Significance of arginase determination in body fluids of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and liver cirrhosis before and after surgical treatment.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the utility of arginase activity and expression in diagnosis of liver diseases.


METHODS
Arginase activity, sensitivity and specificity were determined in serum of 140 patients including 50 with HCC, 60 with LC, 30 with choledocholithiasis (CDL) and 90 healthy controls. In HCC and LC arginase activity in serum was studied before and after tumor resection or liver transplantation. Arginase sensitivity in HCC was compared to that of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and aminotransferases (AST, ALT). In LC the activity was determined also in bile before and after transplantation. The expression of arginase isoenzymes in serum was studied by Western blotting.


RESULTS
In HCC and LC the preoperative arginase activity was significantly higher compared to controls, and it decreased after surgery. The sensitivity of arginase in HCC was much higher than that of AFP, AST and ALT (96, 40, 20 and 18%, respectively). In HCC it was higher than in LC (93%) and CDL (33%). The specificity of arginase was above 80%. In bile of cirrhotic patients the highest activity was immediately after liver transplantation. It decreased with time but increased dramatically at the time of the graft rejection. Arginase AII was present in serum of HCC and LC but not the control cases.


CONCLUSIONS
The increase of arginase activity in serum accompanied by the presence of isoenzyme AII can be useful in HCC and LC diagnosis. The determination of arginase activity in bile may be helpful in monitoring liver graft recipients.
Chair and Department of Biochemistry, Medical University of Warsaw, 02-097 Warsaw, Banacha 1, Poland.
Alicja
A
Chrzanowska
Chair and Department of Biochemistry, Medical University of Warsaw, 02-097 Warsaw, Banacha 1, Poland.
Wojciech
W
Graboń
Chair and Department of Biochemistry, Medical University of Warsaw, 02-097 Warsaw, Banacha 1, Poland.
Magdalena
M
Mielczarek-Puta
Chair and Department of Biochemistry, Medical University of Warsaw, 02-097 Warsaw, Banacha 1, Poland. Electronic address: akuzma@wum.edu.pl.
Anna
A
Barańczyk-Kuźma
D001119:Arginase / Q000097:blood*; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000601:surgery; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000601:surgery; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000601:surgery
D001119:Arginase
Arginase activity; Bile; Hepatocellular carcinoma; Isoenzymes; Liver cirrhosis; Serum