| pubmed-article:11181003 | pubmed:abstractText | Liver failure accompanied by hyperbilirubinemia after major hepatic resection is profoundly associated with septic complications. Although the immune dysfunction in cholestasis has been intensively investigated, the contribution of increased serum bilirubin to the impaired resistance to bacterial infection remains to be elucidated. Because bilirubin possesses an antioxidant activity, we hypothesized that bilirubin may scavenge reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by neutrophils and consequently impair neutrophil bacterial killing. To address this, we evaluated the effects of bilirubin on the bactericidal activity of ROS or of neutrophils in vitro. | lld:pubmed |
