Gut Liver.  2016 Jan;10(1):109-116. 10.5009/gnl14345.

Clinical Implications of the Serum Apelin Level on Portal Hypertension and Prognosis of Liver Cirrhosis

• Lim YL
• Choi E
• Jang YO
• Cho YZ
• Kang YS
• Baik SK
• Kwon SO
• Kim MY

• KMID: 2382351
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5009/gnl14345

Abstract

BACKGROUND/AIMS
Levels of serum apelin (s-apelin), an endogenous ligand for angiotensin-like receptor 1, have been shown to be related to hepatic fibrosis and hemodynamic abnormalities in preclinical studies. We investigated the clinical implications of s-apelin as a noninvasive prognostic biomarker for chronic liver disease (CLD).
METHODS
From January 2009 to December 2012, 215 CLD patients were enrolled and underwent clinical data collection, hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) measurement, and liver biopsy. s-apelin was detected with a human total apelin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. All patients were prospectively observed during the median follow-up period of 23.0±12.9 months for decompensation and mortality.
RESULTS
A total of 42 patients (19.5%) died during the follow-up period. s-apelin was significantly correlated with measurements of liver stiffness (R2=0.263, p<0.001) and collagen proportional area (R2=0.213, p<0.001) measured from liver biopsy tissue and HVPG (R2=0.356, p<0.001). In a multivariate analysis using a Cox regression hazard model, s-apelin was a weakly significant predictor of decompensation (hazard ratio [HR], 1.002; p<0.001) and mortality (HR, 1.003; p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS
s-apelin showed a significant relationship with CLD severity. However, its significance as a noninvasive biomarker for disease severity and prognosis was weak.

Keyword

Apelin; Portal hypertension; Liver cirrhosis; Prognosis; Biological markers

MeSH Terms

Adult
Biomarkers/blood
Biopsy
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
Female
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Hypertension, Portal/*blood/complications/mortality
Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins/*blood
Liver/blood supply/pathology
Liver Cirrhosis/*blood/etiology/mortality/pathology
Male
Middle Aged
Portal Pressure
Prognosis
Proportional Hazards Models
Prospective Studies
Biomarkers
Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins