Increased serum mitochondrial creatine kinase activity as a risk for hepatocarcinogenesis in chronic hepatitis C patients.

Serum mitochondrial creatine kinase (MtCK) activity was reportedly increased in cirrhotic patients although less prominent than that in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. To elucidate the clinical significance of serum MtCK activity in chronic liver disease, 171 chronic hepatitis C patients were enrolled. Serum MtCK activity in study subjects was correlated with serum albumin, platelet counts, liver stiffness values and serum aspartate and alanine aminotransferase. In mouse fibrotic liver induced by bile duct ligation, ubiquitous MtCK mRNA and protein expressions were significantly enhanced and its immunoreactivity was increased, predominantly in hepatocytes. During the mean follow-up period of 2.7 years, HCC developed in 21 patients, in whom serum MtCK activity was significantly higher than that in patients without HCC development. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that higher serum MtCK activity was a risk for HCC development. A cutoff value of MtCK for the prediction of HCC development was determined as 9.0 U/L on receiver operating characteristics analysis, where area under receiver operating characteristics curve was 0.754, with a sensitivity of 61.9%, a specificity of 92.8% and a high negative predictive value of 94.2%. Cumulative incidence of HCC was significantly higher in patients with serum MtCK activity of >9.0 U/L compared to those with serum MtCK activity of ≤ 9.0 U/L even in patients with elevated liver stiffness value, >15 kPa. In conclusion, serum MtCK activity may be increased correlatively with the stage of liver fibrosis and hepatocellular damage. Increased serum MtCK activity is an independent risk for hepatocarcinogenesis in chronic hepatitis C patients.

Antagonism of sphingosine 1-phosphate receptor 2 causes a selective reduction of portal vein pressure in bile duct-ligated rodents.

UNLABELLED: Sinusoidal vasoconstriction, in which hepatic stellate cells operate as contractile machinery, has been suggested to play a pivotal role in the pathophysiology of portal hypertension. We investigated whether sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) stimulates contractility of those cells and enhances portal vein pressure in isolated perfused rat livers with Rho activation by way of S1P receptor 2 (S1P(2) ). Rho and its effector, Rho kinase, reportedly contribute to the pathophysiology of portal hypertension. Thus, a potential effect of S1P(2) antagonism on portal hypertension was examined. Intravenous infusion of the S1P(2) antagonist, JTE-013, at 1 mg/kg body weight reduced portal vein pressure by 24% without affecting mean arterial pressure in cirrhotic rats induced by bile duct ligation at 4 weeks after the operation, whereas the same amount of S1P(2) antagonist did not alter portal vein pressure and mean arterial pressure in control sham-operated rats. Rho kinase activity in the livers was enhanced in bile duct-ligated rats compared to sham-operated rats, and this enhanced Rho kinase activity in bile duct-ligated livers was reduced after infusion of the S1P(2) antagonist. S1P(2) messenger RNA (mRNA) expression, but not S1P(1) or S1P(3) , was increased in bile duct-ligated livers of rats and mice and also in culture-activated rat hepatic stellate cells. S1P(2) expression, determined in S1P 2LacZ/+ mice, was highly increased in hepatic stellate cells of bile duct-ligated livers. Furthermore, the increase of Rho kinase activity in bile duct-ligated livers was observed as early as 7 days after the operation in wildtype mice, but was less in S1P 2-/- mice. CONCLUSION: S1P may play an important role in the pathophysiology of portal hypertension with Rho kinase activation by way of S1P(2) . The S1P(2) antagonist merits consideration as a novel therapeutic agent for portal hypertension.

[Usefulness of hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype test using direct sequencing of 5' untranslated region--application from 2003 to 2011].

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype is the key to prediction of the therapeutic effect of combination therapy of pegylated interferon and ribavirin. HCV grouping test, which is used as a routine testing method, is simple and practical, but the results are sometimes not conclusive. In order to cope with such cases, we have adopted a direct sequencing method since 2003. This paper summarizes the HCV genotype test results obtained between 2003 and 2011. The results showed that the genotypes of 129 of 255 specimens which were not determined by the HCV grouping test were all successfully determined by the direct sequencing method. In the serotype determined samples the concordance rate with direct sequencing was 99.0% in HCV serotype 1 and 88.0% in HCV serotype 2. These findings suggest that the direct sequencing method is useful to determine the genotypes of specimens when untypeable with the HCV grouping test.

Suppression of sphingosine 1-phosphate lyase retards the liver regeneration in mice after partial hepatectomy.

BACKGROUND: Liver regeneration is an extremely complicated process that is regulated by a number of signaling pathways. Sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P), a potent bioactive lipid mediator playing crucial roles in various cellular responses through its receptors, has been attracting attention in the fields of hepatology, where S1P lyase (SPL), an irreversibly degrading enzyme of S1P, reportedly has a stimulatory role in growth of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). AIM OF THE STUDY: To examine whether SPL might play a stimulatory role in liver regeneration. METHOD: Using in-vivo siRNA technology, we inhibited SPL expression. Seventy percent of the liver was resected in mice as partial hepatectomy (PH). Liver tissue samples were collected and mRNA expression level of the SPL, IHC of the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), protein levels of various proliferation factors and lipid measurements were performed in different groups. RESULTS: The mRNA levels of SPL increased in PH mice on the third day after PH surgery. When we suppressed the expression of SPL by in-vivo siRNA, we observed a significant decline of the PCNA positive cell numbers. Furthermore, the Cyclin D1 expressions and phosphorylation of ERK also were decreased in the siSPL injected PH group. CONCLUSION: We verified the importance of the SPL in liver regeneration, using the mice PH model. SPL might be a potential target to facilitate liver regeneration.

[The current status of leukemia genetic testing and the trial of its standardization].

The pathogenic chromosome translocations present in various hematological malignancies result in the formation of fusion genes, which are detected by a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT PCR) method. Furthermore, with this method, it is possible to detect minimal residual disease (MRD) sensitively, which is difficult with morphological testing. It has been established that the detection of MRD is important for diagnosis, evaluation of prognosis, and monitoring of leukemia. In particular, quantitative analysis of MRD load transition during the initial phase of treatment is of high prognostic value. At present, however, there is no standard laboratory procedure for leukemia genetic testing. Here, the problems related to external precision management are discussed.

Post-transcriptional regulator Hfq binds catalase HPII: crystal structure of the complex.

We report a crystal structure of Hfq and catalase HPII from Escherichia coli. The post-transcriptional regulator Hfq plays a key role in the survival of bacteria under stress. A small non-coding RNA (sRNA) DsrA is required for translation of the stationary phase sigma factor RpoS, which is the central regulator of the general stress response. Hfq facilitates efficient translation of rpoS mRNA, which encodes RpoS. Hfq helps in the function of other specific proteins involved in RNA processing, indicating its versatility in the cell. However, structural information regarding its interactions with partners is missing. Here we obtained crystals of Hfq and HPII complexes from cell lysates following attempts to overexpress a foreign membrane protein. HPII is one of two catalases in E. coli and its mRNA is transcribed by an RNA polymerase holoenzyme containing RpoS, which in turn is under positive control of small non-coding RNAs and of the RNA chaperone Hfq. This sigma factor is known to have a pronounced effect on the expression of HPII. The crystal structure reveals that a Hfq hexamer binds each subunit of a HPII tetramer. Each subunit of the Hfq hexamer exhibits a unique binding mode with HPII. The hexamer of Hfq interacts via its distal surface. The proximal and distal surfaces are known to specifically bind different sRNAs, and binding of HPII could affect Hfq function. Hfq-HPII complexation has no effect on catalase HPII activity.

Liver involvement in sphingosine 1-phosphate dynamism revealed by adenoviral hepatic overexpression of apolipoprotein M.

OBJECTIVES: Sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) is a vasoprotective lipid mediator that is mainly carried on HDL in the circulation and several anti-atherosclerotic properties of HDL is considered to be ascribed to S1P. Since S1P riding on HDL was recently shown to bind to apolipoprotein M (apoM), which is derived from liver, we analyzed the possible involvement of liver in S1P metabolism. METHODS AND RESULTS: Using adenoviruses, we overexpressed apoM in HepG2 cells and mice livers and found that both the medium/plasma and cell/liver S1P contents increased. Among lipoprotein subclasses, S1P contents increased mainly in HDL fractions. On the other hand, hepatectomy resulted in the reduction of plasma S1P levels in mice. The incubation of S1P in the conditional medium of apoM-overexpressing HepG2 cells interfered with S1P degradation. Furthermore, adenoviral hepatic overexpression of apoM resulted in increase in the S1P level of plasma but not of blood cells, while combination of hepatic apoM overexpression and intraperitoneal administration of C17-sphingosine resulted in the increase in the C17-S1P level both in livers and in plasma, but again not in blood cells. CONCLUSIONS: Livers are involved in S1P dynamism, and it was suggested that apoM, produced from livers, increases circulating plasma S1P by augmenting the S1P output from livers and modifies extracellular S1P metabolism.