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Semin Liver Dis 1998; 18(2): 169-176
DOI: 10.1055/s-2007-1007152
ORIGINAL ARTICLE

© 1998 by Thieme Medical Publishers, Inc.

Apoptosis and Viral Hepatitis

Johnson Y.N. Lau1 , 2 , Xiaoming Xie1 , Michael M.C. Lai3 , 4 , P. C. Wu5
  • 1Section of Hepatobiliary Diseases, Division of Gasteroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Department of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
  • 2Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
  • 3Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, University of Southern California School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California
  • 4Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Los Angeles, California
  • 5Department of Pathology, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
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Publication History

Publication Date:
17 March 2008 (online)

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ABSTRACT

Viral hepatitis is a diffuse inflammatory reaction of the liver caused by hepatotropic viruses. Patho-morphologic studies have shown acidophilic bodies and hepatocyte dropout, features that are compatible with apoptosis. Using in situ terminal transferase labeling, the number of hepatocytes showing features of apoptosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B and C was found to be small but higher than healthy subjects, indicating that apoptosis is involved in the pathogenesis of these diseases. There is evidence that the immune (cytotoxic Tlymphocyte)-mediated pathways of apoptosis are activated, suggesting that the apoptosis of liver cells may at least in part be related to the host immune defense. Whether other cytokine-mediated and cellular constitutive apoptotic pathways are involved or not remains to be studied. There are recent data suggesting that hepatitis B and C viral proteins may modulate apoptosis. The exact role of these observations in relation to pathogenesis remains to be established.

KEY WORDS

viral hepatitis - HBV - HCV - pathology - apoptosis

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