Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
4
pubmed:dateCreated
1996-12-5
pubmed:abstractText
Immunological abnormalities frequently observed in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis are considered to be related to the pathogenesis of this disease. We performed a prospective trial to evaluate whether immune mechanisms play a role in the effectiveness of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) therapy. Fifteen female patients with primary biliary cirrhosis were followed for 1 year and were then treated with UDCA (600 mg/day) for another year. Laboratory tests, including peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets assessed by dual colour fluorescence analysis using monoclonal antibodies against respective T cell markers, were evaluated at the beginning of the study, at the start of therapy and at the end of therapy. In primary biliary cirrhosis, the proportion of cytotoxic T cells, suppressor inducer T cells and alpha beta-receptor bearing T cells were significantly lower than in healthy controls. No significant changes were observed in the proportions during the year before the therapy. These reductions, however, recovered to normal ranges after 1 year of UDCA therapy. These changes were associated with an improvement in the serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, gamma-globulin and IgM. The close correlation between the improvement in the imbalance of lymphocyte subsets after the therapy and the clinical status suggests that an immunological process may play a role in the effectiveness of therapy in primary biliary cirrhosis.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Apr
pubmed:issn
0815-9319
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
11
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
366-72
pubmed:dateRevised
2006-11-15
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
1996
pubmed:articleTitle
Improvement of peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets in primary biliary cirrhosis after ursodeoxycholic acid therapy.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Internal Medicine, Yokosuka Kyousai Hospital, Kanagawa, Japan.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't