 3.1 +/- 0.3 ng/ml, respectively; p = 0.001). Patients with persistent jaundice had lower levels of albumin but had greater levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, and gamma glutamyl transpeptidase compared with patients without jaundice. Furthermore, patients with portal hypertension (PH) had higher TIMP-1 levels than those without PH (5.3 +/- 0.4 vs. 1.9 +/- 0.3 ng/ml, respectively; p < 0.001). It is concluded that serum levels of TIMP-1 increased in patients with BA. The significant increase in TIMP-1 levels is related to the presence of PH and the severity of jaundice. The elevated TIMP-1 levels may reflect the degree of hepatic fibrosis and development of PH. The data suggest that TIMP-1 may play a role in the pathophysiology of post-Kasai BA.
...
PMID:Association of serum levels of tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase-1 with clinical outcome in children with biliary atresia. 1713 82


1 2 Next >>

---