ABSTRACT
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection as a major risk factor of HCC. Circulating microRNAs are deregulated in HCC and are candidate biomarkers. The aim of this study was to explore the expression profile of miRNA-122, miR-483, and miR-335 in the serum of HCV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). 90 HCV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients, 90 non-malignant HCV patients, and 60 healthy controls were included. Serum microRNAs were measured by a qRT-PCR custom array. The expression levels of miR-122 and miR-483 were upregulated in HCC patients, while the miR-335 expression level was downregulated versus controls and HCV groups. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was created to examine miRNAs. miR-483 presented the best diagnostic potential because it showed the highest diagnostic accuracy for distinguishing HCV-related HCC patients from controls (AUC = 0.98) with 100% sensitivity. Moreover, there was obvious prognostic power in distinguishing HCV from HCC (AUC = 0.95) with 88% sensitivity. In conclusion, studied microRNAs (miR-122, miR-483, and miR-335) could serve as potential non-invasive early diagnostic biomarkers for HCC, and we identified a panel of three serum microRNAs with high accuracy in HCC diagnosis. Additional studies are required to confirm this panel and test its prognostic significance.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the hypothesis that intraoperative infusion of dexmedetomidine can exert a protective effect against hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) in adult living donor liver transplantation (LDLiver transplantation). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Forty recipients were allocated into: control group (group I; n = 20) that received a placebo; and dexmedetomidine group (group II; n = 20) that received a continuous intraoperative infusion of 0.8 µg/kg/h of dexmedetomidine. Data collected were AST, ALT, bilirubin, INR, and lactate, at baseline, immediately post-operatively, and on post-operative days 1, 3, and 5. Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) was measured at: baseline, 2 and 6 h after reperfusion, and on post-operative day 1. At the end of the surgery, a liver biopsy was sent for histopathological assessment. RESULTS: No significant difference was noticed in either group regarding MELD score, baseline AST, ALT, bilirubin, INR, or lactate. Dexmedetomidine tended to decrease blood pressure and heart rate, but the comparison was insignificant. Group II showed significantly attenuated levels of ICAM-1 and significantly minimal histopathological changes. The laboratory changes showed significantly lower AST, ALT, bilirubin, INR, and lactate in group II. CONCLUSIONS: Dexmedetomidine exerted protective effects against hepatic IRI during adult LDLiver transplantation, as indicated by suppression of ICAM-1, better scores of histopathological assessment, and augmented post-operative liver function tests.
