N. Nagata et al., AN ENZYME IMMUNE ASSAY FOR SERUM ANTI-ACETALDEHYDE ADDUCT ANTIBODY USING LOW-DENSITY-LIPOPROTEIN ADDUCT AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE IN ALCOHOLIC LIVER-INJURY, Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research, 22(3), 1998, pp. 150-155
An acetaldehyde (AcH) adduct was prepared using rabbit low-density lip
oprotein as carder proteins. An antibody against this adduct was raise
d in Watanabe heritable hyperlipidemic rabbits and crossreacted with h
uman low-density lipoprotein and bovine serum albumin adducts. Using t
his antibody, serum anti-AcH-adduct antibody levels were measured by a
direct ELISA method in 56 Japanese adults (healthy adults and patient
s with nonalcoholic gastrointestinal diseases, alcoholic liver injury,
or alcoholic pancreatitis). The antibody level (mean +/- SD) was 22 /- 10 mu g/ml in healthy adults, 22 +/- 11 mu g/ml in nonalcoholic gas
trointestinal diseases, and 16 +/- 13 mu g/ml in alcoholic pancreatiti
s. These antibody levels tended to increase with the progression of al
coholic liver injury, starting from fatty liver via hepatitis to cirrh
osis, 29 +/- 24 mu g/ml in fatty liver, 35 +/- 29 mu g/ml in alcoholic
hepatitis, and 46 +/- 54 mu g/ml in alcoholic cirrhosis. The antibody
level in patients taking 100 g or more of ethanol per day tended to b
e higher, compared with those in people taking less ethanol. A follow-
up observation revealed that alcohol abstinence after hospitalization
raised serum anti-AcH-adduct antibody level in some patients and kept
it constantly low in other patients. The immunohistochemical study usi
ng the anti-AcH-adduct antibody revealed the presence of adduct-like s
ubstance in hepatocytes of liver biopsy specimens obtained from patien
ts with alcoholic liver disease. The results indicate that the anti-Ac
H-adduct antibody may be associated with the progress of alcoholic liv
er diseases.