Clinical significance of e-antigen/anti-e, with special reference to HBc-antigen in the liver

e-antigen and anti-e were assayed in sera of asymptomatic HBs-Ag carriers and of patients with liver diseases. Thirteen out of 34 (38.2%) asymptomatic carriers were positive for e-antigen, which was in sharp contrast to the reports from USA and Europe. e-antigen was detected to a greater extent in patients with chronic active hepatitis, reversely anti-e in patients with chronic persistent hepatitis. However, e-antigen was found rarely in patients with cirrhosis and never in 23 cases with hepatoma positive for HBs-Ag. HBc-Ag in the liver was detected in 4 out of 8 e-antigen positive asymptomatic carriers and in 4 out of 5 patients with chronic liver diseases with e-antigen respectively, and moreover in 3 out of 14 anti-e positive cases, so that the presence of anti-e did not necessarily mean the negativity of HBc-Ag in the liver. Anti-HBc titer, however, was lower in anti-e positive sera than in e-antigen positive ones. This may implicate the decreased replication of HBV in cases with anti-e. These results emphasize that the investigation of e-antigen/anti-e is mandatory for the evaluation of the prognosis of asymptomatic carriers and of patients with chronic hepatitis.

Anti-HBc titer in relation to the etiological role of hepatitis B virus in primary hepatocellular carcinoma

The antibody to hepatitis B core antigen (anti-HBc) is belived to be a marker for natural infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV). In order to study the etiological role of HBV in relation to primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC), the anti-HBc in sera of 31 PHC patients was surveyed by the immune adherence hemagglutination method which was about 10 times more sensitive than the complement fixation method. Twenty two out of 31 PHC cases were positive for anti-HBc (71.0%). The is a higher rate of incidence than that of HBs-Ag (51.6%). However, high anti-HBc titer above 2(10) which might reflect current infection with HBV was observed in 15 of these 22 cases. The remaining 7 cases had a titer lower than 2(8); 5 of these patients had neither HBs-Ag nor anti-HBs in their sera. As control, 37 anti-HBs positive blood donors with no definite liver disease were surveyed for anti-HBc titer. Thirty-four of them were positive, but in the majority of cases, the serum titer was less than 2(9), which might only reflect previous infection with HBV. These findings indicate that not only the prevalence of anti-HBc, but also the determination of its real titer is quite important for studying the relationship of HBV to PHC.

Metabolism of linoleamides. I. Absorption, excretion and metabolism of N-(alpha-methylbenzyl)linoleamide in rat and man

1. In urine of rats dosed with N-(alpha-methylbenzyl)linoleamide (MBLA), three dicarboxylic acid monoamides, N-(alpha-methylbenzyl)succinic acid monoamide, N-(alpha-methylbenzyl)glutaric acid monoamide and N-(alpha-methylbenzyl)adipic acid monoamide, were identified. Conjugated alpha-methylbenzylamine, hippuric acid and conjugates of the dicarboxylic acid monoamides were also found in the urine. N-(alpha-Methylbenzyl)succinic acid monoamide was the main metabolite in rats. 2. Biliary excretion of radioactivity was studied in rats, cannulated for collection of bile and duodenal infusion, after oral administration of N-(alpha-methylbenzyl)[1-14C]linoleamide. With constant duodenal infusion of bile, about 7% of the dose was excreted in the bile, while excretion of radioactivity was negligible without bile infusion. 3. The g.l.c. analysis of human urine after oral administration of MBLA revealed that two dicarboxylic acid monoamides were present and N-(alpha-methylbenzyl)succinic acid monoamide was the main metabolite. 4. MBLA was excreted unchanged in the faeces of men who received MBLA to the extent of about 53% dose in 3 days. 5. MBLA was not detected (less than 1 mug/ml) in the serum of a volunteer who had been taking an oral daily dose of 1500 mg of MBLA for 3 months.

Metabolism of linoleamides. II. Absorption, distribution, excretion and metabolism of N-[alpha-phenyl-beta-(p-tolyl)ethyl]linoleamide

1. Absorption, distribution, excretion and metabolism of (-)N-[alpha-phenyl-beta-(p-tolyl)ethyl][14C]linoleamide (14C-PTLA) were studied in rats and dogs. Faecal excretion of PTLA was studied in dogs and men by g.l.c. 2. 14C-PTLA (10 mg/kg) given orally to rats resulted in urinary and faecal excretion of radioactivity of 2 and 93%, respectively, by male rats and 8 and 87% by female rats in 48 h. Faecal excretion of PTLA in men was similar to that in rats. 3. Distribution of radioactivity in rats and dogs after oral administration of 14C-PTLA showed that a major part of the dose was not absorbed. 4. N-[alpha-phenyl-beta-(p-tolyl)ethyl]glutaric acid monoamide were detected in the urine of rats dosed orally with 14C-PTLA.

Inhibition of cholesterol absorption by (-)N-[alpha-phenyl-beta-(p-tolyl)ethyl] linoleamide in rats

The effect of (-)N-[alpha-phenyl-beta-(p-tolyl)ethyl] linoleamide (PTLA) on intestinal absorption of cholesterol was studied in rats. Oral administration of 15 mg PTLA to rats resulted in a significant (P less than 0.05) decrease in the radioactivity in serum and liver 4 hr after administration of labeled cholesterol. The effect of PTLA was greater on the absorption of cholesteryl oleate as compared with free cholesterol. The rate of hydrolysis of cholesteryl oleate in mucosal homogenates of rat intestine was decreased with PTLA, suggesting that the inhibition of cholesterol absorption by PTLA is related to its effect on cholesteryl ester hydrolysis in the intestine.

Effect of (-)N-[alpha-phenyl-beta-(p-tolyl)ethyl] linoleamide on lipid levels in serum and liver in cholesterol-fed rats

The effect of (-)N-[alpha-phenyl-beta-(p-tolyl)ethyl] linoleamide (PTLA) on lipid levels in serum and liver was compared with that of sitosterols in rats maintained on a diet supplemented with 1% of cholesterol, 0.5% of ox bile extracts, and 10% of hydrogenated coconut oil for 8 weeks. When PTLA was added to the diet at a level of 0.1%, the mean liver cholesterol level of male rats was reduced to 41% of the control and that of female rats was reduced to 19% of the control. In female rats, which showed higher cholesterol levels in serum and liver than male rats after cholesterol feeding, PTLA lowered the liver cholesterol level even at 0.0008% in the diet. Serum cholesterol was lowered by PTLA but not so markedly as liver cholesterol. The inhibition of cholesterol deposition in the liver suggests that the interference with cholesterol absorption is one of the main actions of PTLA. Sitosterols showed a similar pattern of lipid-lowering action, but the potency was far less than that of PTLA.

HBs-Ag, HBc-Ag and virus-like particles in liver tissue

Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBs-Ag) and hepatitis B core antigen (HBc-Ag) in hepatic tissue of 3 cases with various liver diseases were investigated by immunofluorescent method. Virus-like particles were demonstrated by electron microscopy in the nuclei of these 3 cases. The localization of HBs-Ag was restricted in cytoplasma or on the surface of hepatocyte, while HBc-Ag was almost in the hepatocytic nuclei. However, there was unexplainable discrepancy between the distribution of HBs-Ag and that of HBc-Ag, as more the former in number and less that latter, of hepatocytes. The size of virus-like particles in nuclei was 22-27 nm in diameter. Most of them were hollow, but some of them were wholly electron dense. Their distribution was various from case to case. Discussion was made on the correlation between the presence of Hepatitis B virus and HBs-Ag or HBc-Ag.