title: Diagnostic value of the serum platelet-activating factor acetylhydrolase activity in inflammatory bowel disease.
abstract: Platelet-activating factor acetylhydrolase (PAF-AH) is an enzyme hydrolyzing platelet-activating factor (PAF), a potent inflammatory mediator, but the relationship between this enzyme and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is not fully elucidated. The aim of the present study was to examine the usefulness of the serum PAF-AH activity in order to differentiate ulcerative colitis (UC) from Crohn's disease (CD). The serum PAF-AH activity was measured in 57 patients with IBD (39 UC and 18 CD patients) and 13 control subjects by a spectrophotometric method. The serum PAF-AH activity was thus found to be significantly lower in patients with CD (median 265.5 U/l) than in those with UC (355 U/l) or control subjects (374 U/l). This marker at a cutoff level of 386 U/l demonstrated a sensitivity of 46%, a specificity of 100%, and a positive predictive value of 100% regarding its ability to distinguish UC from CD. Moreover, the marker responded inversely to the changes in the disease activity of IBD. These results suggest that measuring the serum PAF-AH activity is a useful diagnostic modality for making a differential diagnosis between UC and CD.
authors.affiliation: First Department of Internal Medicine, Gunma University School of Medicine, Maebashi, Japan.
authors.forename: Hirokazu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Oshimoto
authors.forename: Shinichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Okamura
authors.forename: Tomohiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Iida
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
authors.forename: Kohei
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hosaka
authors.forename: Masatomo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mori
mesh_terms: D043203:1-Alkyl-2-acetylglycerophosphocholine Esterase / Q000097:blood*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001792:Blood Platelets / Q000378:metabolism; D003093:Colitis, Ulcerative / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006868:Hydrolysis; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D007249:Inflammation; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013053:Spectrophotometry
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D043203:1-Alkyl-2-acetylglycerophosphocholine Esterase