Study of the cytokine transforming growth factor beta-1 in patients with chronic virus hepatitis

ABSTRACT

This work was conducted on 40 patients with chronic virus hepatitis [21 patients with chronic hepatitis C with bilharzial periportal fibrosis, 2 patients with combined chronic hepatitis B and C and 17 patients with chronic hepatitis C alone] in addition to 10 healthy age and sex matched control subjects. The objective of this work was to study the status of TGF- beta-1 among patients with chronic virus hepatitis and its relation to age and sex and to evaluate the effect of colchicine and oral enzyme therapy on the level of TGF- beta-1. Patients were divided into 2 groups, group I who received oral enzyme therapy and group II who received colchicine, plasma level of TGF- beta-1 was estimated by ELISA with [MEDGENIX TGF- beta-1, ELISA kit] before and after receiving the treatment. It was found that plasma TGF- beta-1 level was significantly higher in patients with chronic virus hepatitis than control group and this level is not related to age or sex. The plasma TGF- beta-1 level was significantly higher in patients with chronic hepatitis C infection with bilharzial periportal fibrosis of liver than in patient with chronic hepatitis C alone, also it was significantly higher in patient with ultrasonographic findings of cirrhosis than those without cirrhosis. The plasma TGF- beta-1 level had no correlation with liver function tests but had positive correlation with serum procollagen III. Before treatment there was no significant difference in clinical picture, laboratory investigations, serum procollagen III and plasma TGF- beta-1 level between group I and group H but after treatment, there was improvement in clinical picture, liver function tests and significant reduction of serum procollagen III and plasma TGF- beta-1 level in group I but not in group II. So it can be concluded that plasma TGF- beta-1 level is a good marker of liver fibrogenesis and oral enzyme therapy is anti-TGF- beta-1 and can reduce the hepatic fibrosis in patients with chronic viral hepatitis