Liver transplantation : official publication of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the International Liver Transplantation Society
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Increasing evidence shows that reactive oxygen species (ROS) may be critical mediators of liver damage during the relative hypoxia of ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI) associated with transplant surgery or of the tissue microenvironment created as a result of chronic hepatic inflammation or infection. Much work has been focused on Kupffer cells or liver resident macrophages with respect to the generation of ROS during IRI. However, little is known about the contribution of endogenous hepatocyte ROS production or its potential impact on the parenchymal cell death associated with IRI and chronic hepatic inflammation. ⋯ In conclusion, these data strongly suggest that hepatocytes and hepatocyte-derived ROS are active participants driving hepatic inflammation. These novel findings highlight important functional/metabolic differences between hepatocytes isolated from normal donor livers, hepatocytes isolated from normal resected tissue obtained during surgery for malignant neoplasms, and hepatocytes isolated from livers with end-stage disease. Furthermore, the targeting of hepatocyte ROS generation with antioxidants may offer therapeutic potential for the adjunctive treatment of IRI and chronic inflammatory liver diseases.
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Comparative Study
Neutrophil gelatinase--associated lipocalin predicts acute kidney injury in patients undergoing liver transplantation.
Postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) increases morbidity and mortality after liver transplantation (LT). Novel methods of assessing AKI including cystatin C (CyC) and neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) have been identified as potential markers of AKI. We compare the ability of standard renal markers (serum creatinine [sCr], estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR] and intensive therapy unit organ failure scores with CyC and NGAL to predict AKI within the first 48 hours after LT. 95 patients (median age 50 [interquartile range = 41-59], 60% male) underwent LT (25% with acute liver failure). ⋯ Using multivariate logistic regression, APACHE II (odds ratio 1.64/point [95% confidence interval = 1.22-2.21, P = 0.001] and pNGAL [odds ratio = 1.01/ng/mL [95% confidence interval = 1.00-1.02], P = 0.002) retained independent significance. A "renal risk score" using APACHE II > 13 and pNGAL > 258 ng/mL was calculated with a score of ≥1 having a 100% sensitivity and 76% specificity for severe AKI. In conclusion, a combination of NGAL and APACHE II predicts AKI with high sensitivity and specificity after LT.