157
Views
32
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Serum osteopontin levels in patients with acute liver dysfunction

, , MD, , , , , , , , & show all
Pages 102-110 | Received 23 Feb 2005, Published online: 08 Jul 2009
 

Abstract

Objective. Fulminant hepatic failure (FHF) is a clinical syndrome of sudden and severe liver dysfunction accompanied by encephalopathy in a previously healthy person. In FHF, hepatocytes are severely damaged and ordinary liver regeneration is impaired. We demonstrated that the expression of osteopontin (OPN), a multifunctional cytokine, was up-regulated in mouse oval cell (a stem-cell progenitor) induction models. Material and methods. Based on this finding, serum OPN levels were examined in 43 patients with FHF and in 45 patients with acute self-limited hepatitis (AH). To determine the cellular source of OPN, the expression of OPN was studied in a liver specimen derived from an FHF patient. Results. The mean OPN level of patients with FHF was 2.80±0.48 ng/ml (log10, ±SD), which was significantly higher than that of the patients with AH (2.42±0.39 ng/ml) (p = 0.003, unpaired t-test). Patients with elevated serum OPN levels had a significantly poorer prognosis than patients whose serum OPN levels were not elevated. In the FHF patient's liver, OPN protein was expressed not only in inflammatory cells but also in regenerating hepatocytes and bile ductular structures. Conclusions. Our current study indicates that serum OPN levels increased in patients with FHF and that OPN might play an important role in liver regeneration due to activation of hepatic stem cells.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.