Correlation of Kupffer cell function and hepatocyte function in chronic viral hepatitis evaluated with superparamagnetic iron oxide-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging and scintigraphy using technetium-99m-labelled galactosyl human serum albumin

Tonan,Tatsuyuki; Fujimoto,Kiminori; Qayyum,Aliya; Azuma,Sanae; Ishibashi,Masatoshi; Ueno,Takato; Ono,Noriyuki; Akiyoshi,Junji; Matsushita,Sunao; Hayabuchi,Naofumi; Kawaguchi,Takumi; Sata,Michio

doi:10.3892/etm.2011.255

Correlation of Kupffer cell function and hepatocyte function in chronic viral hepatitis evaluated with superparamagnetic iron oxide-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging and scintigraphy using technetium-99m-labelled galactosyl human serum albumin

Authors:
- Tatsuyuki Tonan
- Kiminori Fujimoto
- Aliya Qayyum
- Sanae Azuma
- Masatoshi Ishibashi
- Takato Ueno
- Noriyuki Ono
- Junji Akiyoshi
- Sunao Matsushita
- Naofumi Hayabuchi
- Takumi Kawaguchi
- Michio Sata
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Affiliations: Department of Radiology, Kurume University School of Medicine, Kurume 830-0011, Japan, Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA, Department of Medicine, Kurume University School of Medicine, Kurume 830-0011, Japan, Department of Internal Medicine, Chikugo City Hospital, Chikugo 833-0041, Japan, Internal Medicine, Kamitsu-Chuou Clinic, Kurume 830-0053, Japan, Department of Radiology, Chikugo City Hospital, Chikugo 833-0041, Japan, Department of Digestive Disease Information and Research, Kurume University School of Medicine, Kurume 830-0011, Japan
Published online on: April 11, 2011 https://doi.org/10.3892/etm.2011.255
Pages: 607-613

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Abstract

Kupffer cells contribute to the pathogenesis of liver injury in chronic liver disease, yet it is difficult to assess Kupffer cell function either ex vivo or in vivo, since supporting data are limited. The aim of this study was to clarify the relation between Kupffer cell function and hepatocyte function by analyzing the correlation between conventional indices of hepatic functional reserve and both superparamagnetic iron oxide-enhanced MRI (SPIO-MRI) and technetium-99m-galactosyl human serum albumin scintigraphy (Tc-99m-GSA) in patients with chronic viral hepatitis. Consecutive 46 patients (16 patients with chronic hepatitis and 30 patients with cirrhosis) who underwent both SPIO-MRI and Tc-99m-GSA were examined. The patients were aged 46-83 years (median 70) and included 29 men and 17 women. Spearman correlation coefficient was used to analyze the correlations between functional reserve indices and both reduction percentages of liver-to-muscle signal intensity ratio (reduction-%LMR), as a surrogate parameter of Kupffer cell function and Tc-99m-GSA parameters. The usefulness of each parameter as a marker to differentiate Child-Pugh A from Child-Pugh B/C was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The reduction-%LMR correlated more closely with Child-Pugh score (r=0.77; P<0.001) than did Tc-99m-GSA parameters. For predicting Child-Pugh B/C, ROC analysis revealed that reduction-%LMR (AUC=0.91, P<0.001) was the most useful parameter and at a cutoff value of 50% or less, sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values were 0.79, 0.91, 0.94 and 0.71, respectively. SPIO-MRI may be a helpful non-invasive method for the evaluation of hepatic functional reserve, and this study suggests that Kupffer cell function is closely correlated with hepatocyte function in patients with chronic viral hepatitis.

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