RESUMO
Amyloid-beta (Aß) plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Clearance of Aß is a promising therapeutic strategy for AD. We have previously demonstrated that peripheral organs play important roles in the clearance of brain-derived Aß. In the present study, we recruited 46 patients with liver cirrhosis and 46 normal controls and found that plasma Aß40 and Aß42 levels were significantly higher in the cirrhosis patients than in the normal controls. Notably, cirrhosis patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection had higher plasma Aß40 and Aß42 levels than HBV-negative cirrhosis patients. Besides, cirrhosis patients had significantly higher plasma levels of interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) and IL-6. Plasma tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) and interferon-γ (IFN-γ) levels were not significantly different between the groups. Moreover, we found significant correlations of hepatic functions with plasma Aß40 and Aß42 levels. Plasma IL-6 levels were also significantly correlated with plasma Aß40 levels. However, in the linear regression model, we found significant correlation of plasma Aß40 levels with hepatic functions, but not with plasma IL-6 levels. Our results indicate that the hepatic dysfunctions might result in decreased peripheral Aß clearance by the liver. Protecting hepatic functions might be helpful for the clearance of brain-derived Aß in the blood.
