Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:2.6.1.2 (alanine aminotransferase)
 26,722 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

HLA class I antigen expression on peripheral blood mononuclear cells was evaluated by flow cytometry in 21 HBeAg-positive patients with chronic hepatitis B. Measurements were made before, during or after treatment with recombinant interferon-alpha-2b, either given alone or after a 6 wk course of prednisone. Immunohistochemical staining for human leukocyte class I antigen was also evaluated in 28 percutaneous liver biopsy specimens either obtained before or after therapy (N = 27) and during therapy in one instance. The amount of HLA class I antigen on peripheral blood mononuclear cells varied markedly among individual patients, but the overall results indicated that the level of inducible antigen did not correlate with increments of ALT during therapy or with a virological response to therapy. Hepatocyte staining for HLA class I antigen was observed in a minority of biopsy specimens (29%) and also did not appear to predict a response or correlate with the severity of histological disease. These data do not support current theories concerning pathogenetic mechanisms in chronic hepatitis B nor do they suggest that spontaneous display of HLA class I antigen on hepatocytes or interferon-induced expression of these antigens on peripheral blood mononuclear cells is a critical determinant for a response to therapy.
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PMID:HLA class I antigen expression as a measure of response to antiviral therapy of chronic hepatitis B. 202 88

Twenty-nine patients with chronic hepatitis B, presenting both hepatitis B surface antigen and hepatitis B virus deoxyribonucleic acid in serum, were studied in a randomized trial treatment consisting of oral prednisolone for 28 days followed 14 days after steroid withdrawal, by either a 55 s.c. injection course of 5 M unit recombinant human alpha-interferon (group 1, 14 patients) or by adenine-arabinoside (for 21 days) combined from the fourteenth day on with the same 55 s.c. injection schedule of interferon (IFN) (group 2, 15 cases). The two groups were well matched with respect to demographic, biochemical, virological and histologic features. Significant side-effects leading to premature discontinuation of interferon were observed in only four cases in group 2 and were always reversible. Efficacy was judged on a mean follow-up period of 17 months. For the whole population, 17 patients (59%) exhibited a sustained serum hepatitis B virus deoxyribonucleic acid disappearance which corresponded to a marked improvement in liver function as demonstrated by a quasi-normalization of their serum transaminase values (ALT with n less than 22 UI/l: 23 +/- 24 vs. 139 +/- 115 before treatment; P less than 0.001).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Short-term prednisolone followed by recombinant human alpha-interferon alone or combined with adenine-arabinoside in chronic hepatitis B. A prospective and randomized trial. 205 Sep 97

A prospective, double-blind study was carried out to assess the efficacy of interferon alfa-2b, with or without pre-treatment prednisone withdrawal, in patients with chronic hepatitis B. A total of 57 Belgian and Dutch patients were included in the study. Patients were divided into four treatment groups: Group A, prednisone withdrawal followed by interferon 5 million units per day; Groups B and C, placebo followed by interferon 5 or 1 million units, respectively; and Group D, untreated controls followed for 1 year. All treated patients received interferon for 16 weeks. Two of the 14 control patients lost hepatitis B e antigen during the year of study, and only one of 15 patients in the interferon 1 million units group. Among the 28 patients receiving 5 million units of interferon (with or without prednisone withdrawal), ten (36%) cleared hepatitis B e antigen during the study or within 6 months of the end of therapy. This was associated with a marked improvement in serum transaminase levels. When comparing Groups A and B, it was found that prednisone withdrawal therapy enhanced the response to interferon in patients with pre-treatment serum alanine aminotransferase levels below 100 IU/l, bringing the seroconversion rate up to 50%, compared to 17% on interferon alone. This effect was not seen in patients with high pre-treatment transaminase levels. All treatment responders showed a marked improvement in Knodell index score, whereas in the 15 non-responders from groups A and B, overall inflammatory activity remained the same in six, improved in five and worsened in four.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Efficacy of interferon alfa-2b with or without prednisone withdrawal in the treatment of chronic viral hepatitis B. A prospective double-blind Belgian-Dutch study. 207 66

The aim of the study was to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of interferon alfa-2b, alone and following prednisone withdrawal, in patients with chronic type B hepatitis. Thirty-five patients (27 men and eight women) were randomly allocated to two treatment groups. Group I (n = 17) received 6 weeks of prednisone followed by interferon alfa-2b (INTRON A, Schering-Plough Corporation) 10 million units subcutaneously, three times a week for 16 weeks. Group II (n = 18) was used as an untreated control group for 24 weeks, after which they received 16 weeks of treatment with the same dose of interferon as Group I. Both groups were followed up for 24 weeks after treatment. In Group I, 10/17 patients (58.8%) eliminated hepatitis B e antigen; 8/17 (47.1%) developed antibodies to hepatitis B e antigen; 9/17 (52.9%) became hepatitis B virus DNA negative and 1/17 (5.9%) was hepatitis B surface antigen negative at the end of follow up. In Group II, during the control phase, 1/18 (5.5%) became hepatitis B e antigen negative. When treated with interferon, 7/15 (46.7%) eliminated the e antigen, and 6/15 (40%) developed antibodies to hepatitis B e antigen and were hepatitis B virus DNA negative at the end of follow up. Serum alanine aminotransferase reached normal levels in all seroconverted patients. Liver biopsies showed a marked reduction of inflammation and disappearance of hepatitis B core antigen in liver cell nuclei in almost all cases.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Recombinant interferon alfa-2b following prednisone withdrawal in the treatment of chronic type B hepatitis. 207 67

In a multicentre trial, 82 patients known to be hepatitis B e antigen and hepatitis B virus DNA positive for at least 1 year, with elevated serum alanine aminotransferase levels and chronic liver lesions on biopsy, were randomized to receive either recombinant interferon alfa-2a at a dose of 4.5 million units thrice weekly for 4 months or no treatment. At the end of therapy, viral DNA clearance and aminotransferase normalization were significantly (p less than 0.05) more frequent in treated patients than in controls. After 16 months' follow up, the difference was still significant for hepatitis B e antigen clearance and transaminase normalization. Hepatitis B virus DNA reactivation was observed during follow up in 43% of treated patients and 50% of controls. Improvements in liver inflammation were observed in patients on interferon. High pre-treatment serum aminotransferase levels, female sex and a low score for fibrosis in the initial biopsy were predictive factors significantly (p less than 0.05) associated with termination of hepatitis B virus replication in treated cases. These results indicate that interferon is effective in inducing clearance of HBV from serum and improvement of biochemical and histological parameters of liver disease. However, a more prolonged regimen of therapy may be required to obtain stable suppression of hepatitis B virus replication.
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PMID:Problems in the management of chronic hepatitis B with interferon: experience in a randomized, multicentre study. 207 70

A randomized controlled trial of recombinant interferon alfa-2b has been initiated in patients with chronic active hepatitis who were negative for serum hepatitis B e antigen but positive for serum hepatitis B virus DNA and hepatitis B core antigen expression in the liver. Twenty-five patients received interferon alfa-2b 3 million units thrice weekly for 14-16 weeks and 25 served as untreated controls. Seventeen patients in the treatment and 18 in the control group have already completed a 12-month period of observation. Interferon alfa-2b was well tolerated by all patients. At the end of therapy, complete responses, defined as disappearance of hepatitis B virus DNA from serum and return of alanine aminotransferase to normal, were observed in 10 (59%) of the 17 treated patients compared to none in the control group (p less than 0.01). Twelve months after the onset of interferon alfa-2b therapy, 11 (65%) of the 17 treated patients were complete responders compared to 2 (11%) of 18 in the control group (p less than 0.01). Fifty per cent (4/8) of complete responders to interferon alfa-2b therapy, followed for 16-24 months, experienced reactivations of hepatitis B virus replication with reappearance of serum hepatitis B virus DNA and a return of serum alanine aminotransferase activity. The response to interferon alfa-2b therapy appeared to be independent of pre-treatment serum alanine aminotransferase and hepatitis B virus DNA levels.
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PMID:Interferon alfa-2b treatment of HBeAg negative/serum HBV DNA positive chronic active hepatitis type B. 207 71

In this pilot study, 12 patients with chronic delta hepatitis were studied. The diagnosis was based on the presence of antibodies to the hepatitis delta antigen in the serum and hepatitis delta virus RNA and hepatitis delta antigen in the serum and liver. All patients were also positive for hepatitis B surface antigen. The infection was presumed to have been transmitted by intravenous drug abuse in six of the patients, blood transfusion in one and by sexual contact in four (two had antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus in their serum, but did not show signs of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). In one further patient, the source of infection was unknown. Interferon alfa-2b (INTRON A, Schering-Plough Corporation) was initiated at 5 million units per day subcutaneously for at least 4 months, being reduced by half if side effects occurred. Serum alanine aminotransferase levels, hepatitis delta virus RNA and hepatitis delta antigen were measured at monthly intervals for up to 12 months in some patients. Interferon therapy resulted in decreased serum levels of these three markers. On cessation of therapy, most patients experienced a relapse over 6 months, but alanine amino transferase levels could be normalized once more by restarting interferon therapy. In conclusion, interferon decreased hepatic inflammation by the inhibition of hepatitis delta virus replication, although relapse occurred when interferon was stopped and long-term therapy is required to achieve permanent control of the disease. Care will be required when treating patients with advanced or decompensated liver disease.
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PMID:Therapy of chronic delta hepatitis with interferon alfa-2b. 207 75

In order to assess the sequential changes of liver pathology after interferon therapy, 70 liver biopsy specimens, collected from 23 HBeAg-positive patients with chronic hepatitis B and 12 patients with chronic non-A, non-B hepatitis, were studied using a numerical scoring system proposed by Knodell et al. The biopsy specimens were obtained immediately prior to the administration of interferon and within one week following the termination of interferon therapy. Three patients with chronic hepatitis B were negative for DNA-polymerase (DNA-P) prior to the interferon administration. Ten patients (50%) lost DNA-P activity. HBeAg became negative in 8 patients (34.8%), of whom 2 seroconverted to anti-HBe. Serum alanine aminotransferase levels normalized in 9 patients with chronic hepatitis B, and non-A, non-B hepatitis. The total Histological Activity Index (HAI) scores in both patients with chronic hepatitis B, and non-A, non-B decreased significantly (P less than 0.001 and P less than 0.005, respectively) after interferon treatment. There was also a significant improvement (0.02 less than P less than 0.001) in each histological category except for fibrosis. When the changes of the HAI scores in patients with chronic hepatitis B were correlated to the outcome in the DNA-P and HBeAg/anti-HBe system after treatment, the histological improvement did not significantly correlate to the outcome of these serological parameters.
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PMID:Histological improvement of chronic hepatitis B, and non-A, non-B with interferon treatment: application of a numerical scoring system for evaluating sequential morphologic changes. 210 67

Pharmacokinetics, tolerance and biological effects of human recombinant gamma-interferon were studied in 12 patients with chronic active hepatitis B. Serum concentrations of gamma-interferon were measured by radioimmunoassay in four patients after a subcutaneous injection of 10 million U (0.5 mg); the peak serum concentration of gamma-interferon (29 +/- 7 U/ml) was reached after 5 to 8 hr and gamma-interferon remained detectable for 24 to 36 hr. Twelve patients received recombinant gamma-interferon, 2.5 to 10 million U daily, for 4 mo. All suffered from a dose-dependent, flulike syndrome similar to that induced by alpha-interferon. Recombinant gamma-interferon induced a marked increase of serum ALT and a significant decrease of serum hepatitis B virus-DNA. Serum hepatitis B virus-DNA disappeared in one patient during administration of recombinant gamma-interferon. Serum hepatitis B virus-DNA disappeared in four additional patients, and HBeAg disappeared in two patients during the 12 mo after administration of recombinant gamma-interferon. These results indicate that subcutaneous injection is suitable for administration of recombinant gamma-interferon and that recombinant gamma-interferon has an antiviral effect in patients with chronic active hepatitis B.
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PMID:Recombinant human gamma-interferon in patients with chronic active hepatitis B: pharmacokinetics, tolerance and biological effects. 211 94

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the response of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) to recombinant alpha-interferon was related to the presence or absence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) in patients with chronic non-A,non-B hepatitis. A group of 65 patients with chronic non-A, non-B hepatitis was studied. The source of contamination was blood transfusion or administration of blood products in 32, intravenous drug addiction in 14 and unknown in 19. The patients received 1, 3 or 5 MU of recombinant alpha-interferon, three times a week, for 6 months. A complete response was defined as normal ALT by the end of recombinant alpha-interferon treatment. Sera collected before treatment were tested for anti-HCV with an enzyme immunoassay. The overall percentage of anti-HCV positive patients in the study group was 75%. There was no difference between the anti-HCV positive and the anti-HCV negative patients before the treatment with respect to age, sex ratio, source of contamination, serum albumin, prothrombin, bilirubin, ALT or prevalence of cirrhosis. In the anti-HCV positive and the anti-HCV negative groups, there was no difference in the proportion of patients receiving the 1, 3 or 5 MU dosage. The percentage of patients with complete response was not different in anti-HCV positive patients (48%) and in anti-HCV negative patients (50%). There was also no difference in the kinetics of the decrease of mean serum ALT levels between the two groups.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Is the response to recombinant alpha interferon related to the presence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus in patients with chronic non-A, non-B hepatitis? 164 37


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