Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0023890 (cirrhosis)
 42,195 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Vitamin A metabolism involves storage in the liver. Hypervitaminosis A results in liver abnormalities, including fibrosis and cirrhosis. Ito cells are increased and promote fibrogenesis, which results in cirrhosis. Retinoids (Accutane and Tegison) are used clinically for the treatment of a variety of skin diseases. Since retinoids are analogs of vitamin A, their potential to produce liver disease is reviewed. Animal and human studies of liver function tests suggest some abnormalities in the liver in about 25% of patients treated. Liver biopsy studies have included isolated case reports and two retrospective and one prospective liver biopsy study of retinoids in humans. Although some increase in histologic liver changes have been noted, most liver biopsy specimens showed no change or improvement. Retinoids do not appear to produce consistent toxic liver abnormalities.
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PMID:Liver toxicity of retinoid therapy. 304 64

A 16-year-old male developed night blindness 2 weeks after starting isotretinoin at a dose of 20 mg per day for cystic acne. He also had cystic fibrosis, complicated by hepatic cirrhosis. Despite long-term oral vitamin A supplementation, serum vitamin A levels were found to be 0.3 mumol/L (normal range 0.9-2.5 mumol/L). Oral vitamin A replacement was instituted with resolution of his visual symptoms in 6 months. Isotretinoin therapy was successfully continued with no deterioration in liver function. Isotretinoin has been reported to cause deterioration in night vision. In vitro evidence suggests isotretinoin may interfere with the processing of endogenous vitamin A in the retina. This case highlights the need for careful monitoring of serum vitamin A status in patients with malabsorptive states on isotretinoin therapy.
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PMID:Night blindness precipitated by isotretinoin in the setting of hypovitaminosis A. 1057 May 58

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is one of the most serious public health problems in the world. HCV leads patients to develop hepatic cirrhosis and precipitates hepatocellular carcinoma. HCV establishes persistent infection by impairing host innate and adaptive immune responses. HCV infected hepatocytes sense the infection through Pathogen Associated Molecular Patterns (PAMPs). The sensor molecules, Pattern Recognition Receptors (PRRs) contain two distinct categories, toll like receptors (TLR) and cytoplasmic Retinoic Acid inducible Gene I (RIG-I) like helicases (RLHs). In the hepatocyte, the cytoplasmic PRR, Retinoic Acid inducible Gene I (RIG-I) plays the central role of HCV viral genome recognition, resulting in activation of signaling to induce type I interferon and proinflammatory cytokines. Type I IFN induces more than 300 effector molecules known as interferon stimulated genes (ISGs) that establish an antiviral state in infected cells and neighboring cells. The activation of innate immunity is also critical for the mounting of innate and adaptive immunity. However, a variety of viral strategies of HCV disrupt host innate immune signaling and ISG function, resulting in a dysfunctional immune response against HCV and poor responses to the current type I IFN based therapy. Many studies have reported immune dysfunction during HCV infection in cell culture, animal models and patients. This review article focuses on understanding how the hepatic innate immunity sensor, PRR, associates with HCV PAMPs, and how HCV escapes from host immunity.
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PMID:[RIG-I mediated hepatic innate immune signaling that controls HCV infection]. 1937 89