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In Vivo (Athens, Greece) 2020Leptin is a small hormone of protein nature, it is strongly involved in the regulation of lipid metabolism and its functioning mechanism is not yet well known or whether...
BACKGROUND/AIM
Leptin is a small hormone of protein nature, it is strongly involved in the regulation of lipid metabolism and its functioning mechanism is not yet well known or whether or not it is actually secreted by cholangiocytes, nor if the biliary tree expresses its receptors. In the past, various studies have tried to correlate leptin levels with certain neoplasms. The aim of this study was to demonstrate that serum leptin values can become a new sensitive and specific serum marker for cholangiocarcinoma.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Seventy-two patients with gallbladder stones, hepatolithiasis with benign biliary stenosis, cholangiocarcinoma, and a group of patients without hepato-biliary diseases were enrolled in the study. In all cases blood and bile samples were collected for evaluation of leptin levels and liver biopsies were performed to confirm diagnosis. In all patients, both ultrasound and cholangio-magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were performed to complete the diagnostic procedure.
RESULTS
Twenty-two patients were affected by cholangiocarcinoma, 50 by benign biliary disease (35 cholelithiasis and 6 hepatolithiasis and 9 by inflammatory biliary stenosis). The mean values of serum leptin in patients with cholangiocarcinoma were 19.28±8.76 ng/ml, significantly higher than those observed in non-neoplastic biliary diseases.
CONCLUSION
Serum leptin levels might be a useful marker to differentiate patients with cholangiocarcinoma from those with biliary lithiasis and inflammatory stenosis.
Topics: Bile Duct Neoplasms; Bile Ducts, Intrahepatic; Biliary Tract; Humans; Leptin; Lithiasis; Liver Diseases
PubMed: 32871776
DOI: 10.21873/invivo.12064 -
Liver Transplantation : Official... Oct 2011Biliary complications occur more frequently after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) versus deceased donor liver transplantation, and they remain the most common... (Review)
Review
Biliary complications occur more frequently after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) versus deceased donor liver transplantation, and they remain the most common and intractable problems after LDLT. The anatomical limitations of multiple tiny bile ducts and the differential blood supplies of the graft ducts may be significant factors in the pathophysiological mechanisms of biliary complications in patients undergoing LDLT. A clear understanding of the biliary blood supply, the Glissonian sheath, and the hilar plate has contributed to new techniques for preparing bile ducts for anastomosis, and these techniques have resulted in a dramatic drop in the incidence of biliary complications. Most biliary complications after LDLT can be successfully treated with nonsurgical approaches, although the management of multiple biliary anastomoses and nonanastomotic strictures continues to be a challenge.
Topics: Anastomotic Leak; Bile Ducts; Biliary Tract Diseases; Cholestasis; Constriction, Pathologic; Humans; Incidence; Liver Transplantation; Living Donors; Risk Assessment; Risk Factors; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 21761548
DOI: 10.1002/lt.22381 -
Scientific Reports Nov 2019Despite considerable recent insight into the molecular phenotypes and type 2 innate immune functions of tuft cells in rodents, there is sparse knowledge about the...
Despite considerable recent insight into the molecular phenotypes and type 2 innate immune functions of tuft cells in rodents, there is sparse knowledge about the region-specific presence and molecular phenotypes of tuft cells in the human digestive tract. Here, we traced cholinergic tuft cells throughout the human alimentary tract with immunohistochemistry and deciphered their region-specific distribution and biomolecule coexistence patterns. While absent from the human stomach, cholinergic tuft cells localized to villi and crypts in the small and large intestines. In the biliary tract, they were present in the epithelium of extra-hepatic peribiliary glands, but not observed in the epithelia of the gall bladder and the common duct of the biliary tract. In the pancreas, solitary cholinergic tuft cells were frequently observed in the epithelia of small and medium-size intra- and inter-lobular ducts, while they were absent from acinar cells and from the main pancreatic duct. Double immunofluorescence revealed co-expression of choline acetyltransferase with structural (cytokeratin 18, villin, advillin) tuft cell markers and eicosanoid signaling (cyclooxygenase 1, hematopoietic prostaglandin D synthase, 5-lipoxygenase activating protein) biomolecules. Our results indicate that region-specific cholinergic signaling of tuft cells plays a role in mucosal immunity in health and disease, especially in infection and cancer.
Topics: 5-Lipoxygenase-Activating Proteins; Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Biliary Tract; Child; Cyclooxygenase 1; Epithelial Cells; Female; Humans; Intestinal Mucosa; Intestines; Intramolecular Oxidoreductases; Keratin-18; Male; Microfilament Proteins; Middle Aged; Pancreas; Signal Transduction; Young Adult
PubMed: 31767912
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-53997-3 -
Medical Ultrasonography Jun 2010Biliary system diseases are a common pathology in medical practice. A frequent situation in everyday practice is a patient with pain in the right upper quadrant, in... (Review)
Review
Biliary system diseases are a common pathology in medical practice. A frequent situation in everyday practice is a patient with pain in the right upper quadrant, in which the suspicion of biliary disease is the first diagnosis to confirm or exclude. Ultrasound is a reliable method for the evaluation of the biliary system and is the first method of choice when a biliary disease is suspected. Ideally a correct examination of the gallbladder and the biliary tree is performed on fasting patients. The gallbladder is evaluated by means of right subcostal oblique sections while for the hilum evaluation sections perpendicular on the ribs are used. The structures are assessed regarding their size, wall thickness and content.
Topics: Biliary Tract; Gallbladder; Humans; Reference Values; Ultrasonography
PubMed: 21173944
DOI: No ID Found -
World Journal of Gastroenterology May 2006The aim of this paper was to describe functional biliary syndromes and methods for evaluation of the biliary tract in these patients. Functional biliary symptoms can be... (Review)
Review
The aim of this paper was to describe functional biliary syndromes and methods for evaluation of the biliary tract in these patients. Functional biliary symptoms can be defined as biliary symptoms without demonstrable organic substrate. Two main syndromes exist: Gallbladder dysfunction and sphincter of Oddi dysfunction. The most important investigative tools are cholescintigraphy and endoscopic sphincter of Oddi manometry. In gallbladder dysfunction a scintigraphic gallbladder ejection fraction below 35% can select patients who will benefit from cholecystectomy. Endoscopic sphincter of Oddi manometry is considered the gold standard in sphincter of Oddi dysfunction but recent development in scintigraphic methods is about to change this. Thus, calculation of hilum-to-duodenum transit time and duodenal appearance time on cholescintigraphy have proven useful in these patients. In conclusion, ambient methods can diagnose functional biliary syndromes. However, there are still a number of issues where further knowledge is needed. Probably the next step forward will be in the area of sensory testing and impedance planimetric methods.
Topics: Biliary Dyskinesia; Biliary Tract; Biliary Tract Diseases; Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal; Gallbladder; Gastrointestinal Motility; Humans; Manometry; Radionuclide Imaging; Sphincter of Oddi Dysfunction; Ultrasonography
PubMed: 16718807
DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v12.i18.2839 -
Seminars in Liver Disease Feb 2011In most cholangiopathies, liver diseases of different etiologies in which the biliary epithelium is the primary target in the pathogenic sequence, the central mechanism... (Review)
Review
In most cholangiopathies, liver diseases of different etiologies in which the biliary epithelium is the primary target in the pathogenic sequence, the central mechanism involves inflammation. Inflammation, characterized by pleomorphic peribiliary infiltrate containing fibroblasts, macrophages, lymphocytes, as well as endothelial cells and pericytes, is associated to the emergence of "reactive cholangiocytes." These biliary cells do not possess bile secretory functions, are in contiguity with terminal cholangioles, and are of a less-differentiated phenotype. They have acquired several mesenchymal properties, including motility and ability to secrete a vast number of proinflammatory chemo/cytokines and growth factors along with de novo expression of a rich receptor machinery. These functional properties enable reactive cholangiocytes to establish intimate contacts and to mutually exchange a variety of paracrine signals with the different mesenchymal cell types populating the portal infiltrate. The extensive crosstalk between the epithelial and mesenchymal compartments is the driver of liver repair mechanisms in cholangiopathies, ultimately evolving toward portal fibrosis. Herein, the authors first review the properties of the different cell types involved in their interaction, and then analyze the underlying molecular mechanisms as they relate to liver repair in cholangiopathies.
Topics: Animals; Biliary Tract; Biliary Tract Diseases; Cell Communication; Cell Differentiation; Epithelial Cells; Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition; Humans; Mesoderm; Signal Transduction
PubMed: 21344348
DOI: 10.1055/s-0031-1272832 -
Mechanisms of Development Jan 2003
Review
Topics: Animals; Biliary Tract; Humans; Liver; Mesoderm; Morphogenesis
PubMed: 12490298
DOI: 10.1016/s0925-4773(02)00334-9 -
Gut Jul 1994At one time it was thought that biliary epithelial cells simply formed the lining to the tubular conduits which constitute the biliary tract. Development of in vitro... (Review)
Review
At one time it was thought that biliary epithelial cells simply formed the lining to the tubular conduits which constitute the biliary tract. Development of in vitro systems for culturing biliary epithelial cells has enabled functional studies which increasingly show that this is far from true, and that biliary epithelial cells do have important functional roles. Disruption of these functions may be involved in the generation of pathology. Most functional studies to date have utilised cells isolated from rat liver. Increasingly, variations are being found between human and animal cells both in terms of function and phenotype. The relevance of animal cells in the study of human disease therefore remains obscure. Human biliary tract disease has to date been studied almost exclusively by examination of histological sections. The development of improved methods for isolating highly pure biliary epithelial cells from human liver provides a new technology with which to investigate directly the dynamics of human biliary epithelial cell biology and pathobiology. It is predicted that further progress will now be made in dissecting the biology and physiology of human biliary epithelium.
Topics: Animals; Biliary Tract; Cell Separation; Cells, Cultured; Epithelial Cells; Epithelium; Gastroenterology; Humans
PubMed: 8063212
DOI: 10.1136/gut.35.7.875 -
Liver International : Official Journal... Apr 2016Increasing evidence points to the contribution of the intestinal microbiome as a potentially key determinant in the initiation and/or progression of hepatobiliary... (Review)
Review
Increasing evidence points to the contribution of the intestinal microbiome as a potentially key determinant in the initiation and/or progression of hepatobiliary disease. While current understanding of this dynamic is incomplete, exciting insights are continually being made and more are expected given the developments in molecular and high-throughput omics techniques. In this brief review, we provide a practical and updated synopsis of the interaction of the intestinal microbiome with the liver and its downstream impact on the initiation, progression and complications of hepatobiliary disease.
Topics: Animals; Biliary Tract; Biliary Tract Diseases; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Health; Host-Pathogen Interactions; Humans; Inflammation Mediators; Intestines; Liver; Liver Diseases; Microbiota; Signal Transduction
PubMed: 26561779
DOI: 10.1111/liv.13009 -
World Journal of Gastroenterology Jun 2006Basic and translational wound healing research in the biliary tree lag significantly behind similar studies on the skin and gastrointestinal tract. This is at least... (Review)
Review
Basic and translational wound healing research in the biliary tree lag significantly behind similar studies on the skin and gastrointestinal tract. This is at least partly attributable to lack of easy access to the biliary tract for study. But clinical relevance, more interest in biliary epithelial cell (BEC) pathophysiology, and widespread availability of BEC cultures are factors reversing this trend. In the extra-hepatic biliary tree, ineffectual wound healing, scarring and stricture development are pressing issues. In the smallest intra-hepatic bile ducts either impaired BEC proliferation or an exuberant response can contribute to liver disease. Chronic inflammation and persistent wound healing reactions in large and small bile ducts often lead to liver cancer. General concepts of wound healing as they apply to the biliary tract, importance of cellular processes dependent on IL-6/gp130/STAT3 signaling pathways, unanswered questions, and future directions are discussed.
Topics: Animals; Bile Ducts; Bile Ducts, Extrahepatic; Bile Ducts, Intrahepatic; Biliary Tract; Biliary Tract Diseases; Cell Proliferation; Cytokine Receptor gp130; Epithelium; Humans; Inflammation; Interleukin-6; Liver Diseases; STAT3 Transcription Factor; Signal Transduction; Wound Healing
PubMed: 16773708
DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v12.i22.3512