Analysis of novel serum markers of fibrosis and angiogenesis in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis

Abstract

Introduction Alcohol consumption causes acute and chronic liver injury. The clinical forms of alcohol liver disease (ALD) include steatosis, hepatitis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) associated with liver cirrhosis. Objective The aim of the study was to determine the levels of novel markers of fibrogenesis and angiogenesis in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis. Serum levels of angiopoietin-like peptide 4 (ANGPTL-4), asialoglycoprotein receptor 1 (ASGP-R1), and S100 calcium-binding protein A8 (S100A8) were assessed. Levels of hyaluronic acid (Hyal) and collagen IV (Coll IV) werealso determined at various stages of alcoholic liver cirrhosis. Material and methods The study group consisted of 72 patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis, while the control group included 22 healthy subjects without a history of alcohol abuse. The degree of liver cirrhosis was evaluated according to the Pugh-Child criteria (Pugh-Child score). Based on thse scores, patients were assigned to one of three groups: Pugh-Child (P-Ch) A – 21 with stage A, P-Ch B – 23 with stage B and P-Ch C – 28 with stage C liver cirrhosis. Serum levels of markers were determined using ELISA. Results The study findings demonstrated higher levels of ANGPTL-4, ASGP-R1, S100A, hyaluronic acid and serum collagen IV in the group of patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis, compared to the control group. Furthermore, their levels increased with the progression of alcoholic liver cirrhosis. Conclusions The biomarkers analysed in the study may be useful for diagnosis and prognosis in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis.

Keywords

• alcoholic liver cirrhosis
• angiopoietin-like peptide 4 (angptl-4)
• asialoglycoprotein receptor 1 (asgp-r1)
• s100 calcium-binding protein a8 (s100a8)
• hyaluronic acid (hyal)
• collagen iv (coll iv)