Ghrelin's second life - World Journal of Gastroenterology

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doi:10.3748/wjg.v18.i25.3196
Toru Ishikawa, MD, PhD, Series Editor
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3196
World J Gastroenterol 2012 July 7; 18(25): 3196-3200
ISSN 1007-9327 (print) ISSN 2219-2840 (online)
© 2012 Baishideng. All rights reserved.
TOPIC HIGHLIGHT
Can zinc enhance response interferon therapy for patients
with HCV-related liver disease?
Toru Ishikawa
Toru Ishikawa, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology,
Saiseikai Niigata Daini Hospital, Niigata 950-1104, Japan
Author contributions: Ishikawa T contributed solely to this
review.
Correspondence to: Toru Ishikawa, MD, PhD, Department
of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Saiseikai Niigata Daini
Hospital, 280-7 Teraji, Niigata 950-1104,
Japan. toruishi@ngt.saiseikai.or.jp
Telephone: +81-25-2336161 Fax: +81-25-2338880
Received: August 17, 2011 Revised: September 24, 2011
Accepted: October 11, 2011
Published online: July 7, 2012
Abstract
Patients with liver disease may be at risk of zinc depletion.
Zinc supplementation has been shown to contribute
to inhibition of liver fibrosis and improvement in
hepatic encephalopathy. However, little is known about
the anti-inflammatory effect of zinc on hepatitis C virus
(HCV)-related chronic liver disease. The standard
of care for chronic HCV has improved markedly since
the approval of interferon (IFN) therapy more than a
decade ago. Over the past 20 years, IFN therapy has
improved to more effectively eliminate the virus, progressing
from single IFN therapy to combination therapy
with ribavirin (RBV) and finally to pegylated IFN
(PEG-IFN) therapy. However, even combined therapy
with PEG-IFN and RBV for 48 wk is unable to eliminate
the virus in some 40% of hepatitis C cases, particularly
those with genotype 1b and high viral load. Treatment
options for patients who have relapsed or are refractory
to treatment with PEG-IFN and RBV therefore
need to be critically assessed. This paper overviews
the relationship between chronic liver disease and zinc
metabolism.
© 2012 Baishideng. All rights reserved.
Key words: Chronic hepatitis C; Zinc; Interferon therapy
Peer reviewers: Heitor Rosa, Professor, Department of Gastroenterology
and Hepatology, Federal University School of Medicine,
Rua 126 n.21, Goiania-GO 74093-080, Brazil; Natalia A
Osna, MD, PhD, Liver Study Unit, Research Service (151), VA
Medical Center, 4101 Woolworth Avenue, Omaha, NE 68105,
United States
Ishikawa T. Can zinc enhance response interferon therapy for
patients with HCV-related liver disease? World J Gastroenterol
2012; 18(25): 3196-3200 Available from: URL: http://www.
wjgnet.com/1007-9327/full/v18/i25/3196.htm DOI: http://
dx.doi.org/10.3748/wjg.v18.i25.3196
LIVER DISEASE AND ABNORMAL METAL
METABOLISM
Abnormal metal metabolism, which is related to liver
disease, has long been a subject of pathological study,
particularly storage diseases such as iron metabolism in
hemochromatosis [1] and copper metabolism in Wilson’s
disease [2] .
As nutrition science has advanced, it has recently been
pointed out that trace metallic elements in blood play essential
roles, and abnormal metal metabolism involving
metal deficiency in various diseases has been studied.
Zinc is an essential trace element in the human body,
with approximately 2 g distributed throughout the body
of a healthy adult, including many organs [3-5] . In vivo, this
element stimulates the activity of as many as 300 metal
enzymes and metal-activated enzymes, and is crucial
for nucleic acids and protein metabolism. Zinc plays an
important role in the activity of many enzyme proteins,
and a deficiency of zinc causes various pathologic disorders
in the human body.
Regarding zinc metabolism abnormality in liver disease,
in 1951 Vikbladh pointed out that the zinc content
in serum was low in the case of various liver diseases [6] ,
and conjectured that serum contains albumin loosely
July 7, 2012|Volume 18|Issue 25|