Cytokines in alcoholic liver disease

Cytokines are low-molecular-weight mediators of cellular communication prod uced by multiple cell types in the liver with rite Kupffer cell critically important. Inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor; interleuki n-1, and interleukin-8, and hepatic acute-phase cytokines such as interleuk in-6 play a role in modulating certain metabolic complications in alcoholic fiver disease and probably play a role in the liver injury of alcoholic li ver disease. Two potential inducers of cytokine production in alcoholic liv er disease are endotoxin and reactive oxygen species generated after ethano l metabolism. Cytotoxic cytokines likely induce liver cell death by both ne crosis and apoptosis in alcoholic liver disease. Anticytokine therapy has b een highly successful in attenuating cell injury death in a variety of toxi n-induced models of liver injury including alcohol-related liver injury. An ticytokine therapy has been used successfully in humans in disease processe s such as Crohn's disease and rheumatoid arthritis. There is an emerging ra tionale for use of anticytokine therapy in alcoholic liver disease, with th e goal of maintaining beneficial effects of cytokines and inhibition of the deleterious effects of these potentially toxic agents.